Choosing Rose Names

Some guide lines to help you choose a name for your rose

Proposing a new and original name for a rose requires a bit of thought and accordingly many are frustrated when they cannot get the name they want. Here are some simple rules which will help you:

Novelty

Before creating a name for a cultivar, make sure your proposed name is unique and it cannot be confused either in spelling or pronunciation with another existing one. We can check this for you.

Length

The name should not have more than 10 syllables and no more than 30 characters, excluding spaces and single quotation marks.

Merit

The name could not be interpretated, as being likely to exaggerate the merits of the cultivar, (like 'Best Ever', 'The Greatest'), also it should not only be made up of simple descriptive words. (e.g. 'Red', 'Giant White').

Punctuation

Do not use any punctuation marks except for an apostrophe, comma, a single exclamation mark, hyphen or full-stop.

Banned Words

Certain words (or their equivalents in any language) are banned words and they cannot be used in the name, these are: cross, hybrid, grex, group, form, maintenance, mutant, seedling, selection, sport, strain, variety (or the plural for of these words in any language) or the words 'improved' or 'transformed'.

Genus and common name

If your name is a single word, make sure that the word is not the same as that of a genus, whether in botanical Latin or in a modern language. Erica, Daphne, Iris and Veronica happen to be Latin names of genera and are not permitted as cultivar names even though they are personal names as well. Similarly, Rose and Violet are common names of the genera and they too are not permitted. However, such a word may be used in a name of two or more words provided that it does not form the final word ('Erica Smith', 'Iris Jones' and 'Rose Queen' are acceptable but 'Queen Rose' is not acceptable)

Also make sure that your name does not contain the botanical or common name of its genus or the common name of any species in that genus. i.e. 'Rosa Christmas Rose'

Name of natural person or organisation

When the name consists of a name of a natural person living at the time of the application a written consent to the name of the cultivar will be required from that person. If that person is deceased within 10 years before the application was lodged then a written consent will be required from the legal representative of that person. If the name consists of a name of a corporation or other organisation, then a written consent will be required from that organisation.