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Tree and Plant Identification in the Palm of Your Hand

There are now a number of apps available, both for iOS and Android devices, which make identifying a particular tree or plant much easier. We have undertaken some research and identified the following, with a section of their descriptive text, which you may like to consider downloading.

Tree ID: Field guide app for trees in Britain. A visual guide to identifying trees of the British Isles. All native and naturalised species covered. No connection to the internet or mobile network is needed. The guide has been created by professional published ecologists. Discover more about each species with fascinating facts, folklore, history and uses – from medicine to musical instruments. 4.6 stars.

Plant Identification++: Identify plants in a snap. Take a picture with the phone’s camera, or pick an image from your library, then use the advanced machine learning algorithm to identify the plant in the picture. Convenient and fast! Instantly identify tens of thousands of plants, flowers, trees, leaves – powered by advanced artificial intelligence. 4.6 stars.

Picture This – Plant Identifier: Instantly identify plants. Accurate, fast and content rich! In addition to description and plant care tips, enjoy beautiful plant pictures from around the world. Capable of identifying 10,000+ plant species with an accuracy of 98%, better than most human experts. 4.7 stars.

Plant ID: Allows you to identify plants, flowers, leaves, trees and herbs quickly and accurately. All you have to do is point your camera, take a picture and artificial intelligence will tell you what the plant is in seconds! The app will also show you additional useful information about the plants. The machine learning model used can identify over 10,000+ plant species with an accuracy of 98%. This covers the most commonly requested plants from Europe, the United States, India and Australia. You can also store all of your identified plants in a simple to use user interface. 4.3 stars.

iplant: Fast and accurate recognition of plants and flowers based on artificial intelligence. Just photograph or select plant images from the gallery on your mobile phone to quickly identify plants. Automatically save identification records and quickly search history records. Share plant images and information to Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter etc. 4.2 stars.

British Tree Identification: An interactive British tree identification app from the Woodland Trust, the UK’s largest woodland conservation charity. In just a few steps, you can identify native and common non-native trees in the UK, whatever the season. Use bark, twigs, buds, leaves, flowers and fruits of our A-Z guide full of stunning, clear images to identify the most common British trees. 3.7 stars.

PLNT: Identifies any plant, tree, weed or flower with 95% accuracy – better than most human experts! Highly accurate plant identification. Whether you manually search for the plant or simply take a picture of it. The AI-powered system provides an immediate result. Explore nature and its wonders while you’re on the walk: combine visual pleasure with learning new things about flora. 4.2 stars.

We hope you find these useful in your work.  For tree, plant and landscape advice, for your next commercial soft landscaping project, please contact us.

The benefits that healthy urban trees provide are significant. However, the environmental conditions found in urban areas can often be challenging to their establishment and long-term survival. To give them the best opportunity to survive and thrive it is essential that they are planted in a way that provides them with sufficient root space and irrigation.

Generally, a minimum of 3m3 of rooting volume is required to give most tree types a viable chance of becoming established. Where this amount of space is not available, tree planting and growth is still possible provided care is taken with species selection and root management. The use of soil structure modules can help to prevent soil compaction and ensure that sufficient rooting volume is available.

In addition to being provided with sufficient room, tree roots can also be directed to ensure that they do not damage surrounding surfaces or underground structures. This includes, if a tree is to be positioned within or next to a paved surface, then the tree roots will need to be directed downwards to prevent paving heave.

In order for a tree to thrive, the roots must be able to receive a sufficient amount of water. Also, if the rooting area is waterlogged then the surrounding soil may become anaerobic, which is equally likely to result in the destruction of the tree. Therefore, consideration must be given to the substance and structure of the soil surrounding a tree to ensure that there is sufficient drainage to prevent waterlogging. Also as the majority of urban trees are covered by a hard surface, tree planting should also incorporate the means to irrigate efficiently.

Many urban trees are planted in exposed locations where they are vulnerable to the high winds that can develop as a result of urban wind tunnel effects. Therefore, an appropriate form of support is required to help trees through the initial growth phase. Underground guying is often preferred for urban tree pits as it is unobtrusive. Staking is a cost-effective alternative although this usually requires ongoing maintenance.

For further advice on tree selection and planting techniques plus professional tree installation in urban areas please contact us.

Most people are aware of the many social and environmental benefits that trees provide. However, these are multiplied when planted in urban areas.

Trees make a positive visual contribution to any landscape. In addition, they help to improve air quality and combat climate change by absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen back into the atmosphere, so offsetting and regulating greenhouse gases, to combat important climate damage.

A simple mature tree can absorb carbon dioxide at a rate of over twenty kilograms per year. In addition, trees also remove and store other harmful pollutants, so improving air quality, including carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide and particulates, sulphur dioxide, nickel and lead.

Trees also counter the effects of climate change by providing shade, and by the transpiration of water, help reduce ambient temperatures and combat urban flooding. They also have beneficial effects on the physical and psychological wellbeing of the local population. This includes cutting noise pollution and urban wind tunnel effects by reducing wind speeds.

As trees planted in urban environments provide so many benefits, it is essential that they are planted in a way that will ensure their long term survival. For advice on tree selection and planting techniques please contact us.