Here’s a news flash for you. Michigan has lots of plants, and you may not know many of them. For me, my plant knowledge extends to avoiding poison ivy, loving sunflowers, and knowing that butterflies love milkweed. From there, I’m useless. But there have been plenty of times when I’ve thought a flower looked pretty but didn’t know the name.
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Sure, you could Google it, but that requires an internet connection and isn’t always a reliable source. Now, one of Michigan’s most reliable sources has turned years of botanical expertise into a simple,offline-capable app that invites the community to contribute.
Michigan Flora, U-M’s New Plant ID App
Built as a collaboration between the University of Michigan’s Herbarium and the Research Software Engineering group within the College of Literature, Sciences, and the Arts Technology Services, the Michigan Flora app takes years of information compiled across the Field Manual of Michigan Flora and the Michigan Flora Online website and makes it available to everyone, whether they have internet or cell service.
It’s essentially like having a plant ID book in your pocket, but with enhanced search features, including a map of where each plant grows. This map is linked with iNaturalist and will allow people to upload their own photos of the plants. The search feature allows for common and scientific name searches and more.
It should be noted that there is currently no functionality to search by photograph, and it won’t take a search entry like “spiky light green plant”. Instead, the goal of this app is to use the Key feature to answer a series of questions that narrow your search parameters and eventually find the plant’s name.
Admittedly, this app does take some getting used to, as it includes many terms an amateur naturalist (like myself) may not understand. But the app does have explanations for everything; it may just take a bit of digging to find. It is still in its early stages and will continue to be updated over time…