‘Variety Unknown’ and Other Common Variety Names

The longer I garden here, the more likely I am to have plants with the variety name of ‘Variety Unknown.’

I call them VU, pronounced “vee-you.”

For example, this lavender has been a standout in the Vegetable Garden Cathedral for well over ten years. It is a classic example of ‘Variety Unknown.’

I know where I bought it and from whom, but I no longer know the exact variety. Unfortunately, that makes it nearly impossible to recommend this lavender variety to others because ‘Variety Unknown’ isn’t often for sale anywhere.

Another VU in my garden is this iris.

On this one, I’m not even sure where I got it but I suspect I purchased it at a garden fair about five years ago.

There are so many VUs here that it might boggle a non-gardener’s mind, if that non-gardener actually knew that plants had variety names. Many of them don’t know!

I also have some VUs which might be more accurately named ‘It Might Be.’ Those are the plants that I remember a variety name for, but I’m not sure that’s the exact plant for that variety name. I would have to search for the plant tag, hope it had a picture on it, match it up to the plant and then I’d know for sure.

For example, there are quite a few ‘It Might Be’ clematis growing around here, like ‘It Might Be Betty Corning’ clematis growing up and around the wisteria.

Correction! That’s actually ‘I’m Pretty Sure It’s Betty Corning’ clematis growing up through the American wisteria.

‘I’m Pretty Sure’ is another common variety name here. It means that I’m 99% certain of the name, but sometimes I move plants around and that often results in a change of variety name.

Plants can start out as ‘I’m Pretty Sure’, then a few seasons later they become ‘It Might Be’ until finally they are ‘Variety Unknown.’

Circle of life and all that. Seasons come and go, as do plant variety names!

Thankfully, I’m not the only gardener growing these changing varieties. Over time, even the most experienced gardeners end up with a lot of these varieties too.