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Plants

Welcome to my talk page. I'm working on cleaning up, improving, and adding citations to plant pages with a focus on western North America. MtBotany (talk) 23:41, 7 January 2023 (UTC)

Hi MtBotany, I stumbled across the entry for Eustoma Russellianum while researching gentian plants I might attempt to grow here in central Texas. I'm slowly getting into making home brewed bitters and was wondering if you know if this particular gentian is safe to use for that purpose. That is, if I can find a mature plant to harvest any time soon. Regardless, I still think they look quite neat and plan to start a small bed of them next spring if I can find seeds. BananaBoatCapitan (talk) 14:54, 7 June 2023 (UTC)

I am not an expert on the edibility of plants. The only thing I can do is search to see if it is listed in an ethnobotany database or book. Which also has uncertainty due to accuracy of the communication about which plant is meant and so on.

I have also seen a great deal of often repeated twaddle in plant books about edibility or medicinal properties. Never trust statements like "Native Americans used it as food," if the source listed is a wildflower guide! In Wikipedia terms wildflower books and most are not a reliable source for information beyond identification.

Although I am quite interested in Eustoma I have also never grown it due to being intimidated by the fussy reputation of Eustoma russellianum. At least so far. You might check with your local Extension office to see if they have a master gardeners program. That is a good way to get information about growing more unusual plants. And more direct advice than from Wikipedia. MtBotany (talk) 16:00, 7 June 2023 (UTC)

Entry Requests

I am happy to take requests to work on pages about vascular plants native to the states of Colorado, New Mexico, or Wyoming. Leave a message here and I’ll add it to my to do box. Given enough time and I’ll get to all of them, but I do not work on this with a logical method but based on what catches my interest. It takes me about two weeks to get an article up to what I consider adequate quality. If you want to see what I'm working on look at my sandbox. MtBotany (talk) 17:03, 16 March 2023 (UTC)

Source-attribution

Hi MtBotany. You can attribute public domain works by using the {{Source-attribution}} template. I have done this for you for the Campanula petiolata draft. Best, CandyScythe (talk) 16:10, 1 June 2023 (UTC)

Thanks for the information. I'm always learning new things about best practices here on Wikipedia. MtBotany (talk) 17:03, 1 June 2023 (UTC)

RFA comment

30. Support After reviewing this editor's last 250 edits they appear level headed, friendly, and sensible. Though as usual I’m shocked, shocked by a lack of interest in botany. Despite this serious oversight I'll support this candidacy. ;) MtBotany

Hey there. I wasn't really supposed to say anything during the RFA, but now that it's over I just want to say that I really liked your witty support. Thanks for the good vibes :) –Novem Linguae (talk) 21:04, 17 June 2023 (UTC)

Thanks and you are welcome. I like a little gentle ribbing in serious things. I know I am a fairly focused editor playing here in my interest area so it is rare that I know someone from the “rest” of Wikipedia. We do not get much troublesome editing here in Plantipedia. Though since I do read in other areas I appreciate the hard work you guys do keeping stuff like the History of Germany or Academy Award pages from being a problematic mess. MtBotany (talk) 01:04, 18 June 2023 (UTC)

I gnome species articles sometimes using User:Novem Linguae/Scripts/SpeciesHelper, so if you have any plant species on your watchlist and the taxonomy templates, categories, etc. aren't perfect, we might bump into each other :) –Novem Linguae (talk) 02:23, 18 June 2023 (UTC)

@Novem LinguaeIt becomes ever more likely with each passing day. I now have 325 pages on my watch list and it grows... Yeess, it grows! Muhaha. ... Muhauahaahaha!

Not every plant page goes on my watch list, but all the ones that grow in Colorado do. Eventually I might add New Mexico and Wyoming as well. The life of a plant obsessive. MtBotany (talk) 00:57, 2 July 2023 (UTC)

Paused for a Week

Hello all. I am taking a week off because I sprained my wrist. I will be back to edit again though not until my wrist feels much better. MtBotany (talk) 02:24, 21 June 2023 (UTC)

I have sent you a note about a page you started

Hello, MtBotany. Thank you for your work on Delphinium geyeri. User:SunDawn, while examining this page as a part of our page curation process, I had the following comments:

Hello! I want to inform you that I have checked your article and mark it as reviewed. Have a good day and thanks for creating the article!

