THE U.S. NATIONAL ARBORETUM SERVES AS INTERNATIONAL CULTIVAR REGISTRAR FOR LAGERSTROEMIA, CERCIS, AND UNASSIGNED WOODY GENERA

The U.S. National Arboretum serves as International Cultivar Registration Authority (ICRA) for Lagerstroemia, Cercis, and Unassigned Woody Genera (Fig. 1). An ICRA serves to collate and publish cultivar names of plant groups in order to prevent duplication of a cultivar name and to provide a resource of all known cultivar names in a checklist form. The International Society for Horticultural Science administers the International Cultivar Registration Authorities via the Nomenclature and Cultivar Registration Commission. The aims of the ICRA are to: prevent duplicated uses of cultivar and group epithets; ensure names are in accord with latest edition of ICNP; to maintain a voluntary, non-statutory system; encourage self-policing of nomenclature; be international in scope; and the success depends on co-operation of all those involved with creation and marketing of new plants. The Arboretum’s role as ICRA for three plant groups is of significance to researchers, plant breeders, and those involved with the marketing of new plants. The curation of plant names for those groups can improve the naming, organization, and understanding of those groups for professionals who work with them. In addition there is a general benefit to the aforementioned parties, as well as the general public, that the Arboretum will maintain lists of named plants in those groups that also contain valuable horticultural and historical information. This information may aid industry professionals and homeowners interested in attaining the correct plants for their particular usage http://www.usna.usda.gov/Research/Herbarium/Lagerstroemia/index. html.