ABEGINNER’SGUIDE

TOWILDFLOWERID

MaterialsborrowedfromWildflowersofTexasHillCountry,LBJWildflowerCenterNativePlantIndex

References

DESCRIPTIONPRACTICE

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COMMONLEAFSHAPES

COMMONLEAFARRANGEMENTS

COMMONINFLORESCENSEARRANGEMENTS

COMMONLEAFTYPES

DESCRIPTIONPRACTICE

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DESCRIPTIONPRACTICE

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TIPSFORIDENTIFYINGPLANTS

• Lookattheleaves.Someflowers(especiallyasters)havesimilarinflorescences,butdifferentleaves.Seeleft.

• Followthefamily.Becauseplantsinafamilyarecloselyrelated,theyoftenlooksimilar.Ifyouseeaplantthatissimilartoyoursample,lookthroughthefamilyuntilyoufindaclosermatch.

• Gofrombroadtonarrow.Plantsinafamilyoftensharecharacteristics(forinstance,astershave“compound”,daisylikeflowers)Withinthisfamilytherearegeniuses(likesunflowers)thatareevenmoresimilar.

• IfyouthinkyouhavethecorrectID,payattentiontobloomtime.Ifyoursampleisidenticaltothefigureinthebook,butis6monthsoutofbloomtimeitmaynotbecorrect.

RECOMMENDEDRESOURCESFORBEGINNERS

• Fieldguidespecifictotheareainwhichyoulive.Ifyouarejuststarting,Irecommendoneorganizedbycolor.

o ByColor:WildflowersofTexas-G.Ajilvsgio ByFamily:WilflowersofTexasHillCountry-M.

Enquist• LBJWildflowerCenterNativePlantIndex-youcan

searchtheirvastplantindexbycolor,seasonalityandmanymore.

• iNaturalist-citizenscientistscanusecrowdsourcingtoidentifynativeplants,animalsandfungi.YoucanalsoIDotherobservations.

HELPFULVOCABULARYFORPLANTID

Annual-plantcompletingitslifecyclewithinasingleyearorseason.Aromatic-fragrant,usuallyinreferencetoascentgivenbycrushedleavesAwn-terminalbristleonanorgan.Axillary-bornorcarriedintheanglebetweentheleafandstemBract-reducedormodifiedleafbeneathaninflorescenceCiliate-fringedwithhairsonthemarginCorolla-Inner,coloredwhorlofflowerparts(petalscollectively)Diskflower-smalltubularfloweronthecentraldiskofacompositeflowerEndemic-restrictedinrangetoagivenareaFiliform-slender,threadlikeGlabrous-lackinghairHerbaceous-herblike,usuallyleafyandgreen,notwoody.Inflorescence-flowerclusterorflowerheadofaplantInfructescence-inflorescenceinfruitingstageNode-pointonstemfromwhichleavessprout.Perennial-plantofindefinitelifespan,renewseachyear.Petiole-leafstalkPubescent-coveredinhairsRayflower-outer,petallikeflowerssurroundingthediskofacompositeflowerScorpioid-curledTerminal-atendVar.–VarietyXeric-pertainingtoaridordesertconditions