Are there orchid species or hybrids named after Joyce Stewart, Peter O'Byrne or other orchidophiles ?
Dunno about Singapore, but in this country, hybridizers often name orchids or roses after First Ladies or other celebrities (usually women). Botanists occasionally name species after orchidophiles, like Phal. corningiana, but it can be controversial, as in the case of Onc. stacyi, which fortunately turned out to be a synonym. I never heard of an American hybridizer naming an orchid after a foreign dignitary.
There are four hybrids named after Joyce Stewart, but one is Memoria Joyce Stewart, so presumably it's somebody else. Can't find any plants named after Peter.
You have to be careful about which way the wind is blowing. In 1942 somebody registered a C. Stalin. Years later there was a petition to change the registration, but it was denied, because it is a validly published registration. By the same token, there are Den. Imelda Marcos & Den. Imelda Romualdez (her maiden name). We are stuck with her forever.
Really offensive cultivar names can be changed to conform to political correctness. They finally changed the official name of Crocus 'Nigger Boy' to 'Negro Boy' or 'Black Boy.' However, you can't do anything about Lc. Henrique Fuck because it is somebody's actual name.
Iris
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