What plant is that?
It is important to know what plants you have in your garden. Is the plant a pest species? Will the tree be too big once it grows? Is it poisonous? These are just some of the reasons you need to know what plants are in your garden, not to mention mere curiosity. The problem is it can be very hard to identify plants, but it can be done.
The easiest way to identify a plant is to read its label…..if it has one. Usually, they have been removed or they have disintegrated, but you may be lucky.
Gardening books are a traditional means of identifying plants but can be very difficult, especially for the less knowledgeable gardener, and the books can be out of date.
Look carefully at the plant in question. Look at the arrangement of the petals, stamens, and the general arrangement of the flowers. Look at the shape of the leaves, their arrangement, and their veins. Look at the bark. Compare all these with the possible candidates in the book and hopefully you can make an identification.
If you know roughly what a plant is you can Google it. I usually Google images and once a match is found I do a second search to find out the details
But there are some even better ways to use this technology. On an android phone search window, there is the G for Google on the left. To the right is a microphone icon and at the far right, a camera icon. Click on the camera icon and then on ‘Search with your camera”. Take a picture of the plant. Hopefully it will identify the plant. This feature on your phone can be used to identify anything, not just plants. Very handy.
You can also instal a plant identifier app onto your phone. You should try out a few to find the one that works best for you. Some are free, others need to be subscribed to but usually allow a free trial period. To identify a plant simply open the app, take a picture of your mystery plant and the app will identify it. Most apps will also tell you how to care for the plant, identify any diseases and recommend treatments.
For a start, why not have a play using your phone to identify known plants in your garden? This will build your confidence in using the technology.
I am a lazy, stress-free sort of gardener. Anything that takes the guesswork out of gardening and saves time is to be embraced wholeheartedly.
The Zen Gardener
