Rob Laffin, thank you for this. Although I am a more recent convert to daylilies, as a scientist, I have been confused when I see unknown and sdlg in daylily parentage for exactly the reasons you describe:
RobLaffin said:WRT to "unknown" - if one of the parents is a cultivar that you know, but it is not registered with the AHS, the AHS requires you to list that parent as "unknown". So unknown does not necessarily mean unknown....
I don't know why people use "sdlg x sdlg" if they know the parents - it's just as easy to list "(cultivar A x cultivar B) x (cultivar C x cultivar D)" as the parents and gives buyers valuable info. Sometimes seedling markers get lost, in which case they're stuck with "sdlg x sdlg" but even there, it's helpful if the hybridizer will at least make an educated guess on their website - they often have a pretty good idea, but aren't totally sure and are honest enough not to register it using a questionable parent.
What I have loved so much about this community is the open-ness with which knowledge is shared, and the fantastic cheerleading of even the most novice daylily fan (human fan and plant fan alike). The varied and inconsistent uses of "unknown" and "sdlg" seem counter to this remarkable culture and have been a puzzle to me.
In my scientific field, there are many unknowns. The fun bit is that there are "known unknowns" (where you have some information or know when you don't have information, both states apply to this discussion) and "unknown unknowns" (true unknowns, when you don't know that you don't know, and this does not apply here). The trick is how to share the "known unknown" information in a consistent way so everyone has equal access to what is known and what is not known. We actually have guidelines for how to do this for my scientific field (you literally have to follow them or you can't publish, which is the science project equivalent of registration).
Is there a push for more guidance related to registration of parentage? What are pros and cons to changes in guidance or standardization?
I'm excited to hear other thoughts, including from people who might oppose more rules.
Thanks!
Meghan
PS: Maybe this should be its own thread, but I don't yet know how to pull something from one thread into its own new thread. Any moderators following this have my permission to do so.
