Conflicts and uncertainty

Qualify without overstating

CONFIRMED, DOCUMENTED, REPORTED, DISPUTED and UNKNOWN are qualitative categories, not numerical probabilities. CONFIRMED requires an approved corroboration methodology; source prestige alone does not establish it.

Sources may describe different objects

A commercial name, regional population, accession and clone are not interchangeable. Before calling pedigrees contradictory, establish that they describe the same selection and period.

Preserve disagreement

Competing claims and earlier decisions remain in history. A breeder statement remains a breeder statement even when accurately cited.