What Does “Selected Clone” Actually Mean in Anthuriums?
Seedling, clone, F1, F2, S1, tissue culture — understanding the terminology behind some of the most sought-after Anthuriums.
If you've spent any time looking at collector Anthuriums, you've probably come across names such as Michelle, Black Widow, Zara, OG2, PM3, RA7 or Wu1.
You may also have noticed that a plant described as a “selected clone” can cost considerably more than another plant from what appears to be the same cross.
So what exactly are you paying for?
The answer is important because clone, seedling, F1, F2 and S1 describe different things.
Once you understand the difference, a large part of Anthurium collector terminology suddenly becomes much easier to understand.
What Is a “Selected Clone” in Anthuriums?
In the collector trade, “selected clone” generally refers to a specific individual plant that someone deliberately chose because it expressed desirable characteristics, and which is then propagated vegetatively so copies can be distributed.
That single phrase contains two separate ideas:
Selected
A breeder, grower or collector evaluated a population of plants and chose one individual because it stood out for traits such as leaf shape, colour, veining, texture, compact growth or other desirable characteristics.
Clone
That particular plant is then reproduced asexually — through cuttings, divisions, offsets or tissue culture — creating genetically matching copies of the selected individual.
Selected = the plant was chosen.
Clone = copies are made from that chosen plant.
This is why a named clone represents much more than simply a species or cross.
Seedling vs Clone: The Genetic Difference
The easiest way to understand clones is to first understand what a seedling is.
What is an Anthurium seedling?
A seedling is a plant produced from seed through sexual reproduction.
When two Anthuriums are crossed, their genetic material is combined through reproduction and the resulting seeds develop into individual seedlings.
Each seedling receives a different combination of genetic material.
That means two seedlings from the same seed pod can look remarkably different. For a deeper look at why Anthurium seedlings from the same cross can look completely different, the underlying genetics are especially important.
- One may have darker foliage.
- Another may have brighter veins.
- One may develop a rounder leaf.
- Another may become more elongated.
- One may grow quickly.
- Another may be considerably slower.
They have the same parents, but they are not genetically identical siblings.
What Is an Anthurium Clone?
A clone is produced through asexual or vegetative propagation.
Instead of creating a new genetic combination through seed, a portion of an existing plant is used to create another plant.
This can include:
- Stem cuttings
- Top cuts
- Mid cuts or “chonks”
- Offsets
- Divisions
- Tissue culture or micropropagation
Because there is no fertilisation and no meiotic reshuffling involved in ordinary vegetative propagation, the new plant is intended to carry the same genetic identity as the mother plant.
A seedling is a new genetic individual.
A clone is a copy of an existing individual.
What Does “Selected” Add to the Picture?
This is where the terminology becomes particularly interesting.
Imagine a breeder produces a large batch of Anthurium seedlings.
As those plants mature, perhaps one begins to stand out.
It may have:
- Exceptionally dark foliage
- Strong silver or white venation
- A desirable leaf shape
- Compact growth
- Excellent texture
- An attractive emergent colour
- A particularly desirable combination of traits
The breeder or collector may decide:
That individual can then be given a name or number and propagated vegetatively.
Now you have a selected clone.
How a Selected Clone Is Created
A breeder creates or grows a group of seedlings from a cross, selfing or other genetic source.
The breeder watches how their leaves, colour, venation, texture, growth habit and other characteristics develop.
One or more plants are chosen because they express a particularly desirable phenotype.
The plant may receive a name, number or breeder designation so that it can be distinguished from other plants.
Cuttings, divisions or tissue culture can then be used to create additional plants carrying that same selected genetic line.
Over time, that individual can become a recognised clone within the collector community.
Cutting vs Tissue Culture: Both Can Be Clones
There is sometimes confusion around the word clone because collectors may associate cloning specifically with tissue culture.
But tissue culture is not the only way to create a clone.
Stem Cuttings
A section of stem containing a viable node can be rooted to produce a new plant. When taken from a specific mother plant, that cutting is a vegetative copy of the mother.
Simple, slower and usually limited in quantity.
Tissue Culture
Small pieces of plant tissue can be multiplied under sterile laboratory conditions, allowing many plantlets to be produced from a selected source plant.
Scalable and useful for large-scale multiplication.
The propagation method doesn't determine whether something is a clone. The important question is whether the plant was produced asexually from a specific source individual.
Is a Tissue-Cultured Anthurium Still a Clone?
Yes.
If a tissue-culture line originates from a particular selected mother plant, the resulting plantlets are intended to be clonal copies of that source line.
This is one reason tissue culture has become so important in the Anthurium world.
Instead of producing a handful of cuttings from a prized mother, a laboratory can multiply that genetic line much more extensively.
