Goeppertia kegeljanii 'PP0005'

Goeppertia kegeljanii 'PP0005' is a cultivar of Goeppertia kegeljanii (É.Morren) Saka, a species in the family Marantaceae. Plants of the World Online (POWO), maintained by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, records the accepted name as Goeppertia kegeljanii (É.Morren) Saka and lists the native range of the species as Espírito Santo, Brazil [2]. The name under which this cultivar was patented — Calathea musaica (W.Bull) L.H.Bailey, published in Stand. Cycl. Hort. 2: 624 (1914) — is now treated as a synonym of Goeppertia kegeljanii under POWO [2].

The cultivar is a vegetatively selected clone distinguished from its parent population by a more compact plant habit, smaller leaves with stronger contrasting variegation, and shorter peduncles, as described in U.S. Plant Patent PP20487, granted 17 November 2009 [1]. No International Cultivar Registration Authority (ICRA) has been appointed for Marantaceae or for Goeppertia. The International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS) maintains the global record of ICRA appointments, and as of 2026 no appointment for this family or genus appears in that record [3].

Three distinct name classes are relevant to this cultivar; they are separated here because they carry different legal and nomenclatural statuses, and because two of them share an identical character string.

Patent denomination. U.S. Plant Patent PP20487, granted 17 November 2009, records the variety denomination as PP0005 [1]. This is the denomination as published in the patent instrument — a legal designation within the U.S. patent system — and constitutes a primary record of first use of the name in a dated public document.

Cultivar epithet. The registry records 'PP0005' as the accepted cultivar epithet, in the denomination class goeppertia. The cultivar epithet and the patent denomination share the same character string, but they are distinct name classes: the patent denomination is the designation as published in the plant patent instrument, while a cultivar epithet is a name governed by the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants (ICNCP). No ICRA has been designated for Goeppertia or Marantaceae [3], so no formal body with the authority to accept or list cultivar registrations for this genus exists as of 2026. The epithet 'PP0005' has not been registered under any ICRA.

Trade designation. U.S. Plant Patent PP20487 is silent on any trade designation [1]. The trade name 'Network', applied in the horticultural market to the species Goeppertia kegeljanii generally, is not established by Patent PP20487 and is not documented in any authoritative source as belonging specifically to the cultivar 'PP0005'. No trade designation for 'PP0005' has been located in any authoritative source reviewed for this record.

U.S. Plant Patent PP20487 names Adrianus Cornelis Dekker, a citizen of Holland, as the sole inventor [1]. The derivation is a clonal selection: no cross was made, and no seed parent or pollen parent is recorded. The source population is described by the patent only as an unnamed, unpatented variety of Calathea musaica (now Goeppertia kegeljanii), without further identification [1].

The selection event is recorded in the patent as occurring in September 2005, in a greenhouse in Holland [1]. The patent application was filed on 6 June 2008 [1]. First asexual reproduction was performed by tissue culture in Holland in January 2007 [1]. The patent records that 'PP0005' subsequently produced several generations by micro-propagation and that its distinctive characteristics were stable and reproduced true to type across those generations [1]. The registry records no assignee for this patent; the USPTO record reflects the patent held in a personal capacity, consistent with the designation 'Individual' in the assignee field [1].

U.S. Plant Patent PP20487 was granted on 17 November 2009, with an application filed on 6 June 2008 [1]. Under 35 U.S.C. § 163, U.S. plant patents carry a statutory term of 20 years from the filing date. Applying that rule to the filed date of 6 June 2008 places the statutory expiry on or around 6 June 2028. The registry field patent_expires_on is null; the expiry date stated here is derived by applying the statutory rule to the filed date as recorded in the patent, and a qualified legal review of the exact term should be sought for any commercial determination [1].

The patent confers the right to exclude others from asexually reproducing the cultivar 'PP0005' and from using, offering for sale, or selling plants so reproduced, or any of their parts, in the United States for the duration of the patent term [1]. The patent does not confer rights outside the United States. The phenotypic description in the patent — covering leaf dimensions, colouration referenced to the RHS Colour Chart, petiole length, and peduncle length — was compiled from plants grown under commercial greenhouse conditions in Holland [1]. The patent notes that phenotypic expression may vary with temperature, day length, and light intensity without variance in genotype [1].

U.S. Plant Patent PP20487 identifies three principal traits that distinguish 'PP0005' from its unnamed, unpatented parent variety: a more compact, bushy plant habit; smaller leaves with stronger contrasting variegation; and shorter peduncles [1]. These are stated in the patent's Summary of the Invention as the traits upon which the claim of novelty and distinctness rests [1].

The patent's detailed morphological description covers leaf blade dimensions, upper and lower surface colouration by RHS Colour Chart reference numbers, petiole length and colouration, and inflorescence peduncle length, all measured on plants grown under commercial greenhouse conditions in Holland [1]. The patent states that these traits have been repeatedly observed across multiple generations of micro-propagation and have shown stable, true-to-type reproduction [1]. The patent explicitly notes that certain phenotypic characteristics may vary with temperature, day length, and light intensity without any change in the underlying genotype [1]. No independent morphological assessment of this cultivar by a botanical institution has been located; further research needed.

The species to which 'PP0005' belongs has undergone nomenclatural change since the patent was granted. The patent uses the name Calathea musaica (W.Bull) L.H.Bailey, a combination published in Stand. Cycl. Hort. 2: 624 (1914) [2]. POWO records this as a synonym of the currently accepted Goeppertia kegeljanii (É.Morren) Saka, with the accepted combination published in Phytotaxa 329: 249 (2017) [2]. POWO also records Goeppertia bella Borchs. & S.Suárez — published in Systematic Botany 37: 629 (2012) — as a further synonym of Goeppertia kegeljanii [2]. Verification confirmed that the Borchsenius & Suárez 2012 combination was for Goeppertia bella, now synonymised, not for G. kegeljanii itself; the registry records the species authority as (É.Morren) Saka, consistent with POWO [2].

The primary authoritative sources for 'PP0005' are U.S. Plant Patent PP20487 (USPTO, granted 2009-11-17) and the POWO record for Goeppertia kegeljanii (Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, accessed 2026-08-12) [1][2]. The patent is the sole primary record of originator identity, selection date, parentage, first propagation, and distinguishing traits. POWO is the primary record for accepted nomenclature and native range of the parent species.

No ICRA has been appointed for Goeppertia or Marantaceae [3]. The denomination class recorded in the registry — goeppertia — reflects the genus as the applicable denomination class under ICNCP rules, but registration against that class by a recognised authority has not occurred for this cultivar. No botanical garden monograph, herbarium record, university extension publication, or peer-reviewed study specifically documenting 'PP0005' has been located during research for this record. Limited authoritative sources available; further research needed.