How to use Nova Scotia Plants and other Floras

We have described what makes a flora, and who uses these books. Next we should examine how one uses the flora. Easiest thing is to start big. NS Plants is organized by the type of plant: evergreen, spore-producing and flowering plants. We have the fewest evergreens, so picture-matching is relatively simple. The spore-producers or fern allies are an eclectic bunch requiring more observations before attempting to picture match. The flowering plants are split in two, according to the number of seed leaves, number of flower parts and leaf venation. From there it becomes complicated.

But don’t panic. This is the time of year to learn about a few basic skills, which should serve you well always. Plant identification is a process. It begins with making observations, using the senses you have. Visual is generally more complete, supplemented by touch and smell. I can’t hear the plants whispering usually, so I am afraid the auditory amongst us may feel deprived.

Seriously, before photographing, collecting or otherwise committing to memory, look to see the plant’s habit: is it a tree, a shrub (multiple woody stems), fernlike, with long straplike leaves like grass or with a flower: petals/sepals/stamens/pistils. Next check to see how the leaves are arranged: opposite, alternate or whorled about the stem, or are the leaves absent. Flowers: present, or absent, parts in 3s? 4s or 5s? Shape of flowers can be important too. Central disk with petals or florets around it? Are they tubular? Bell-like? Upright or hanging down?Then we have seeds, or fruits, and their appearance: ornamented, dry, fleshy, singly produced or clustered?

A small notebook while out and about makes this simple to keep track. Habitat can also give us a clue. By habitat we mean surroundings. Forested, unforested, meadows, streamside, lakeside or coastal? Wetlands may be bogs, swamps or fens. Unforested and human altered landscapes can include fields, fallow or not, dooryards, railbeds, roadsides, etc. Plants like people have certain environmental needs, generally revolving around access to water, sunlight and nutrients.

Making observations becomes second nature with practice. With a few photos to assist, one can confidently turn to the appropriate section within the synoptic keys and begin to follow them. Keys are logical statements which should answer:
If this state is present (on the left), then this is the answer, (on the right). Sometimes multiple conditions need to be present in order for a conclusion to be reached. A to B to C etc. Other times, only a single pair is required: if this state is not present, then THIS ONE is the answer.

Most of us use specialized vocabulary in our working day or hobby, whether it is science-based or not. Botany is no different. None of us (myself included) can always remember the diversity of words to describe some conditions. Hairy is a perfect example. There are many words to describe the type and orientation of hairs, or pubescence. The glossary is useful as the keys are used. If nothing else once learned, the words make awesome fillers in a Scrabble game!

Following the keys to the plant families, is a glossary. Chances are the unfamiliar words in the keys are listed in the glossary to help you understand some of the science. Once you have identified the plant to family, simply turn to the family containing your plant.  Families are grouped alphabetically within types. Please remember that only plants growing in Nova Scotia habitats are included. That does not include your office or garden.

A final note on the Latin names. Latin names are official names. They are registered and recognized the world over. Singleames ending in -aceae are family names. Generic names are diverse. Species are always binomial, 2 words.

My apologies for the length of this note. But I do ask of you, that you attempt to use the keys in Nova Scotia Plants. Please drop a note here if you have difficulties. Chances are others can learn from your questions too.

Key for the conifers from NS Plants
Key for the Pines from NS Plants
Species entry for Balsam-fir, the only Abies entry in NS Plants
Glossary sample from NS Plants, found at the beginning of NS Plants following keys to families

Some harmful houseplants and local cousins

Many of our favourite house-plants are grown for beautiful variegated foliage and climbing or vining tendencies. Some of their leaves have unusual shapes. All of the following are toxic or poisonous if ingested by pets or humans and all are members of the tropical Araceae, with relatives found  in Nova Scotia.

Dumbcane or Dieffenbachia are vines native to North American tropics and southward. The name refers to the numbing effect caused by calcium oxalate crystals in the foliage.

Caladium or Elephant Ear, is also grown for beautifully marked foliage, originating from South America. All parts are poisonous to ingest and may even affect sensitive skin if handled. Other common vines are Philodendron and Pothos . Keep out of reach of pets and children.