For the collector, the crucial question is therefore not simply:
but rather:
Properly managed clonal propagation is designed to maintain the identity of the selected line, although tissue culture can sometimes involve genetic or epigenetic variation.
Why Do Named Anthurium Clones Cost More?
This is where the concept becomes very relevant when buying plants.
When you buy a generic seedling, you are buying potential.
When you buy an established selected clone, you are generally paying for a greater degree of predictability.
| Generic Seedling | Selected Clone |
|---|---|
| Genetically unique individual | Vegetative copy of one selected individual |
| Traits may vary considerably | Expected to retain the selected line's traits |
| Future appearance is less predictable | Established reference plants provide a better indication |
| Usually lower entry price | Often carries a premium |
| Can surprise you — positively or negatively | Chosen specifically because the mother plant already impressed someone |
You're not necessarily paying for a “better” plant in an absolute sense.
You're often paying for known genetics and reduced uncertainty.
If you want a deeper explanation of why you can't always tell what an Anthurium hybrid will look like, the same principle of genetic variation explains why a seedling should not automatically be expected to resemble the most impressive plant associated with its cross.
Why Can Two Anthuriums From the Same Cross Look Completely Different?
This is one of the most important concepts for anyone buying Anthurium seedlings.
Imagine you have 50 seedlings from exactly the same cross.
You might expect them all to look similar.
They don't have to.
Each seedling receives a different combination of genetic material from its parents.
During sexual reproduction, chromosomes undergo processes including independent assortment and recombination, creating different genetic combinations in the offspring.
As a result, siblings can express different combinations of traits.
Seedling A
Dark, compact, heavily veined and strongly contrasted.
Seedling B
Larger, lighter, more elongated and considerably less strongly veined.
Both can come from the same parents.
They are simply different genetic individuals.
How Selected Clones Fit Into F1, F2 and S1
This is where Anthurium terminology can become confusing because these terms describe different things.
F1 / F2 / F3 describe generations from crossing.
S1 / S2 / S3 describe generations from selfing.
Clone describes asexual propagation of an individual.
They are not competing labels.
A plant can have more than one of these descriptions.
For a more detailed breakdown, see our guide to Anthurium F1, F2, S1 & S2 breeding generations.
For example:
An individual F2 seedling might be selected because it has exceptional foliage.
The breeder names that individual and then propagates it through cuttings or tissue culture.
The resulting plants can therefore be described as clones of that selected F2 individual.
F2 tells you about its generation.
Clone tells you how that individual was propagated.
F1 vs F2 vs S1 vs Clone — The Simple Version
| Term | What It Means | Genetically Identical? |
|---|---|---|
| F1 | First filial generation from a particular cross. | No — individual seedlings differ. |
| F2 | Generation produced from F1 parents according to the breeding scheme. | No — individual seedlings differ. |
| S1 | First generation produced by selfing an individual plant. | No — offspring are not simply copies of the mother. |
| Clone | Vegetative copy of one individual plant. | Intended to be genetically identical to the source. |
An S1 Is Not a Clone
This is worth highlighting because it is an easy mistake to make.
If a breeder self-pollinates one exceptional Anthurium, the resulting seeds are an S1 generation.
But those seedlings are not clones of their mother.
They inherit genetic material from the same plant through sexual reproduction, but the mother's genetic combinations can segregate and reshuffle in the offspring.
So an S1 population can contain considerable variation.
One mother plant → cutting or tissue culture → clones of that mother.
That distinction is fundamental. If the term self is unfamiliar, our guide to what “× self” means in Anthuriums explains why selfing still produces seedlings rather than genetic copies of the mother.
Why a Selected Clone Can Become Valuable
Imagine a breeder grows hundreds of seedlings.
Most are attractive.
A few are exceptional.
Perhaps one has the combination everyone wants:
- Extremely dark foliage
- Strong, clean venation
- Excellent leaf proportions
- Beautiful emergent colour
- Strong velvet texture
- A compact growth habit
That individual becomes valuable because its characteristics can potentially be preserved through clonal propagation.
Instead of hoping that another seedling will randomly recreate the same combination, growers can propagate the original selection.
The value of a selected clone is largely the value of the individual that was selected.
This is also why the phrase “selected clone” actually means something specific in Anthuriums rather than simply being another way of saying “large” or “high quality.”
How to Read Anthurium Listings Like a Collector
Once you understand the terminology, listings become much easier to interpret.
“crystallinum × magnificum F1 seedling”
You are buying an individual seedling from that cross. Expect genetic variation between siblings.
“Selected clone”
You are buying a vegetatively propagated copy of a specific selected individual.
“S1 seedling”
You are buying a seed-grown offspring from a selfed mother. It is not a clone.
“Clone from tissue culture”
The plant was multiplied through tissue culture from a particular source line. The identity of that source matters.
What Should You Buy: A Seedling or a Clone?
