Polygonums Are Awesome and Worth ID'ing to (Sub)Species

Nature Talk
1

I think knotweeds are charming and an exciting challenge to observe and identify. I’m not satisfied with just leaving them at P. aviculare. Normally the value of ID’ing to subspecies is debatable, but this dissatisfaction has resulted in me learning that many of what FNA and some other florae treat as subspecies of P. aviculare, other florae (and POWO) treat as distinct species. So if one keys something to P. aviculare and stops there, without getting down to subspecies, they’re quite likely to be misidentifying the plant in question!

What do you think about knotweeds? Are they worth your time?

1 Like
2

Well, I’m not a huge plant guy, so when I find a knotweed, I don’t even know what it is until the iNaturalist AI tells me lol.

3

Keep in mind that iNat’s ‘AI’ (Called the “Computer Vision” or “CV” for short) isn’t always accurate, especially for lesser-identified taxa like knotweeds

1 Like
4

Yes, that is sometimes the case.