‘Small’ plants can occur from several different sources. Some may simply be species which are typically small in stature and fit nicely in smaller gardens. These plants may be propagated by seed, rooted cuttings, or grafting. Others small plants may originate as chance seedlings and display traits quite unlike the species. They may be significantly smaller at maturity and have smaller foliage than their species. These are known as genetic dwarfs. Still others may originate as ‘sports’ on plants that are typical of the species.

In either case, subsequent plants must be propagated by vegetative means to maintain the desired trait. This is usually done by rooting stem cuttings or grafting to produce plants identical to the parent plant.

Plant nomenclature often provides clues to the nature of a particular plant. Yatsubusa generally means dwarf in Japanese. Daruma and hime can mean compact or dwarf in form or habit. Nana, as in Betula nana, is often used to depict a compact and/or dwarf form. Procumbens and prostrata describe plants which are creeping or prostrate respectively; and humilis depicts those which are low growing. Other may be described simply in the cultivar name as in Acer palmatum ‘Sharp’s Pygmy’.