To reply, leave a comment here and begin it with {{Re|SunDawn}}. Please remember to sign your reply with ~~~~. (Message delivered via the Page Curation tool, on behalf of the reviewer.)

✠ SunDawn ✠ (contact) 02:18, 4 July 2023 (UTC)

A barnstar for you!

	The Original Barnstar
	Thank you for creating Delphinium geyeri! ✠ SunDawn ✠ (contact) 02:19, 4 July 2023 (UTC)

I have sent you a note about a page you started

Hello, MtBotany. Thank you for your work on Campanula petiolata. User:SunDawn, while examining this page as a part of our page curation process, I had the following comments:

Hello! Hopefully you have a nice day today. Thank you for contributing to Wikipedia by creating an article. As your article have adhered to the policies of Wikipedia, I have marked it as reviewed. Have a good day for you and your family!

To reply, leave a comment here and begin it with {{Re|SunDawn}}. Please remember to sign your reply with ~~~~. (Message delivered via the Page Curation tool, on behalf of the reviewer.)

✠ SunDawn ✠ (contact) 11:50, 15 July 2023 (UTC)

DYK for Delphinium geyeri

On 15 July 2023, Did you know was updated with a fact from the article Delphinium geyeri, which you recently created, substantially expanded, or brought to good article status. The fact was ... that though poisonweed, Delphinium geyeri, is highly toxic, it is less poisonous after it starts flowering? The nomination discussion and review may be seen at Template:Did you know nominations/Delphinium geyeri. You are welcome to check how many pageviews the nominated article or articles got while on the front page (here's how, Delphinium geyeri), and the hook may be added to the statistics page after its run on the Main Page has completed. Finally, if you know of an interesting fact from another recently created article, then please feel free to suggest it on the Did you know talk page.

RoySmith (talk) 12:03, 15 July 2023 (UTC)

A happy frog for you!

	A happy frog for you!
	Thanks for creating Blue mist penstemon! Edward-Woodrow :) [talk] 22:57, 21 July 2023 (UTC)

Thanks! Just working away here in the Botany Mine. 16 tonnes and what do ya' get... MtBotany (talk) 00:09, 22 July 2023 (UTC)

Work together?

Hello MtBotany! Some of your edits I've seen have been fantastic, and Delphinium geyeri is an excellent article. My primary sphere that I edit in is botany, specifically the St. John's Worts. I just wanted to reach out and offer that if you ever want to work together to try to bring an article to GA status I would love to collaborate! I've gotten a few less information-intensive Hypericum articles through GAN, and have an eye to tackle Hypericum perforatum or Hypericum next. If you'd like to help that would be great, or if you have an article in mind I'd love to lend a hand! Just let me know, Fritzmann (message me) 19:36, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

Hallo @Fritzmann2002,

Thanks, I'm fairly happy with D. geyeri. I was thrilled that it was still red linked and I got to be the editor who started it. The way I work I'll never have a huge number of pages that I've added, but my goal is for all of them to be "C" or better.

I'd be happy to work on some Hypericum. My own project is all the plants that grow in the southern Rockies so the ones I'd be most interested in working on are Hypericum majus, Hypericum mutilum, Hypericum perforatum, and the currently redlinked Hypericum scouleri. So we do have a solid cross over there with the common St. John's wort, which given its importance would be great to work on. The article for Hypericum looks fairly good to me other than being slightly light on references.