Neither option is automatically better.
It depends on what kind of collector you are.
Choose a Seedling If…
- You enjoy growing plants from an early stage.
- You like genetic surprises.
- You are comfortable with variation.
- You enjoy discovering what a plant becomes.
- You want a lower entry price.
Choose a Clone If…
- You want a known selected line.
- You have a specific mature phenotype in mind.
- You value predictability.
- You want to preserve a particular genetic selection.
- You are collecting established named lines.
And there is nothing wrong with wanting both.
Some of the most exciting Anthuriums are seedlings precisely because you don't know exactly what they will become.
At the same time, selected clones allow collectors to preserve and share exceptional plants that have already proven themselves.
Why Two Clones Can Still Look Slightly Different
There is one final detail worth understanding.
“Genetically identical” does not mean that two plants will always look absolutely identical under every condition.
Environment still matters.
Two clones of the same plant can be grown under different:
- Light levels
- Humidity
- Temperatures
- Watering routines
- Nutrition
- Root conditions
- Pot sizes and substrates
Their leaves can therefore develop somewhat differently.
The important difference is that they share the same underlying genetic identity, whereas two seedlings from the same cross do not.
This is also why a plant's appearance can change as it develops. For more on that subject, see why Anthurium leaves change shape as they mature.
The Biggest Mistake: Assuming “Same Parents” Means “Same Plant”
This is probably the most useful concept to take away from this entire article.
Two seedlings can have the same parents and still be completely different genetic individuals.
Two clones can come from the same mother and share the same genetic identity.
That is why the following statements mean very different things:
“From the same cross” means the plants share a breeding origin.
“Same clone” means the plants originate from the same selected individual through clonal propagation.
That distinction explains a huge amount of the variation we see in the Anthurium collector trade.
Selected Clone vs Seedling: What Are You Really Paying For?
Ultimately, the price difference between a generic seedling and a sought-after selected clone comes down to something collectors understand very well:
Uncertainty versus predictability.
A seedling is an opportunity.
It could become extraordinary.
It could also develop into something completely different from the phenotype you were hoping for.
A selected clone has already passed through a selection process. Someone looked at the original plant and decided that its particular combination of characteristics was worth preserving.
When you buy a clone, you are therefore buying access to that particular genetic selection, rather than simply buying another ticket from the same genetic lottery.
Frequently Asked Questions About Anthurium Clones
What does selected clone mean in Anthuriums?
A selected clone is a specific Anthurium individual that was chosen because of desirable characteristics and then propagated vegetatively so copies of that individual can be distributed.
Is an Anthurium clone genetically identical to the mother plant?
Vegetative clones are intended to retain the same genetic identity as the source plant. Environmental conditions can still cause differences in appearance and growth.
Is a tissue-cultured Anthurium a clone?
Yes, when the tissue-culture line has been multiplied from a particular source plant or selected clone, the resulting plantlets are intended to be clonal copies of that source line.
Are two Anthurium seedlings from the same cross genetically identical?
No. Seedlings produced through sexual reproduction receive different combinations of genetic material, so siblings from the same cross can develop very different traits.
Is an F1 Anthurium a clone?
No. F1 describes a generation resulting from a particular cross. An individual F1 plant can later be propagated as a clone, but the F1 generation itself consists of seed-grown individuals.
Is an F2 Anthurium a clone?
No. F2 refers to a breeding generation, not a propagation method. Individual F2 plants are genetically distinct unless a particular F2 individual is subsequently propagated clonally.
Is an S1 Anthurium a clone of its mother?
No. S1 plants are produced from self-pollination and are seedlings, not vegetative copies. Their genes can segregate and recombine, so they can differ from the mother and from one another.
Why are selected Anthurium clones often more expensive?
Collectors are generally paying for a known genetic selection and greater predictability. The original plant has already been selected for desirable traits, and those traits can be preserved through clonal propagation.
Can two clones of the same Anthurium look different?
They can show differences caused by environment, maturity and growing conditions, even though they share the same underlying genetic identity.
The Bottom Line
Once you understand the difference between a seedling and a clone, Anthurium collecting becomes a lot easier to navigate.
A seedling is a genetically unique individual created through sexual reproduction.
A clone is a vegetative copy of one individual.
F1, F2 and F3 describe generations within a breeding programme.
S1, S2 and S3 describe generations produced through selfing.
And a selected clone is where these concepts come together: a particular plant was selected because it stood out, given an identity, and then propagated so that its genetic line could be preserved.
Same parents doesn't mean same plant.
And that is exactly why two seedlings from the same cross can surprise you in completely different ways.
One may become the plant everyone wants.
Another may take a completely different path.
And when a breeder discovers that exceptional individual, a selected clone gives collectors the opportunity to preserve and share that exact genetic selection.