Stromanthe 'Valmic'

Stromanthe sanguinea 'Valmic' is a cultivar of the genus Stromanthe Sond., a member of the family Marantaceae within the order Zingiberales, as recorded by the GBIF Backbone Taxonomy [2]. The genus was published by Sonder in the Neue Allgemeine Deutsche Garten- und Blumenzeitung, volume 5, page 225, in 1849 [2]. The registry estimates the genus at approximately 13 accepted species.

The species name under which the patent was filed, Stromanthe sanguinea Sond., is treated by both the GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew Plants of the World Online (POWO) as a heterotypic synonym of the currently accepted name Stromanthe thalia (Vell.) J.M.A.Braga, a combination published in Eugeniana 21: 23 in 1995 [2][3]. The cultivar epithet 'Valmic' remains valid under the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants (ICNCP) regardless of this species-level synonymy, and the patent denomination is recorded as originally filed [1].

U.S. Plant Patent PP15475 characterises 'Valmic' as having an upright and outwardly spreading habit, freely basally clumping growth, and large leaves that are green and creamy white on the upper surface with purple-coloured lower surfaces, with that combination of foliage colour characters forming the stated basis for selection [1].

This registry records three distinct name classes for this plant, and they are not interchangeable.

Registered cultivar epithet: 'Valmic'. The epithet is governed by the ICNCP and derives from U.S. Plant Patent PP15475, granted 11 January 2005, which gives the botanical classification as Stromanthe sanguinea cultivar Valmic [1]. No International Cultivar Registration Authority (ICRA) has been appointed by the International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS) for the genus Stromanthe or for the family Marantaceae [4]; the epithet is therefore established by the plant patent rather than through ICRA registration.

Patent denomination: Valmic. The denomination as published in U.S. Plant Patent PP15475 shares the same string as the cultivar epithet. A patent denomination and an ICNCP cultivar epithet are legally and nomenclaturally distinct name classes even when the string is identical; they derive from different instruments and carry different functions [1].

Trade designation: Triostar. This marketing designation is in wide commercial use for the same plant. U.S. Plant Patent PP15475 does not mention the designation Triostar, and no authoritative primary source establishing its provenance has been located by this registry [1]. Triostar is therefore recorded as a trade designation whose provenance remains unverified, not as a name established by the patent. Trade designations are not written in single quotes and are not governed by the ICNCP.

U.S. Plant Patent PP15475, granted 11 January 2005, names Oscar R. Valstar of Maasland, the Netherlands, as the sole inventor [1]. The University of Maryland Plant Patent Index independently records the grant date as 11 January 2005 [6]. The patent was filed on 28 January 2004 under application number US10/766,770 [1]. The original assignee recorded in the patent as granted is Handelskwekerij Gebr. Valstar C.V.; the registry records this entity as 'Handelskwekerij Gebr Valstar NL', which differs in the legal-form suffix from the primary record — a human reviewer is needed to resolve that discrepancy [1].

The patent states that 'Valmic' was discovered in a controlled environment at Honselersdijk, the Netherlands, in 1999, as a naturally occurring whole-plant mutation [1]. The cultivar is classified as a sport; no seed parent or pollen parent is applicable. The parent plant is identified in the patent as Stromanthe sanguinea cultivar 'Stripestar', described as not patented; 'Valmic' was observed as a single flowering plant within a population of 'Stripestar' plants and selected for its unique foliage coloration [1]. The registry derivation field omits the parent cultivar name 'Stripestar'; a human reviewer is needed to update it to match the primary patent record [1].

Asexual reproduction by divisions in a controlled environment at Honselersdijk since 1999 is recorded in the patent as having demonstrated that the cultivar's features are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations [1].

U.S. Plant Patent PP15475 was granted on 11 January 2005 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office and covers the United States jurisdiction only [1]. The single claim of the patent reads: 'A new and distinct cultivar of Stromanthe plant named Valmic, as illustrated and described. Temperature tolerance: Plants of the new Stromanthe have been observed to tolerate temperatures from 15 to 30 degrees C.' [1].

Plant patents in the United States are issued under 35 U.S.C. § 163 with a term of 20 years from the filing date. The filing date of 28 January 2004 gives an anticipated expiration date of 28 January 2024. The Google Patents primary record shows the status of PP15475 as 'Expired — Lifetime', consistent with that term [1]. A registry conflict exists on the patent_expires_on field: the registry value is null, whereas the primary record indicates an anticipated expiration of 28 January 2024; a human reviewer is needed to populate this field. As of 12 August 2026, U.S. Plant Patent PP15475 affords no exclusivity.

No ICRA registration is recorded for this cultivar. The ISHS Commission for Nomenclature and Cultivar Registration appoints ICRAs for specific plant genera and families [4]; none has been appointed for Stromanthe or for Marantaceae. The Heliconia Society International holds ICRA status for several related Zingiberales genera — including Heliconia, Musaceae, Etlingera, Costus, Cheilocostus, Chamaecostus, and Paracostus — but its mandate does not extend to Marantaceae [5]. Plant patent status and ICRA cultivar registration are legally and procedurally distinct; the patent does not constitute ICRA registration.

The distinguishing traits of 'Valmic' are stated in U.S. Plant Patent PP15475 as: an upright and outwardly spreading habit; freely basally clumping growth; and large leaves that are green and creamy white on the upper surface with purple-coloured lower surfaces [1]. The patent identifies this combination as differentiating 'Valmic' from its parent cultivar 'Stripestar' and from Stromanthe sanguinea generally at the time of discovery in 1999 [1].

The sole quantitative cultivation parameter provided by any primary source located for this registry is a temperature tolerance of 15 to 30 degrees Celsius, stated in the patent claim [1]. The patent also notes that the cultivar had not been observed under all possible environmental conditions at the time of filing in January 2004 [1].

The parent species Stromanthe thalia — the accepted name under which Stromanthe sanguinea is treated as a synonym — is described by POWO as growing primarily in the wet tropical biome, with a native range from Bahia to Paraná in Brazil [3]. That range statement is drawn from the POWO species record, not from the patent.

The primary source for this cultivar is U.S. Plant Patent PP15475, granted 11 January 2005, accessible via the Google Patents primary record [1]. This document establishes the inventor, the discovery narrative, the parent cultivar, the distinguishing traits, and the filing and grant dates. The University of Maryland Plant Patent Index independently records the grant date [6].

Species-level taxonomy is covered by the GBIF Backbone Taxonomy, which records Stromanthe sanguinea as a synonym of Stromanthe thalia [2], and by POWO, which records the accepted name with native range and biome [3]. ICRA appointment status is documented by the ISHS [4] and by the Heliconia Society International, confirming that its mandate covers related Zingiberales genera but not Marantaceae [5].

Limited authoritative sources available; further research needed. No botanic garden monograph, university extension publication, or peer-reviewed horticultural assessment of this cultivar in cultivation has been located that meets the citation standards of this registry. The provenance of the trade designation Triostar has not been established by any primary source located during research for this page.