Castilleja christii (Christ's Indian Paintbrush), Idaho.
by Michael Strickland
"The earth laughs in flowers." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
If you enjoy our planet's colorful adornments, you'll love this resource.
A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, meaning it was not intentionally seeded or planted. The University of Idaho’s Stillinger Herbarium, the University of Washington’s Herbarium at the Burke Museum and Idaho State University’s Ray J. Davis Herbarium have partnered with High Country Apps to create the “Idaho Wildflowers” app, now available for iOS, Android and Kindle devices, according to a UI press release.
The juice of one makes invisible ink. Another spring-releases it seeds at a force greater than the equivalent lift-off of a rocket launching into space. Some have toxic sap that beggars in old England applied to their skin to make pathetic looking sores. Many plants were/are used by Native Americans in a myriad of interesting ways … including witchcraft and love-medicines! Some plants are toxic in one form yet beneficial in another. We never know when we find a new species what intriguing information there is to learn about it. wildflowerswest.org
The app includes profiles of more than 800 Idaho wildflower species, including close-up photographs and scientifically detailed, up-to-date descriptions of the species’ characteristics and known distributions.
The app’s identification tool allows users to easily enter the characteristics of an unidentified flower and discover what species it is.
Wildflowers in Boise National Forest, Idaho
The app taps into the vast knowledge generated by the
Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria, which brings together 32 regional herbaria to create an online database of more than 2.4 million plant specimens. “Idaho Wildflowers” puts that knowledge directly into people’s hands as they explore the state.
“Idaho Wildflowers” provides access to information on the breadth of Idaho’s flowers all in one place for the first time, says Dave Tank, a UI associate professor of biology and director of the Stillinger Herbarium.
Because of the state’s diverse landscapes, no single reference book includes all the information included in the app.
"Idaho has a unique flora. We have influences from the Pacific Northwest in north Idaho, with a maritime climate and deep, dark forests. In the mountains of central Idaho and the southeast we have all the influences from the Rocky Mountains. In the intermountain region we have influences from the Great Basin,” Tank said. “For amateur and professional botanists, it’s always been a struggle. The ‘Idaho Wildflowers’ app provides access to information covering the whole state.”
Craters of the Moon National Monument/Preserve, Idaho
David Giblin, collections manager of the University of Washington Herbarium at the Burke Museum, said:
“Idaho Wildflowers is a great resource for amateur and professional botanists – outstanding photos, an easy-to-use identification key, comprehensive range maps and plant descriptions, and dozens of suggestions for places across Idaho to see wildflowers. All this and you don't need an internet connection to use it!"
Some of the revenue generated by the app will go to support specimen-collecting expeditions through the Burke Museum that will benefit regional herbaria. A portion of revenues from the app supports conservation and botanical exploration in the region.
Now get out there and enjoy the flowers!
"We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls." - Mother Teresa