This web site is intended to provide an introduction to PMA's services and to help answer some frequently asked questions relating to issues of intellectual property rights, plant protection, royalties, distributions chains and techniques, plant trials and evaluations for breeders, growers and plant enthusiasts.

If you cannot find answers to your questions on our site, or require more information, please do not hesitate to contact us by clicking here .

Plants in general are produced and sold in many ways for many different markets, but some factors that make a new variety successful remain the same:

A new variety should offer advantages over other existing varieties currently available. This could include new colour breaks, improved habit, longer season of interest, better disease resistance or easier propagation.
Other consideration that must be taken into account but are not known until after trialling are:
How long and when is the flower period in differing climatic zones
Does the variety suit pot production
How does the variety transport within the existing system of that territory
Does the variety flower in low light
ETC….

If you have a new plant that you think has potential, you should complete a PMA New Variety Information Sheet (NVIS) so we can start to gather information and feedback from our selected sources around the world. We would be only to happy to offer a no-obligation assessment of your plant's potential.

Without the information requested in the form, it is very difficult to make that initial assessment. If you have not already done so, you can read about the New Plant Variety Information Form by clicking here. If you have any images please contact us. We will then contact you to discuss the future of your new variety or discovery.

Plant trials and Evaluations

Subject to a successful initial evaluation of your plant, based on the information that you provide in the New Plant Variety Information Form and the photographs that you supply, the next stage will be for PMA to arrange plant trials. We will select the most appropriate growers within Australia and agents internationally that have an interest in, enthusiasm for and experience with your variety.

Domestically we transport trial material around the country to test and evaluate the suitability of the variety under different climatic conditions including, humidity, high temperatures, cold and frost tolerance, propagation, consistency of characteristics just to name a few. This information can then be added to the basic facts already provided to a make commercial decision as to wether or not to proceed further with the variety.

If the initial trial is successful, growers will then continue to the next stage producing a trial batch used to gauge interested from different markets. The results of this market research will allow a decision to be reached on final commercial production quantities for the following seasons. This trial process can take anywhere between 18 months to 4 years depending on the variety and the time needed to bulk up the mother stock.

In some cases, perhaps when a new colour of a variety that is already well known within the market is developed, there will be no need to conduct an initial trial, and interested parties will proceed directly to a production trial. Production trials are also useful for giving the chance to produce sufficient mother stock to allow subsequent large scale commercial propagation.

These trials are important, not only to the growers and potential licensees, but also to you as the owner of the plant. Obtaining PBR protection can be costly (See PBR Costs) - Therefore it is important to be as confident as possible that the plant will generate suffient royalty revenue in the market place allowing these costs to be covered.

You should not give over your entire stock to establish these trials IF YOU CAN, ENSURE THAT YOU HAVE MORE THAN ONE SPECIMEN OF THE PLANT.

Of course, this may not always be easy, particularly where a plant needs specialist propagation facilities such as Tissue Culture. If you need help with this issue, please contact PMA for advice on how best to proceed. PMA will always want to know about your new variety, even if you just have one specimen!

The Trial Agreement

It is important that the initial and production trials are conducted under a secure trial agreement. PMA uses a standard Plant Evaluation Trial Agreement, which ensures that the person or company conducting the trial agrees that the title in the intellectual property of the variety remains yours and yours alone. It also prevents them from using your variety in a breeding programme, promoting or distributing the plant or starting the plant protection "clock" by making a sale without the express consent of PMA. It essentially ensures that the trial process is controlled by PMA, acting on your behalf and under your instructions.

Agreements similar to this one are very common in the horticulture industry and most growers are familiar with the obligations that the agreement places upon them making it easier for the process to happen smoothly.

PMA works with trusted partners in whom we have a high level of confidence and who respect the process and Breeders Rights.

PHOTOGRAPHY

Good photography is critical to all new varieties. The more images available the better chance of giving agents and growers a sound understanding of how the plant grows and presents itself. Images can be used to help promote the major characteristics of a new variety. For example if a new variety has red flowers with fantastic autumn foliage then good images of both the flowers and the autumn foliage will help sell these characteristics to a potential agent or grower and inturn the consumer.

Clear, focused images are a major key to the success of a new variety so if you're not sure of how to take these images or would like assistance please contact PMA as we would be happy to assist you with this critical part of the process.

IMPORTANT

FIRST DATE OF SALE

We will gladly give you any help and advice that you may need with regard to establishing and protecting the rights in your plant. It is important to be aware that all intellectual property systems set time limits that can elapse between the first date of sale of the plant and the date on which the application for the Breeders rights must be submitted.

In Australia the limit is only one year. This means any plant sold in Australia will have twelve months from this date to have the paper work submitted or the opportunity to protect that variety by PBR in Australia will be lost.

