PBR - What does it mean?

You may have wondered what the initials PBR mean after plant names on labels and other information, for instance Sorbaria 'Sem' PBR, Astrantia 'Roma' PBR, Geranium 'Rozanne' PBR for example.  These letters stand for Plant Breeders Rights.  This is like a copyright placed on music, any written material, film rights etc.  The initials are usually placed after the name of any new or relatively new plant that has been introduced for you to buy and nurseries/garden centres etc to sell to you.

This means that any outlet selling a plant with these initials after the latin name is not allowed by law to propagate this plant for sale.  The plant has to be bought in by the seller.  It can either be bought in as a fully grown plant  and re-sold (garden centres) or bought in from licensed breeders as a small plant or liner, as it is called in the trade, and then grown on to a saleable size by the nursery or grower.

Anyone found to be flouting these regulations can be prosecuted.  It also applies to you, if you propagate any of these plants for sale as well.  For instance, if you open your garden to the public and sell your home grown plants or grow them to sell to help any charity that you support.  You can propagate and grow them for use in your own garden but not to sell.  Please take care as monitoring does take place.

There is disagreement within the industry about this practice.  Some plant breeders feel that they want to share new plants freely and so disagree with these regulations and do not attach them or apply for copyright on any new varieties plants that they breed or introduce.  Other plant breeders apply them rigorously.  I fully support anyone that wishes to earn some recompense for many years of work in breeding a new variety but do not always support those who try to re-introduce an older possibly forgotten variety as a new intoduction.  

Wherever views we hold, we still need to take care.  The regulations are there and we need to make sure that we understand them and abide by them so that we do not get into any trouble.