Shall I just jump right in and see if I can find some more precise leaf shape descriptions? MtBotany (talk) 20:29, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

Awesome! I'm going to start on H. perforatum with the Taxonomy section. That and the Ecology section will probably need the most expansion. The Chemistry and Research sections will need major cleanup as well, but I always save those for last. I'm going to work in a sandbox, just to avoid any edit conflicts. Fritzmann (message me) 20:38, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

@Fritzmann2002 Sounds good. So far I'm just directly editing a bit at a time and researching. Check out the German Wiki page. It is beautiful. Wish they sourced their description, but some of those photos and illustrations definitely have to come over to our page. The cross section and that close up of a leaf in particular. I speak a little German so I can figure out where machine translation is going wrong, mostly. MtBotany (talk) 23:38, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

Sorbus aucuparia

Hello, I wasn't the one that added the ref you removed there but it was clear that it was referring to the book cited under #References, just like almost all other refs in that page. The page is using the WP:SRF style but without the templates, it would be fairly quick to add them though. Have a nice day, Ihaveacatonmydesk (talk) 21:54, 29 July 2023 (UTC)

1000 Mainspace Edits🌿

I just passed 1000 mainspace edits. Making a note of this for myself. Currently have 15 mainspace pages that I have started. 🌿MtBotany (talk) 03:13, 21 August 2023 (UTC)

Congratulations! Your work on plant articles are valued and appreciated. Schminnte (talk • contribs) 15:23, 21 August 2023 (UTC)

Thanks. I'm fairly happy with my work and I hope to be around for 1000 more. 🌿MtBotany (talk) 17:39, 21 August 2023 (UTC)

very cool Pliingplong (talk) 20:28, 7 October 2023 (UTC)

Indeed, @Pliingplong. But it all counts. Even edits on Wikimedia commons and Wikidata count toward your total edit count. You can look at your own edit count statistic with the link on the right side "User contributions" off of your User Page. Create your talk page! Create a one line User Page. It all counts. 🌿MtBotany (talk) 22:49, 7 October 2023 (UTC)

Pause for Plants

Hallo! I'm taking a pause to look at some plants in the real world, my probable last edit for few weeks will be 28 August 2023. I plan-t on being back unless I get eaten by rare African strangler vine. 🌿MtBotany (talk) 04:32, 27 August 2023 (UTC)

Back to editing

Making a general announcement that I am back to being more active and will respond more quickly when I am pinged. Also back to working on cleaning up, improving, and adding citations to plant pages with a focus on western North America. This is a good place to ask me to work on a plant entry for a species native to the Southern Rocky Mountains or propose a collaboration. 🌿MtBotany (talk) 17:26, 29 September 2023 (UTC)

Thank you

		The Plantae Barnstar
		Thank you! for your efforts in improving flora articles. Eucalyptusmint (talk) 00:56, 13 October 2023 (UTC)

Thanks @Eucalyptusmint. I almost feel like I understand what I am doing after almost a year of serious editing. I'm no Wikipedia expert (yet) but I'm pretty happy with what I have contributed and hope that I can continue with this hobby for a while. Or if I am forced away by life I can come back in retirement to fix more plants. 🌿MtBotany (talk) 02:11, 15 October 2023 (UTC)

Most definitely, it also took me a bit to get the hang of it initially and still feel like I'm figuring it out as I go. But that's one of the beauties of this encylopedia since there's many experienced editors/resources to get help from and be able to contribute as life allows. Eucalyptusmint (talk) 00:08, 17 October 2023 (UTC)

1200 Mainspace edits - 2000 edits to English wikipedia🌿

I made my 2000th edit to Vanilla_odorata today. Getting it into shape for a possible DYK submission. 🌿MtBotany (talk) 18:35, 21 October 2023 (UTC)

WP:RED

To be clear, I also add red links only to things that I think are likely to be notable. What I think of as the 'best practice' these days is to use the Template:Interlanguage link to link to relevant articles on other Wikipedias. If something has an article on, let's say, German wiki but not English, the odds are very good it is notable and just awaits the translation. And red links are important reminders to folks that Wikipedia still needs work, and encourages people to create those articles. _{Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus| reply here} 00:32, 22 October 2023 (UTC)

Piotrus, I agree that what you are doing is entirely within Wikipedia guidelines and it serves the very useful purpose embodying the unfinished puzzle pieces in the Wikipedia logo. It is a little prompt to anyone who sees it, "Hey, someone thinks this is notable, can you complete it?"

