Hello Everyone!!
A friend had asked me if I knew of an app where I can take a photo of a plant and the app will identify the unknown plant for me. So, I went on a search and came up with 4 apps that were easy to navigate. Each of these apps I used the same picture, a pansy. Here is my quick review of each!
#1 iNatualist https://www.inaturalist.org/
This app is a joint initiative of the California Academy of Sciences and the National Geographic Society. It joins you with over 750,000 scientist and naturalist to help you learn about plants and animals. You can log in with Email, Google or Facebook, you can also skip this step. Next, you will come to “My Observations” page. This is where you can add a picture from your photo gallery, take a picture, record a sound or choose a sound. After the image or sound is uploaded a “Details” page will appear. On this page you can click on “What did I see?” The page will come up with top suggestions, you then can click on what best matches your photo and it will give you more info. After you find one that best matches your photo you can click the “Select” button, then it will take you back to “Details” page. At that point you can add any additional information you would like, such as notes, date and location you took the picture. When finished you can save for future reference. This is completely free and no ads.
#2 LeafSnap http://leafsnap.com/
This app is a plant identification service being developed by researchers from Columbia University, the University of Maryland and the Smithsonian Institution. LeafSnap is able to identify about 90% of all known species of plants and trees. As soon as you open the app you are given the option to take a photo or to select from your gallery. After you select a photo you are given the options of leaf, flower, fruit or bark. Select what best looks like your search. The next page will be results that best fit your picture. Then click on the result that is most like your photo and it will give you a description of your plant. If you choose to read more, the next page will give you species name, genus, family, common names, characteristics, how to grow, a link to Wikipedia and so much more. The only draw back to this app is that it has ads you have to skip over. If you want the app but no ads you can pay 3.99/ month or 18.99/6 months.
#3 PlantNet https://www.plantsnap.com/
This app is a citizen science project, people help other people identify flowers and plants. When you open the app it will display world flora options. You will want to select USA to help match plants correctly. If you want to see plants not native to our area, this app is fun to try out and learn more. You will have to set up an account to view details of the plants on this app. In this app you will have the option to scroll through other peoples pictures or make a new observation by taking a photo. You can also pick one from the gallery. After you select your photo you will have the option of leaf, flower, fruit, bark, habit or other. Next, will be your results, where you will pick which closely matches your photo. You can then click on the name of your plant and it will redirect you to more photos uploaded by other users. Once you select you will be able to learn more about your plant including leaf, flower, bark, Wikipedia, family, genus, species, common names, links for additional information and a map of where the plant has been found around the world. This app is free, with no ads.
#4 Google Lens https://lens.google/
Most phones have this option already installed. Google Lens will help you discover visually similar images and content that is related to your image. On my phone it is an option found with each picture in my gallery. It is a square-shaped photo icon on top of the picture. Once you click the icon it will do a search of your photo and provide you with an overview, care, type, characteristics and anything else you would want to learn through a typical Google search. This is also a free service and most simple of the apps for searching about your plant.
Most often I will use Google Lens when searching plants since it is already installed on my phone. However, each of these apps have valuable information and were relatively easy to navigate.
Until Next Time,
Julie