North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["edforest2010" <edforest55@hotmail.com>]

Lets say a new pawpaw has been bred by Fred. Fred names it "Kitty" and 
trademarks "it". 
What is the "it" that he is trademarking? The fruit or the name or 
both? Is it legal for amateurs to propagate Kitty? Is it legal to 
propagate Kitty and sell it using a different name? (Of course I'm not 
implying that to do so would be ethical).
I recall a bit of history on a pear, I think it was Comice, back in 
the depression I think it was, the pear industry was suffering but 
some party, say Company A, thoought of some fancy name for Comice and 
marketed it under something like "Royal Gourmet" and sold it in fancy 
boxes styled for the rich and famous, well, it worked and sold very 
well and at very high prices. No one seemed to know that it was just a 
Comice. The name was trademarked, but of course we could go on 
propagating Comice as "Comice" but not as Royal Gourmet.
So I'm assuming that the same would apply for Fred even though he 
spent a lot of time and effort in breeding "Kitty", if he only 
trademarks it then it is not protected from Evil Nursery who 
propagates it and sells it under a different name.
Is that the way it goes? And that IS a question, I find this whole 
business clouded in mystery with no one willing to talk about it for 
fear of being sued for giving legal advice.
Kevin B



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