Alright, I thought of something else. I am sure you have seen orchid names that included a “var.” or an “f.” followed by a descriptive term. Let me try to explain what this means.
Variation (var.) means there is a difference between this plant and what you would typically expect from the species. Examples include the size of the plant or the size of the flower or perhaps the growth habit of the plant is abnormal. The variation term is not limited to a certain geographical area. So if only plants from the Philippines had a certain trait, “var.” would not be used to describe it. Therefore, Cattleya [C.] labiata var. atropurpurea would be a variation of what you would typically expect from this species orchid.
Form (f.) or forma in Latin, describes a sporadic mutation that can be found from time to time in the general population of a species. It is commonly used for color variations like f. alba. I found an example where both the var. and the f. are included in a single name. Cattleya labiata var. autumnalis f. alba. It is not always restricted to color but it always refers to mutations in the general population. Note that Kew does not recognize variety and form as part of the orchid name but OrchidWiz and most everyone else does. I would certainly want to know if I were buying the alba form of an orchid.
Here are a couple of good references on this subject:
http://orchidkarma.com/about-o...
http://www.cymbidium.org/judgi...
Jim
