The background of the invention must also be included. This section should contain a description of information known to you, including references to specific documents which are related to your invention. A drawing may be necessary to describe the invention. The requirements for a plant patent are similar to those for utility patents. The specification must contain a full and complete botanical description of the plant and the characteristics that distinguish it from other related plants.
Plant patents are limited to single claims.
The claim may refer to one or more unique characteristics of the plant but may not claim parts or products of the plant. As previously mentioned, any plant for which a plant patent is filed must be asexually reproducible, to ensure that the unique characters are not due to disease, infection, or exposure to other agents. Plant drawings differ from utility patent drawings in that they may be photographs or faithful watercolor renderings. When an invention is, or relies upon, biological material, it may be necessary to include specimens with a patent application. Included specimens must be capable of self-replication either directly or indirecly, and must be viable for at least 30 years.