Identification

Plant Identifier

Identify plants by characteristics

Identify plant species by selecting observable characteristics like growth form, leaf shape, flower color, and habitat. Narrow down possibilities from thousands of species.

Plant Identifier

Answer questions about what you see to narrow down the plant species.

Matching Plants:

Showing first 12 of matches. Refine your filters to narrow results.

No plants match your criteria. Try adjusting your filters.

How to Use

  1. 1
    Describe the growth form

    Select whether the plant is a tree, shrub, herbaceous perennial, annual, vine, grass, or succulent.

  2. 2
    Add leaf and flower details

    Choose leaf shape, arrangement, and margin type, then select flower color and petal count if flowering.

  3. 3
    Review matching species

    Browse filtered results ranked by match confidence. Tap any species for full details and images.

About

Plant identification is a core skill for gardeners, botanists, hikers, foragers, and anyone curious about the natural world. With hundreds of thousands of described plant species worldwide, narrowing down an unknown plant requires a systematic approach that starts with the most visible and reliable traits and progressively eliminates candidates.

The Plant Identifier follows the dichotomous key logic that botanists have used for centuries, adapted into a filter-based interface. You begin with broad growth form -- tree, shrub, herbaceous plant, vine, grass, or succulent -- which immediately eliminates most of the plant kingdom. Next, leaf characteristics narrow the field: simple versus compound, alternate versus opposite arrangement, and margin type (entire, serrate, lobed). If the plant is flowering, petal count, flower color, and inflorescence type (spike, raceme, umbel, head) provide the most taxonomically informative data. Habitat and geographic region add a final filter, since most species have well-defined ranges. The tool cross-references your selections against the PlantFYI species database to surface the most likely matches, each linked to a full species profile with taxonomy, range, growing conditions, and care guidance.

FAQ

What plant features are most useful for identification?
Leaf arrangement (alternate, opposite, or whorled) and leaf shape (simple vs compound, margin type) are the most reliable starting features because they are consistent within a species and visible year-round. Flower structure is the gold standard in botany but is only available during bloom season. Bark texture, growth habit, and habitat also narrow candidates significantly when flowers are absent.
How do I identify a plant that is not flowering?
Focus on vegetative features: leaf shape and margin (smooth, toothed, lobed), leaf arrangement on the stem (alternate, opposite, whorled), stem shape (round, square, winged), bark texture, overall growth habit, and habitat. Many plant families have distinctive vegetative traits -- mints have square stems and opposite leaves, grasses have parallel-veined blades with hollow round stems, and conifers have needles or scales instead of broad leaves.
What is the difference between simple and compound leaves?
A simple leaf has a single blade attached to the stem by one petiole (leaf stalk). A compound leaf is divided into multiple leaflets that share a single petiole -- think of an ash tree or a clover. Compound leaves are further classified as pinnately compound (leaflets along a central axis, like walnut) or palmately compound (leaflets radiating from one point, like horse chestnut). This distinction alone eliminates large groups of species from consideration.
Can leaf margin type help identify a plant?
Leaf margins are one of the most underrated identification features. Entire (smooth) margins suggest families like magnolias and dogwoods. Serrate (toothed) margins are typical of elms, birches, and roses. Lobed margins point to oaks, maples, and sycamores. Doubly serrate margins (teeth on teeth) narrow the field to birches and some elms. Combined with leaf arrangement, margin type often points to the correct family in two steps.
Why do some plants look different at different life stages?
Juvenile foliage can differ markedly from adult foliage in shape, size, color, and even lobing. Eucalyptus saplings produce round, waxy blue leaves while mature trees have long, narrow green leaves. Many oaks have deeply lobed juvenile leaves that become less lobed with age. English ivy produces lobed climbing leaves but unlobed flowering leaves on mature stems. Always note the maturity stage of the plant you are trying to identify.