Glycyrrhiza lepidota Glycyrrhiza lepidota Glycyrrhiza lepidota (American licorice) is a species of "Glycyrrhiza" (a genus in the pea/bean family, Fabaceae) native to most of North America, from central Canada south through the United States to California, Texas and Virginia, but absent from the southeastern states. It is also sometimes known in the United States as "wild licorice", to distinguish it from the related European liquorice ("Glycyrrhiza glabra") which is occasionally cultivated. The plant grows in moist soils; although it will grow in heavy soil it prefers sandy soil. It grows to tall, and has long tough brown roots which are said to
International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants is known to consider open and un-restricted access to the genetic resources of protected plant varieties to be important to the continued development of new varieties. This opinion is indicated in the "breeders' exemption" clause of the Convention, as described above, and was reinforced in October 2005 in a reply to a notification from the Convention on Biological Diversity. In April 2003, the Convention on Biological Diversity asked the UPOV for comment on the use of Genetic Use Restriction Technologies (also known pejoratively as 'terminator genes') as they relate to the promotion of intellectual property rights. In the summary of