Diana Kulaga wrote:

I read the situation thus: I cannot purposely clone Phal. Summer Beach (Ken
Peterson x Mama Cass), which I own and is patented by another. But if a
keike forms naturally I will be free to do with it what I choose, including
placing it on the sale table at a meeting.


Not exactly. Summer Beach is fair game. I believe you can only
patent a specific cultivar (clone, in orchid speak). So, you can do
what you want with any in the grex Phal Summer Beach, but you are
restricted with Phal. Summer Beach "Patent SOB". In practical terms you
can do whatever you want with the keikis, since you wouldn't ever have
enough to hit the radar screen of the greedy SOB that holds the patent.
But he _could_ go after you if you sold them, if he had infinite time,
money, and somebody ratted you out. Not likely.

Also, provided that Ken Peterson and Mama Cass are not somehow protected, I
see no reason why I could not cross them.

You could cross them even if they were patented. You just can't
asexually reproduce them. Everyday commonplace sexual reproduction is
still allowed (thank goodness).

After all, I'm sure the recipe
for Pepperidge Farms Sausalito cookies is protected, but nothing says that I
can't take flour, eggs, Macadamia nuts, giant milk chocolate chips, etc, and
make my own, which, by the way, are far better than the Pepperidge Farms
variety. Now I'm hungry. VBS


Oh, now you've done it. I need a cookie.

Rob

--
Rob's Rules: http://www.msu.edu/~halgren
1) There is always room for one more orchid
2) There is always room for two more orchids
2a. See rule 1
3) When one has insufficient credit to purchase
more orchids, obtain more credit