Re: Clones

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Jamie,

You mean there aren't any registered (registered with some governing 
body) daylily that didn't come into being by sex!  I thought one could 
pollinate daylilies and then the plant grown from the seed would not be 
considered a clone.

Darlene

Darlene,

although that was not the point I was aiming for, as far as I know, there are no registered daylilies that were asexually produced.  If there were, they would be stabile mutations that were then registered.

I think we need to step back a bit.  The concept of clone is much simpler than many of you are believing.  A clone is ANY unique genome.  An example; we have just crossed two plants belonging to different genetic make-up (two different clones) or not.  This doesn't matter.  They produce seed.  We raise this seed to new plants.  Each of these off-spring are clones.  Genetically unique units. Every seed will produce a unique clone.  The only exception to this is apomixis, which is found in certain plants, such as the genus Sorbus, i.e., or parthenogenisis in the animal world.  We may choose to name some, as we have found them of quality, or we may decide to use them as parents for another generation.  This later group would typically be refered to as Clone 1, Clone 6, Clone 12, etc. as a method of identifiing them.  All of these offspring are genetically unique.  All are individual clones.

As you see, it is a very simple definition.  The confusion has arisen due to the romance involved with the word.  Also, depending on your profession, the word may be used in a more specialised manner, yet the definition is still the same.  A unique genetics.

Another item we are bantering about are the terms variety, forma and cultivar.  These have been recently sorted for nomenclature.  The word variety is now rarely used botanically, with forma prefered.  A forma is a described variation of an otherwise defined unit.  Thus, a taxon.  A variety is anything, more or less, that can be seperated from others.  This has nothing more to do with taxon, clone, etc.  One can say the red varieties, the short varieties, the hardy varieties.  It is very general.  This leads us to cultivar, which is the contraction of cultivated variety.  In other words, a variety that is identified and further cultivated.  It has no official meaning, although it is amply used to speak/write of plant breeding/marketing, and so on.  It is not to be confused with a strain, which is a defined, non-clonal group of organisms.  It has variation, yet, enough qualities in common to be placed under a strains definition/description.  Snapdragons, petunias, zinnias, etc are available as strains, as are many plants.

-- Jamie V.
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Köln (Cologne)
Germany
Zone 8