If you’ve ever found a plant that you didn’t recognize and wanted to know what it was, then this episode is for you. We talk with Dr. Alan Weakley about learning to observe plants, how to identify plants, why that’s important, and some exciting new tools that are available to help us better recognize and appreciate the diversity of plants around us. Alan is the director of the University of North Carolina's Herbarium, which is located at the North Carolina Botanical Garden. He is also the author of the Flora of the Southeastern US and the newly released FloraQuest app.  The full transcript of this episode can be found on the episode’s webpage: https://www.backyardecology.net/learning-to-see-and-identify-plants-with-alan-weakley/ Get a free copy of our e-book, An Introduction to Gardening with Native Plants: Hardiness Zones and Ecoregions, when you subscribe to our email. Subscribe at www.backyardecology.net/subscribe. Episode links:  FloraQuest: https://ncbg.unc.edu/research/unc-herbarium/flora-apps/ Flora of the Southeastern U.S. (pdf): https://ncbg.unc.edu/research/unc-herbarium/flora-request/ University of North Carolina Chapel Hill: https://www.unc.edu/ UNC Herbarium: https://ncbg.unc.edu/research/unc-herbarium/ North Carolina Botanical Garden: https://ncbg.unc.edu/ Last Child in the Woods: https://amzn.to/3qEBw5D Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast: https://amzn.to/3P6McEc Wildflowers of New England: https://amzn.to/3N5tZnI Wildflowers of Texas: https://amzn.to/3J9ix9D Wildflowers of the Pacific Northwest: https://amzn.to/3N95S7U * Amazon links are affiliate links.  Backyard Ecology links: Website: https://backyardecology.net YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/backyardecology Blog: https://www.backyardecology.net/blog/ Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/backyardecology Make a one-time donation: https://www.paypal.com/biz/fund?id=K7F3HJLJT9F8N Subscribe to Backyard Ecology emails: https://www.backyardecology.net/subscribe/ Episode image: Hepatica flowers Photo credit: Shenandoah National Park, public domain