Plant Naming and Catalogue Numbers

Plant Naming

Tankquility follows the naming conventions below for plants listed on this site. These conventions allow visitors to know the level of confidence we place in the name of a plant appearing here (ie. is the identification accurate or likely to be accurate). It also facilitates the distinction between cultivar/trade names and names that are of a descriptive nature.

Species: Standard Latin binomials are used when we are confident in the identification of a plant species (eg. Cryptocoryne wendtii). When a degree of uncertainty is attached to the name given, we apply square bracketing to indicate this (eg. Cryptocoryne [wendtii]).

Horticultural Cultivars/Trade Names: A recognised cultivar name or trade name follows the genus (and species if known) name and is contained within single quotation marks. They are written with the first letter of each word capitalised. An example is Peperomia caperata 'Schumi Red'. If a species synonym (which by convention is uncapitalised) is used for a cultivar name or trade name, the first letter of the word is capitalised.

Arbitrary Descriptive Naming: Sometimes a name is applied to a plant that is purely descriptive and has no formal justification or usage. It is contained within double quotation marks. The name is written with the first letter of each word uncapitalised, and if two or more words are used, they are hyphenated. An example is Begonia burkillii "dark-form". If a proper noun is used as a descriptive name or within a descriptive phrase, the first letter of the word is capitalised.

 

Tankquility Catalogue Numbers

It is possible that over time, a plant name will change due to taxonomic updates or a plant in the collection may produce an inflorescence which allows its species name to be applied. This can cause labelling and curation issues within a collection. By applying a unique identifier to each plant clone in a collection, these problems can be overcome. The Tankquility Catalogue Number thus enables us to accurately track plant clones as a unique code always follows each plant, regardless of its Latin or trade identification at any point in time. It also allows our customers to check for updates to identifications on any plant purchase (simply search the website for the TQ number the plant was purchased under!).

All plants listed on our website have a Tankquility Catalogue Number detailed on the product page. If the number is preceded by the prefix TQ-, it means the plant is from a clonal line that is carefully tracked. Occasionally we sell plants that are not clonally produced. This may be because it is difficult to ensure clonal integrity; seed spread may be hard to control. Or perhaps the plant is slow growing or difficult to propagate clonally, and growing from seed or spore is more convenient. In these cases, the Tankquility Catalogue Number is preceded by the prefix TQs- as there might be some slight variation in these plants from the product page description and images.