The first date of sale is a very important date not only for Australia but for all other countries. Most countries work under the PBR System which has two ways of looking at the first date of sale.

As soon as a plant is sold within a country it must be protected within one year from this date.

Once a First Date of Sale has occurred in any given country all subsequent countries wanting to also apply for PBR status must apply within four years from the first date of sale. One exclusion to these rules, however, is the United States of America which only allows one year from the First Date of Sale regardless of which country the First Date of Sale has occurred. For this reason we strongly recommend withholding First Date of Sale until the USA has had sufficient time to trail material under their conditions to asses the varieties potential in their country. This avoids losing a potentially large market.

Taking this into account, if you wish to apply for protection rights and derive income from your new plant, it is very important that it is not sold or distributed until a plan for marketing, trialling and protection has been mapped out with PMA.

Gathering Information

To assist in this, PMA uses a standard New Plant Variety Information Sheet. Please use one of the options below to complete the form now. Either:

You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to open the PDF file. You can download a free reader here .

Answer as many of the questions as possible, and return it to the PMA office. If you are unsure of an answer to a particular question, then please leave it blank - if we need more information, we will contact you to clarify what ever is necessary and go over the information you have supplied.

It is very important that you supply good, clear photographs of the plant - it is true that a picture speaks a thousand words, and certainly makes the job of initially evaluating a new plant much easier and more accurate. Our international agents will make their first decision and reactions based on an image. In fact, it is more or less impossible to make an evaluation without a photograph!

If you require assistance with digital photography or advice on what sort of images are needed please do not hesitate to contact us direct. It is equally important to provide accurate, factual information about your plant, particularly about flower size, colour and season, as well as plant habit, size and form.

COLLECT AS MUCH INFORMATION AS YOU CAN THROUGHOUT ALL SEASONS, AND TAKE PLENTY OF PHOTOGRAPHS.

Good record keeping of your plants development process should assist you in this regard and is invaluable for future promotion and protection requirements. It can often also provide useful information to growers assisting your plant in becoming a commercial success.

The Breeder Agreement/Contract

Domestically the royalty is based on a figure per unit sold. We calculate the royalties on a six month period, January - June and July-December each year. For example, Plant X might attract a royalty of $0.10 this is then multiplied by the amount of plants sold in a royalty period.

All fees and charges for a particular variety are treated as Royalties in Advanced, meaning PMA pays for the costs up front and these costs are then deducted off any incoming royalties for that variety. The balance is then forwarded to the breeder. We find this is the best way to handle such costs as it minimises the financial burden on the breeder who may have several varieties in the system at any one time.

In International markets PMA's commission is generally based on 25% of total royalties received with 75% being returned to the breeder. The royalty rate in each country is determined by the territory agent. Based on the knowledge of their local industry they are in the best position to make an accurate assessment of the best returns possible. If you would like to discuss PMA's charges further or would like a copy of the Breeder Agreement, please do not hesitate to contact us.

PMA works on a 'network' approach when licensing plants allowing us to match the best plants to the most suitable growers and licensees throughout Australia and agents internationally.

This has advantages for all parties. The growers and licensees are offered plants which best complement their existing product range, and with which they are most likely to succeed. PMA invests a lot of time travelling and visiting growers throughout Australia and agents internationally to inspect their facilities and to fully understand their strengths and capabilities within their markets.

PMA may work with specific growers to develop market penetration strategies, with product launch and promotion techniques devised by the licensees in conjunction with and supported by PMA. Once the product has become established in the market, PMA may then continue to work towards developing a broader licensing strategy, whilst taking care not to saturate the market and reduce the new plant to a commodity item.

In addition, breeders know that their variety is part of a strong portfolio of carefully selected plants, a portfolio that includes some of the best new varieties in the world today. Growers want to test varieties within the PMA portfolio, as they know that plants in our portfolio have merit for introduction.

PMA also endeavours to ensure that the whole breadth of the market is reached. For example, a new variety may be licensed to two or three and sometimes four growers in each state of Australia to ensure we gain the greatest market exposure. These growers may have completely different sales channels and therefore will not cross over on sales to the same markets. PMA appoints growers to cover all sectors of the industry including Retail Garden Centres, Chain Stores and landscape markets. This ensures the plant has maximum exposure to the end consumer.

PMA works to devise a strategy that is tailor-made for each new plant introduction. A strategy that might suit one plant could be totally unsuitable for another, depending on the type of plant that it is, the uses that it will have in the garden and other varieties with which it must compete.

PMA has formed a close relationship with Horticultural media of all forms throughout Australia which ensures we are in contact with a extensive network of gardening journalists, national magazines, news papers to radio and TV to ensure coverage to both the industry and consumer groups.

