Plant Identification – Alberta Native Plant Council

Vascular Flora of Alberta: An Illustrated Guide, 2nd Edition

This resource is available as a paperback or e-book through Amazon.ca.

The guide includes illustrated keys to all native and naturalized vascular plants in Alberta. The development of a set of keys for the 2000+ vascular plants in AB was a complex undertaking, and as the keys are used and as new information becomes available, the Authors decided to keep them as correct and as up-to-date as possible by collecting changes and producing up-dated versions (printings) when it seemed warranted.

If you purchased your copy in June 2025, an update is available here.

Vascular Flora of Alberta: Illustrations and Maps

This resource is available as a paperback or e-book through Amazon.ca.

This book contains illustrations and distribution maps for all of the 2,098 vascular plant species that are currently recognized as native or naturalized in Alberta. It also has a collection of labelled illustrations, with one to several drawings for each family showing some of the key characteristics used for identifying species.

The Rare Vascular Plants of Alberta, 2nd Edition

The Rare Vascular Plants of Alberta, 2nd Edition is available for purchase through UBC Press.

Wildflowers of Whitehorse Wildland Provincial Park

This publication is available through the Alberta Native Plant Council and was spearheaded by Alison Dinwoodie, the long-time steward of the Whitehorse Wildland Provincial Park.

A Guide to the Common Mosses and Liverworts of Alberta

Mosses and Liverworts (Bryophytes) are ubiquitous across Alberta, hiding in crevices of sidewalks, thriving in moist shaded ravines and boreal wetlands, and even sunbathing on boulders in the mountains. They form diverse miniature worlds with captivating beauty and are a fun challenge to identify. The photos, details, and explained technical terms in this guide will make bryophyte identification accessible to all who want to discover the exquisiteness of bryophytes! Order here.

Puzzling Pairs

Since 1988, the Alberta Native Plant Council newsletter IRIS has brought to the ANPC membership articles on all things native plant-related. Periodically, a series called “Puzzling Pairs” (or the occasional “Tricky Trio”) has been published to help the plant observer sort between similar species. If you are finding any of the following sets of species puzzling (or tricky), click on the appropriate issue of IRIS for some help.

Remember though that there have been on-going taxonomic changes, so some of the names may have changed. Common names are from Kershaw, L. 2019. Alberta Plant Names: A guide to their pronunciation, meaning and English alternatives. Self-published. Kindle Direct Publishing.

Puzzling Pairs through the Years

Vascular and Non-Vascular Plants of Alberta Lists

The Alberta Conservation Information Management System (ACIMS) maintains a list of the document plant species within Alberta. For the latest version, please head to their website.