In botany the term variety ( written var ) is a term used for plants that are slightly different from the original plant, but with differences not significant enough to be classified as a subspecies. These are not cross pollinations are hybrids, but naturally occurring variations. Plants produced by cross pollination in nature are hybrids written with an X, such as Iris X nelsonii. Plants created in a cultivated environment is called a cultivar, which is short for cultivated variety. It does not matter the method used. Whether it was manual, with tweezers, or q-tips, or if it was by "natural" methods, such as placing plants close together and allowing bees or wind to pollinate them. These types of plant are called cultivars.
