What is that strange-looking weed your favorite milk goat just ate? Your nationwide field guide either doesn’t have a picture of it or provides such a confusing explanation of the plant’s range that you can’t really decide if it’s even likely to exist in your part of Kansas. What to do?
When you encounter an unfamiliar plant, look it up in Wildflowers & Grasses of Kansas: A Field Guide by Michael John Haddock.
Each flower or grass species has its own page, with a color photo, scientific name, family, common name, flowering time, height, range, description, and comments. The comments are extremely interesting since they often tell about historic uses of the plant and how suitable it is for livestock consumption. The photography is both useful and beautiful (take a look at the photo of Monument Rocks on page 252).
To make identification easier, the wildflowers are sorted by color, and separate sections are included for grasses and grasslike plants. The descriptions contain some very technical language, so be sure to thumb through the introduction for an illustrated explanation of the terms used. Identification aids and a glossary are also provided in the back of the book.
Wildflowers & Grasses of Kansas is absolutely indispensable for anyone trying to identify plants in the Sunflower State. Whether you’re taking a pasture inventory or a nature walk, you may want to have a copy to bring along. It will make the identification process much easier.
Helpful Resource
Kansas Wildflowers & Grasses
Looking for a plant that’s not in the book? Check the website from the same author!
Homestead on the Range 