Standard Nomenclature - How to Learn What's Proper

[Mountaineer370]

This was posted by Ray in another thread:

"PLEASE use standard nomenclature when discussing and describing plants. Folks around here are getting sloppy about that, and doing it properly can avoid all sorts of confusion.

The two most common mistakes I've seen recently are capitalizing species names and not capitalizing hybrids, and not using single quotes to indicate cultivars.

For example, in this thread, the plant is properly described as Cattleya percivaliana ('Henrique' x 'Summit').

It may seem that I'm being "picky", but these conventions are in place for a reason, a name is a name, and to take it even further off base in the wrong direction, we might simply refer to our plants as "orchids", which would confuse everyone."

As a relative beginner to the orchid hobby, and as someone who has an appreciation for proper language usage, grammar, and punctuation (though I confess to being sloppy sometimes), I would like very much to use the proper nomenclature when referring to my orchids.

The problem is I don't know where to go to learn what is standard and proper. I have picked up a few things here and there, but I don't always know if the source is correct, and there are always frustrating contradictions.

Is there reference material on this board or elsewhere where beginners like me can go to learn what is proper and accepted? Links would be appreciated.

I've posted this in "Beginner Discussion," since it is beginners that are probably most in need of this type of information. Mods, please move it if it is more appropriate to another section of the forum.