Instructions

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  Finding a good field guide is the first step in identifying wildflowers.book image by Du...?an Zidar from Fotolia.com
  
  Find a good guide book or two that will help you become familiar with Maine's common wildflowers. Field guides are a necessary component of anyone's wildlife viewing arsenal. John Theberge's small paperback "A Pictorial Guide to Maine's Roadside Wildflowers" offers color-coded photographs to help with identification. Another option is a handy, plastic-coated manual from the State Nature Guides series. "Maine Trees & Wildflowers: An Introduction to Familiar Species" by James Kavanagh is a standard reference guide for Maine wildflowers. Lastly, a large field guide, "Wildflowers of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont," by Arleen Bessette et al. offers a comprehensive, description-based guide to New England wildflowers.
  
  
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  Using a sketchbook or a camera will help with wildflower identification.old book image by Allyson Ricketts from Fotolia.com
  
  Take photos or sketch wildflowers when you see them. If you don't have a camera or any drawing abilities, you could write a short description of the wildflower. If you are unable to determine the type of wildflower it is by using your field guides, look it up on an online database. Most field guides are arranged by color to make finding the wildflower easier.
  
  
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  Several websites offer ways of identifying wildflowers.keyboard image by Jan Will from Fotolia.com
  
  Use online sources to help you identify wildflowers. The Acadia National Park website explains the common wildflowers to be found in the park. Wildflower Farm has a "Wildflowers of Maine" page where you can search for the wildflower by color, branching habit and leaf design. The website Discover Life also has a similar search page that lets you find the names of most native plants or wildflowers anywhere in the United States. The Wildflower Society, which former first lady Ladybird Johnson started, also has a wildflower identification guide on its website.
  
  
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  A garden or wildflower club provides another resource for wildlfower identification.two girls image by forca from Fotolia.com
  
  Join native plant or wildflower clubs in the area. The Garden Club Federation of Maine offers meetings, conferences and workshops that you can attend. It also has a newsletter. The New England Wildflower Society also offers classes about native plants and wildflowers. At meetings for either club you can bring photos and questions about plant identification and network with people who can help you identify the wildflowers.