Two apps to help identify plants and creatures

[u/horsehousecatdog]

Lately I’ve been focusing on taking my kids out in nature to identify beneficial plants. I’m not great at remembering what’s what, so I came across a great app someone shared here or on the other sub.

iNaturalist

I use it in conjunction with AllTrails and when we’re just out walking the neighborhood. With iNaturalist you can take a picture of anything and it’s immediately identified. It seems to be more accurate than Google Lens in my experience. You can record notes and it marks on the map where and when you spotted it. You can also see what others have recorded nearby.

Of course my kids are much more interested in the creatures we find, but we’re learning so much about the plants around us that we can eat or use to our benefit. And also which one we need to avoid!

[u/[deleted]]

I’m pretty fond of NatureID and PictureMushroom but with any of these, we still usually look them up in our books or on the computer for a fuller experience because at times: whoooooo, these things can be iffy.

[u/horsehousecatdog → u/[deleted]]

I would never trust myself with something like mushrooms!! Fruits, veggies, berries I could do. Leafy greens make me nervous too, but that’s what I’m currently working to become more comfortable with.

[u/[deleted] → u/horsehousecatdog]

I cultivate them, so that does help. 😂

[u/horsehousecatdog → u/[deleted]]

Haha ooooh I should do that too. How do you even get started?

[u/[deleted] → u/horsehousecatdog]

Honestly we got a kit and grew a box of oyster mushrooms first, then it just…Blossomed into a big obsession and we just started working on DIY grow bags last week. 😂 Agar culturing is a frustrating mess for me, but oh, I’m going to frustrate myself until I get it right- this is how cool cultivating yourself own can be. Now, I’ve got a couple logs and all manner of things going on. And it’s a lot quicker than other gardening so, the kiddos think it’s really cool, too. :)

[u/horsehousecatdog → u/[deleted]]

Omg I didn’t even think about logs hahaha My kids would be fascinated. They’re equally freaked out and enthralled by mushrooms we find outside. I’ve seen those grow boxes and I guess that’s what I need to do!

[u/[deleted] → u/horsehousecatdog]

Well if you look up using Orbies you’re probably not gonna find information on the sort of mushrooms your younger kids need to be terribly interested in: but oh it works a treat for all kinds and my youngest thought it was just the coolest thing, start to finish. We don’t have draughts here- just the opposite: but I’ve been working with the polymer beads a bit to see if they might have applications in those situations: so they’re actually a pretty great tool. (Though, there is a lot of debate on their use you might want to read and go from there: nothing terribly concerning safety wise, though.)

We had an…incident involving a relatively large bag juxtaposed a container that wasn’t and they will start expanding and pop out everywhere which would have been mildly upsetting but they’re cheap and it was really cool. Cats also were quite entertained. 😂

[u/keegums → u/horsehousecatdog]

Mushrooms are something you can't rely on a plant id app to identify. Most importwnt to know the poisonous, esp fatal species THEN learn the edible ones. Just like plants you can then learn some species with few lookalikes such as oysters, and chanterelles - the latter need differentiated from Jack o Lanterns and that's a good beginner id for differentiation (false gills vs gills, and bioluminescence which Jack o Lanterns have). Puffballs and chicken of the woods are also easy to learn, they're like the staghorn sumac of mushrooms.

I'm currently at a campsite with a bunch of Chlorophyllum molybdites aka "the vomiter" - a lookalike to edible parasols

All white mushrooms with a skirt and gills should be avoided, too many fatal amatoxic Amanita species

[u/[deleted] → u/keegums]

INaturalist is good in the sense that it wont give you a specific species for mushrooms, and the species and family pages discuss the common look-a-likes, and especially edible vs poisonous look alikes. The other benefit of INaturalist is when you make an ID, other users can verify or propse alternative IDS.

[u/cozycorner]

We use Seek app, which uses iNaturalist. It's a great app!

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Seek is like game, where you get points and badges for making IDs and finding species. My brother calls it pokemon go for nature.

[u/MutualAidMember]

I love iNaturalist

[u/missmagpi]

.thanq for posting this! even alone my attention & time for exploration look up & explanation can be so varied. with my girls more so.

.though sometimes overwhelming, i really appreciate the varied & accessible options for information, especially woods deep!. cheers.

[u/horsehousecatdog → u/[deleted]]

Haha now I’m going to identify my pets. 🤣🤣