What's in a name? Useful definitions for reading plant labels

Plant labels can be difficult to read, even for the most experienced gardener. From wild-types to ecotypes and varieties to subspecies, this guide is designed to teach you about the botanical Latin and abbreviations seen on plant labels across the nursery trade.

This is a resource developed for gardeners by the Garden Ecology Lab. Additional resources in this series include a printable pocket guide, a how-to-buy native plant guide, and an episode on the PolliNation podcast.

Components of a scientific name

Scientific names

Photo: Jen J-M. Hayes

Label terms

Use arrows to scroll different plant labels.

Straight species

Example: Achillea millefolium

A plant species that has not been bred or modified in any way. These plants should look exactly like a plant of the same species growing in the wild (i.e., a wild-type). A straight species is not necessarily a native plant, or harvested from a local population.

How to tell: The plant's scientific name (genus & specific epithet) is listed, without any other names in single quotation marks.

Photo: Jen J-M. Hayes
Subspecies

Example: Achillea millefolium ssp. lanulosa

A plant population geographically isolated from others of the same species. Denoted with ‘ssp.’ between the species and subspecies name.

How to tell: The plant’s scientific name is followed by “ssp.” and a subspecies name listed in italics.

Photo: Jen J-M. Hayes
Variety

Example: Achillea millefolium var. occidentalis

A variety is a naturally occurring form of a plant population within a species, such as a white-flowered form of a normally pink-flowered plant. Varieties are denoted with ‘var.’ between the species and variety name.

How to tell: The plant’s scientific name is followed by “var.” and a variety name listed in italics.

Photo: Jen J-M. Hayes
Cultivar

Example: Achillea millefolium ‘Calistoga’

Cultivar = cultivated variety. Cultivars are plant forms developed by humans, rather than those that are naturally occurring. Sometimes cultivars are developed from naturally occurring varieties, but they are bred to be distinct, uniform, and stable, and they are also named. A cultivar name is listed in single quotation marks following the scientific name of a plant.

How to tell: The plant’s scientific name (genus & specific epithet) is followed by a name in single quotation marks (‘Calistoga’).

Photo: Jen J-M. Hayes
Hybrid Cultivar

Example: Achillea ‘Moonshine’

Hybrids are plants with parents from 2+ different species or genera. Like cultivars, hybrid cultivars have a name listed in single quotation marks, but they typically only have the genus listed before the cultivar name. Some hybrid cultivars have an ‘x’ in their name, between the genus and cultivar name.

How to tell: Only the plant’s genus is listed, followed by a name in single quotation marks (‘Moonshine’).

Photo: Jen J-M. Hayes

Want to learn more about this topic? Explore more resources from OSU Extension: Flowers, shrubs and trees, Gardening techniques

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What's in a name? Useful definitions for reading plant labels

Components of a scientific name

Scientific names

Label terms

Use arrows to scroll different plant labels.

Straight species

Subspecies

Variety

Cultivar

Hybrid Cultivar

Was this page helpful?

Related Content from OSU Extension

Have a question? Ask Extension!