ldentification Tips
Whether you are setting out to identify a pretty spring wildflower or to pin down an obnoxious garden invader, plant identification is not a mysterious process. Certain features can give away the identity quickly, and certainly, a cluster solves the puzzle best. Be observant of the following features as you study the profiles in this book and/or seek confirmation from other sources.
Habitat
- Is the plant a sprawler or a climber? Herbaceous or woody?
- Does the plant grow from a single stem or does it have multiple stems?
- Does the plant produce suckers? Does it form a colony?
- Are there aboveground runners, perhaps rooting at the nodes?
- What can you tell about the root system?
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This basic piece of information sometimes makes or breaks plant identification. If you find a plant growing in a dry spotbut in researching it Iearn that it grows in wetlands, you might have to start over.
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Ditto if you find a plant prospering in shade when your research says that it is a sun-lover.
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Likewise, if a plant grows in chalky (alkaline) soil, but the literature shows that it prefers acidic soil, you might have to go back to the drawing board to identify the plant correctly.
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That said, realize that many weeds and invasives are resilient and can show up in unexpected places or tolerate a broad range of growing conditions.
Leaves
- Are the leaves arranged opposite each other aiong the stem or do they aiternate? What is their shape: heart-shaped, lance-shaped, lobed, dissected, or something else? Note the color.
- Is it variegated? Does it change with the seasons? Are the leaves smooth or hairy, glossy or not? Are the margins serrated, scalloped or otherwise marked?
Flowers and Seedheads
- When plants are closely related, oftentimes the blossoms or seedheads will immediately narrow things down, not just to the genus, but also to the very species.
- Observe color.
- Count petals, pistils, stamens.
- Note size and/or width of flowers and seeds. Try to work with a plant that is fuily mature or open, rather than one that is just unfurling or starting to flag or fade away.
- Note bloom time and duration.
- Fruits and berries give away a plant's identity quickly, too, particularly when they are fresh and ripe.
- Note whether they are carried individually or in clusters.
- Do they hang along stems or are they only at the ends of the stem? What size and color are they?
- Cut open a fruit or berry to see the density and color ofthe flesh and to look at the seeds.
- By observing the fruits on the plant, you might even be able to determine which animals or birds like to eat them.
Relatives
- Does the unidentified plant resemble a plant you already know?
- Does it look vaguely familiar or related? For instance, while it is no beauty in terms of blossoms or bush, it is easy to see that the multiflora rose is a rose. Ox-eye daisy is obviously a daisy. And so on.
Bibliographical Informatiom
By Teri Dunn Chace.
Publisher: Portland, Or. : Timber Press, 2013.
ISBN: 9781604693065
These are notes I made about gardening. See more gardening notes