We also work with plant label producers within Australia who are world leaders in their industry to provide print work and images for pictorial labels which are all done in house within the PMA marketing department, this ensure availability of tailored labels and point of sale materials.

PMA makes available to all it's licensees as much information and images as they require to support promotional work, in addition to any information that the breeder may have to assist in the propagation and cultivation of the new variety.

The most important issue of plant licensing is that the breeder needs to be sure that they are getting the best returns from their plant. This requires effective policing and collection of royalties, and a global protection and licensing strategy.

Royalty collection in Australia is handled in several ways. Some agents place the royalty on plants sold from propagation houses but PMA places the royalty on the plant label. We choose this system for several reasons the main one being all PBR protected varieties need to be sold with a label displaying the PBR logo. It is a breach of the law for plants to be sold without this.

We also choose this method for the ease of royalty collection and monitoring of varieties. The label companies collect these royalties on behalf of PMA and forward the total amounts with breakdowns of sales every six months. This enables us to give two royalty returns a year for sales within Australia.

International royalty collection is done differently. This system is monitored by our local agents based on figures sold on a six to twelve month basis. Our agents even have access to their growers' record to monitor the sales.

The agents we work closely with in other countries are always checking for production by unlicensed growers . It is not always advantageous to take a heavy-handed approach on these growers, as there is not always a malicious intent. In some cases, it may be appropriate to negotiate the payment of back-royalties and to agree a licence for future production and sales. Therefore both parties gain from the breach.

Our international agents police unlicensed production by monitoring the sales and promotion activities of growers within their territories by collecting catalogues, monitoring websites, visiting trade shows and discussion with colleagues. Ensuring that licensed growers are making accurate and truthful sales declarations and therefore paying the correct amount of royalty to the breeder.

This is policed by our territory agents who visit the growers, tour their nurseries and inspect their records. Breaches by licensees are viewed seriously and may result in the termination of the licence if that is in the best interest of the breeder. This activity continues throughout the lifetime of the variety. In addition PMA, in consultation with the territory agent, continuously reviews the licensing strategy for each plant and, if a licensee is deemed to be underperforming, will take corrective action.

Once the decision has been made to protect a new plant, PMA will act on your behalf to file the paper needed to apply for PBR.

PBR applications involve a considerable amount of form filling, and familiarity with the system is a definite advantage. PMA has gained considerable experience of the PBR system in Australia and have Qualified Persons on Staff to file all applications. We also have experience with applications in other countries but we mostly employ the experience of our agents in any given territory to handle this process. We useilise this experience to ensure that the application is valid and has the greatest chance of success. PMA will also assist in managing the provision of plant material for the official Comparator Trials, and will act as a conduit for information between the PBR authorities and the breeder.

PMA is acting on your behalf, therefore PBR application will always be made in the name of the breeder, thereby ensuring that the breeder retains total control of ownership over the variety. PMA takes no share in the ownership of the variety. Although we are aware of companies that will purchase the rights to a new plant from the breeder for a fixed fee, we feel that this does not offer the best possible reward to the breeder or developer of the plant. This system might be a upfront win fall but can also be a loss of a royalty income for years to come. Of course, applying for PBR protection does cost money. The costs include fees charged by the PBR authorities.

PMA will can advise you with regard to the US market and US Plant Patent application and fees or direct or gather the information required from our agents within the USA.

Within Australia the royalty is based on a figure per unit sold. We calculate the royalties on a six month period, January - June and July-December each year. For example, Plant X might attract a royalty of $0.10 this is then multiplied by the amount of plants sold in a royalty period. All fees and charges for a particular variety are treated as Royalties in Advanced, Meaning PMA pays for the costs up front and these costs are then deducted off any incoming royalties for that variety, the balance is then forwarded to the breeder. We find this is the best way to handle such costs as it minimises the financial burden on the breeder who may have several varieties in the system at any one time.

As with any new venture there will be costs involved in the development of a new variety and ongoing costs. PMA looks at all costs incurred by a variety as royalties in advanced. This means PMA will pay for all costs up front and take them off any royalties earned by the variety in the future. Once all costs have been account for with incoming royalties the outstanding amounts are then forwarded onto the breeder.

When we are due to ship material to other agents and growers throughout the world, we will request this material from you which will be supplied to PMA at no cost. This is the only outlay a new breeder will incur. The quarantine fees, shipping costs and handling charges and all protection costs are paid for by either PMA or the agents involved with the shipping.

We believe this is the responsibility of the agent and these costs should be borne by us as your representative. Because we carry these costs for sometimes years, this is where our evaluation and research comes into effect.

If you would like to discuss PMA's charges further or would like a copy of the Breeder Agreement, please do not hesitate to contact us .