Nova Scotian species include three rather unique species: Calla Lilies, Jack-in-the-Pulpit and Skunk-Cabbage. Calla Lilies tend to grow in wet peat; Jack-in-the-pulpit or segabun, is found along stream banks. This plant forms part of the Mi'kmaq pharmacy and is also called Indian Turnip. Skunk cabbage has very large leaves resembling those of cabbage, appear long after its most disagreeable flower pushes up through barely thawed ground.  You can read more about the Araceae in Nova Scotia at http://museum.novascotia.ca/books


Philodendron, photo by Marian Munro
Calla Lily, photo by Sean Blaney

Jack-in-the-pulpit, photo by Beth Cameron

Skunk Cabbage, photo by David Mazerolle

Carnivorous plants

We sometimes see little glass jars with the oddly-shaped Venus Fly Traps enclosed, available for sale. The ads may say Feed Me, I Eat Meat! It does not grow in Nova Scotia but other ‘meat eating” plants are found in our bogs.

Pitcher-plants and Sundews are the names of fierce herbs who devour their insect visitors. The pitchers are modified leaves bearing hairs pointing downward. Veins in crimson attract visitors, perhaps mimicking nectar guides. Any victims falling into the rain-filled vessels are doomed to digestion by this hungry plant!

The Sundews are more active. Their modified leaves wear shining glue-topped hairs. Once the insect visitor is trapped on the hairs, the leaves begin to curl around the struggling victim. Carnivory in plants evolved to fulfill the need for nitrogen and other nutrients, absent from much of their peatland homes. Newfoundland’s provincial floral emblem is the pitcher-plant.

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Sean Blaney, photographer. Pitcher Plant, common in NS bogs.

Thread-leaved Sundew plant, by Martin Thomas. a species-at-risk

Spatulate-leaved Sundew, Sean Blaney. A common carnivorous species

Nova Scotia’s flora and how it continues to change

The Nova Scotia Plants publication was just launched in October 2014. It had been 16 years since a comprehensive flora for the province was published. During those 16 years, at least 40 plants were added to the total. Are these newcomers? The answer is no, and yes! Botanists are steadily finding new relationships between and amongst genera. Sometimes this means a lumping of species or varieties and sometimes it means a splitting of species. These plants have always been present; their relationships have changed.  Then there are the plant species who are upwardly mobile. These are the plants who are expanding their range, usually from south to north.

Sometimes they are hitchhikers, such as Garlic Mustard, which marched into the province. As it is invasive along roadsides in eastern North America, it was only a short while before it appeared in our province, possibly by tires of vehicles carrying the seeds. During the 1700-1900s most of the introduced plants arrived on our shores, literally, via ships’ ballast. The weight of soil and rocks gathered from European shores ensured that Nova Scotia, received seeds of European species, especially the fast-growing weedy ones. With the advent of rail, came species from the western prairies and the mountains, such as lupines and mustards. These are opportunists, spreading as far and wide as the trains that carried them.

The intentional introductions are plants that arrive here as crops, ornamentals or as reminders of far-flung travel. And sometimes, the plants are introduced by people, who just don’t consider the environmental impacts. During the Christmas holidays, I received a series of emails from concerned naturalists about a species of aquatic plant observed in a local pond in Halifax. Some of our most vulnerable habitats to plant invasion are streams, lakes and ponds. Aquatic species are very difficult to control. This plant, the Carolina Fanwort, Cabomba caroliniana is popularly used in aquaria. Native to the southeastern part of the US, it is now resident in Halifax County. It arrived at Frog Pond when someone emptied their unwanted aquarium plants into the pond, an unacceptable practice on several levels. Its effects on the native vegetation remains to be seen. We don’t know if it will survive the winter. It is now listed officially as invasive in ME, MA, VT and CT, although it is native and even extirpated in some of the more southerly states. What we do know is that its presence probably indicates a decline in water quality. It is difficult for non-native species to invade healthy ecosystems.

Carolina fanwort, Cabomba caroliniana, photo by M. Munro

Closer image of stem and December growth, photo by M. Munro

one leaf, photo by M. Munro