Pre-virescent, part-virescent, intermediate green. Opinion sought!

[Matt Bishop]

Something for everyone to think about....
I'm just working my way through the last of the poculiforms, that is the ones with no markings and heading fast towards the greens which I see broadly as three types - Green Tips at one end of the spectrum, virescents at the other. The question is this;
What to call the ones which are somewhere in between (clones such as 'Hugh Mackenzie' 'Prague Spring' ect)?
I've talked about them as intermediate greens (which seems clumsy) part-virescents (which doesn't sound much better). Hagen, the other day came up with pre-virescents and this I really like but I'd love to hear your opinions......
So tell me what you think!

[Brian Ellis]

I always think of those you mention as 'Bohemian' but perhaps just 'mid-green'?

[Tim Harberd]

Hi Matt,
  Doesn't 'pre' as a prefix usually have time connotations? Would its use infer that the cultivar was going to become virescent??

  Would 'semi' be a better prefix to use?

Tim DH

[Alan_b]

I'm stuck for a good word.  'Part-' or 'Partially' seem clumsy.  Semi or Demi mean half and that isn't accurate.  Pre means before and that isn't right either.

The same problem arises with other types of snowdrops.  'Angelique' is on the way to being poculiform but only partially so.  Most of the Trym-types are only partially inversely poculiform when compared to the likes of 'Valentines Day'.  Well, I've had to fall back on partial/partially.  But I'm not a botanist so maybe there is a more learned equivalent?

[Maggi Young]

'Partially' is more accurate, I think ?  Quasi, perhaps?

[annew]

Sub-virescent?

[Bailey]

As I don't appear to have been completely affected by White Fever and seem more resistant to Green Fever, and at the risk of upsetting those that have been, and to Parody Monty Python" Why do we have to name them.why not ignore them and they might just go away?"The continental classification of snowdrops seems unwieldy.How many times do you need to subdivide something? if you choose Virescent, Something Virescent and Green Tipped , do you then not need to make the latter clearer as well?If there is a real need to give some fancy name to intermediates,I would have suggested Semi or Demi. After this was suggested previously, I checked the online dictionary, both of these prefixes have been corrupted from their original meanings of "half something",blurring to "partly something",in much they same way that unique,meaning only one,is used for few or rare instead, and things can be more than 100% even though they can't.

[Alan_b]

To start-out with a corrupt or sloppy use of terminology is surely to head-off in the wrong direction.  That's why I don't favour 'pre' or 'semi' or 'demi'.

[Leena]

I don't know what the right way to name them would be, but it is a good idea to have a name for different kinds. How else would I know what kind I am buying!

[Chad]

I would be interested to hear from people growing these from seed.
I suspect there are different inheritable mechanisms at play, and I’m not sure your suggested grouping reflects that.
I think there are three inheritable characteristics, and would suggest you consider grouping by ‘type of colouring’ rather than where in the petal the colour is. This may have to do with a different mechanism [I think some of them are expressing inner petal marks on the outer petals].

I think the groups are;
1. Solid mark [South Hayes and all the Trumps group etc].
2. Green concentrated on vascular bundles [Cowhouse Green, Hugh Mackenzie, Rosemary Burnham etc].
3. Diffuse green marks [Virescens, Green Mile].

There is still a judgement call as to which group to put some varieties in [just how tight does the pigment have to stick to the ‘stripes’?], but I think the breeding lines suggest they are distinct.  [Hagen should have a better handle on this].

On this plan you are looking for new words!  ‘Solid’, ‘Linear’, ‘Diffuse’?  I think ‘Virescent’ would apply to the last group if you wanted to keep the term.

Chad.