PlantShare
Recent sightings
Datura inoxia
Sign up for PlantShare
As a member of PlantShare, you will be able to:
- Upload photos of plants to share with others
- Create checklists of plants you want to keep track of
- Publish the location of the plants you have seen on your own map
- Ask one of our expert botanists questions Sign Up
Sightings Locator
Ask the Botanist
Our ace botanists are here to help you identify wild New England plants and to answer questions about their ecology and conservation. When posting a question, please provide the location, habitat (e.g. river, mountain, woodland), and photographs of the plant.
Everyone can read the answers, but only logged-in users can ask questions. Log in to ask a question.
Recently answered questions
-
- Question
- I think I’ve found a swamp rose-mallow in Windham County CT. It hasn’t been reported here according to the I botany map.
- Answer
- Deaer farprof, good afternoon. It does appear you have found Muenchhusia moscheotos (swamp hardy-hibiscus). This species has been segregated from the genus Hibiscus based on results from the most recent phylogenetic study. I will add the occurrence to our range maps. Thank you for posting this. (Friday, 28 August 2026)
-
- Question
- Is this Tall Blue Lettuce? I haven't planted this and a plant app suggested that id. Location is the Narrow River Valley in RI. We've usually left the small front yard go wild this thing is giant and researching if it was edible or useful lead me here.
- Answer
- Dear GardenClubRI, good afternoon. The plant you have photographed looks like Lactuca biennis (tall blue lettuce). This is a native member of the composite family. It should have white latex (not tan) if a leaf is broken. This species is quite bitter and not typically used for food (but is used for medicine). If it flowers, the flower heads almost always have blue ray flowers. I hope you are well. (Friday, 28 August 2026)
-
- Question
- Wondering which species of sunflower this is. Found in a woods/savanna partial sun environment under a tree in a patch of others of the same species. Leaves are along the entire stem. The stem was mostly hairless, but there were some small, sparse hairs along the stem closer to the flower head. I'm having trouble uploading more than one image so this is the best I have.
- Answer
- Dear berlin83, I would need to know where this plant was photographed to give you a confident answer. As well, I would need more images that include the leaves and the bracts around the flower heads. That written, this does appear to be a species of Helianthus and if it were found in the northeast I would compare it to Helianthus divaricatus (woodland sunflower) based on what I can observe in the image. Best wishes. (Friday, 28 August 2026)
More recently answered questions »