The taxonomy (from the greek ταξις, taxis, "arrangement", and νομος, nomos, "norm" or "rule") is, in its most general sense, the discipline of classification.
The diagram below concerning the biological taxonomy, that is the categories which you can sort living organisms:
We are interested only in the lower part of the scheme (for a practical course).
The peppers belong to the family Solanaceae Juss. and the genus Capsicum L.
Inside of this kind we have about 35 species, 5 of which are domesticated (cultivated) and a remaining thirty (the number is likely to increase) wild or semidomesticated.
Within each species there are other taxonomic categories "inferior"
Subspecies (subsp.)
Variety (var.)
Subvariety (subvar.)
Form (f.)
Subform (subf.)
In the past, the classification of the genus Capsicum were used all these categories below, is currently used only the "variety".
It is often confused with the "subspecies". They are two different things!
It is customary to add cultivar (cv.) to indicate each variety (not to be confused, even in this case with the "variety taxonomic " that is quite another thing and is, within species or subspecies, a homogeneous group of organisms with certain common morphological characteristics)
Let's take a practical example:
Aji amarillo
Family: Solanaceae
Genus: Capsicum
Species: baccatum
Variety: pendulum
Cultivar: Aji amarillo
This is the complete designation:
Capsicum baccatum L var. pendulum (Willd.) Eshbaugh cv. "Aji amarillo"
The initial of the genus name is written in uppercase, and must be written in lowercase that of the species and variety.
As regards the spelling of the species is correct to write the name species in italics and the author in normal. In the tables, the species must be followed by the author. In the case of a species provided with a variety, the author must follow both: the species and the variety; is omitted the author of the variety only when this is equal to the specific name , eg: Capsicum annuum L. var. annuum.
If you have a different classification in time, it should be indicated in brackets the name of the first botanist who made it and to follow that of the last.
Taking the above example: Willdenowi had classified this species in 1809
as Capsicum pendulum Willd. then reclassified as a taxonomic variety of Capsicum baccatum by Eshbaugh, then:
Capsicum baccatum L. var. pendulum (Willd.) Eshbaugh
In every written the first time you mentioned a species must be written in full (eg Capsicum annuum L.). The species subsequent may have general statements, C.
The first time a species is mentioned throughout the text, it must be followed by the author, not the next time. Tables and figure captions names must be followed always by the author.
As we have seen, to indicate the author often uses the abbreviation:
L. for Linnaeus (Linneaus), Willd. for Willdenowi and so on.
If you are unable to classify the species (because of uncertain determination or new and as yet unclassified) using the abbreviation sp. (Species):
Capsicum sp.
The "Pimenta da Neyde" is often referred to as Capsicum sp.
Some authors use this term for the "Naga Morich" (and other Indian super-hot ), the result of a cross between C. chinense and C. frutescens.