Interflora flowers

What’s my plant

When you bring a plant home for the first time, it can be quite a new experience. All the research in the world sometimes can’t get you ready for what your plant may produce. When something new starts to grow, you may start to ask ‘is that normal?’ or perhaps there is something wrong. Knowing exactly which plant species you have can be half the battle and so we’ve got this handy identification guide to help you out.

The first step is to contact the garden centre or florist you bought the plant from and try to get a botanical name. Common names are less accurate when identifying species and so you really should get the official classification instead.

If the plant was a gift or you have no way of knowing what its name could be, that’s when you need to head straight here and take a look at our handy identification guide for plants.

Find the description or photo closest to your plant, paying particular attention to leaf shape, distinctive marking and colour. And, if all else fails and you can’t find your plant here, you can always email us a photo and we’ll do our best to identify it.

  • Berries

    You may think that identifying a plant through its berries is a simple enough task; just find the right colour and size. However it’s not that easy and can require expert knowledge. First of all, you also need to determine if your berry is actually a berry at all. Fruits and seeds that aren’t officially…

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  • Big leaves

    Green house plants give your home a fresh and natural look and you can find them in all shapes and sizes, no matter how big or small your house may be. The best way to identify your particular house plant is to pay attention to the shape of the leaves. Details like this can help…

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  • Coloured leaves

    There are many plants with curious and colourful leaves that you can display in your home or garden. Coloured leaves can refer to plants with leaves of an entirely different colour other than green, or plants with leaves featuring mixed colours and patterns. When looking to identify your plant by the colour of its leaves…

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  • Hairy

    The ‘hair’ on these plants can vary from fine, wispy threads to stiff, almost leaf-like prongs and it can give a plant a very distinctive and unique look. Use this individuality to your advantage when attempting to identify your plant using our guide below. The things to look for when identifying a hairy plant are…

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  • Hummocky plants

    Although it’s not a word you’ll come across a lot in your day-to-day business, hummocky is an important word to know when trying to identify a plant. Hummocky is the name given to plants that have a soft, rounded and ‘fleshy’ look – like pads or cushions. When attempting to identify your hummocky plant you…

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  • Tendrils plants

    Tendrils come in all shapes and sizes, from leaf-free curly ones, to long weeping ones covered in leaves. They have many uses in the plant world; for example, detecting nutrients in the air, attracting insects or as a way of attaching to a host plant. When identifying your tendril plant, remember these top tips: Get…

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  • Plants with thorns, spines and prickles

    Plants with prickles, spines and thorns should always be handled with a bit more care than your typical house plant. Well-known examples include aloe, rose bush and thistles. These defensive mechanisms fit into three categories; thorns, spines and prickles, and it is important to know which is which. Spines are modified leaves that have been…

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  • Trunks and trees

    Plant species encompass a range of trees, shrubs, bushes and climbers and, with so much variety; it can be hard to pinpoint a specific one. You should pay particular attention to the following tips to identify your plant: Do the branches of your plant grow at intervals all the way up the trunk, or are…

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