I prefer a stylistic choice putting more emphasis on the pieces that are already in place. To not put the gaps front and center, but instead to treat them as a "too do very soon" list. The coding of a promise to myself that I'm going to do the work to carve another stone for the unfinished pyramid. It it not wrong by the rules, but if I put those red links and had no plan to fill them myself I would feel bad for volunteering other people for a job I was unwilling or unable to do myself.

If I ever know I am dying I'll spend my last month on Wikipedia filling as many redlinks as I can and I won't put a single new redlink in. I'll leave that choice for those who come to edit after me. 🌿MtBotany (talk) 01:35, 22 October 2023 (UTC)

a leek from the cauldron for you!

Would that every RfA were about plantipedia! Thanks for a good commitment to the bit :) theleekycauldron (talk • she/her) 19:06, 24 October 2023 (UTC)

Thanks @Theleekycauldron:. I figure I can run this bit for at least a year before people start throwing things at me or threatening me with ferocious tauntings. Or someone gifts me an African strangler vine, then I'll know I might have taken the bit too far. Or maybe not far enough. After all Morality's lease has run out and now Science has the keys to the apartment!

Also, for some reason that picture reminds me of the photo of Wil Wheaton Collating Paper. Is it the body language? The almost like I'm going to smile but I'm not sure because my friend made me do this? Hopefully you don't need a picture of Wil Wheaton collating paper. 🌿MtBotany (talk) 20:18, 25 October 2023 (UTC)

For what it's worth, if you ever need a reference from Trees in Canada (it's a fairly comprehensive book I've had for a few years now), I'm your woman. I also like moss lawns and clover lawns. The last one is a redlink if you dare and it's a 2023 trend lol :) Clovermoss🍀 (talk) 17:26, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

Okay, I admit I couldn't resist the redlink... but if you want to help with expanding the article, I'm all for it! Clovermoss🍀 (talk) 18:10, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

@Clovermoss Curses! Foiled again by quick Wikipedia Editors! I'll have to commiserate with Dr. Reginald Bushroot over this one down at the villain bar.

Though now I'm wondering if any of my horticultural books would have information about clover or other non-traditional lawns. Though my favorite lawn replacement is a recreated shortgrass prairie because No Mowing!!! Someday soon Bouteloua dactyloides is going on my list of articles to give "the treatment".* 🌿MtBotany (talk) 18:35, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

* "The Treatment", when MtBotany starts with a blank, or nearly so, sandbox page and starts rebuilding an article as it it were a redlink. Then goes to the article and pulls out the good sources to complete it, sees if there are better pictures available, cleans up botanical drawings from the commons, and then completely replaces the page with the new version. Usually resulting in ⁠2/3⁠ of the article being his fault.

A barnstar for you!

	The Barnstar of Good Humor
	For your good humor. WikiOriginal-9 (talk) 21:53, 27 October 2023 (UTC)

Plants

As luck would have it, I live in ER5H - CENTRAL SIERRA LOWER MONTANE FORESTS, spend quite a lot of time walking around outside, and have a DSLR with some decent lenses. All I lack is an obsessive knowledge of the plants that surround me (I can identify the cedar incense, the ponderosa pine, the black oak, the manzanita and the Pacific madrone but that is about it). If you are willing to indulge a deluge of noob-tier plant identification requests, I am happy to learn and to go roaming with my full outfit. jp×g🗯️ 11:46, 28 October 2023 (UTC)

@JPxG Happy to help almost anyone get more into plants. I may even be useful for at least half the plants plants growing in the Central Sierra. I'm even occasionally useful for plants "back east". Though the further from my home range the less useful I become and once things are tropical I'm downright useless.

I'll also let you in on my "secret" weapon. When I have no clue I either upload my pictures to iNaturalist or reverse search by looking at all the recent check ins for a geographic area. Recently I figured out a plant by simply looking at all the recent observations in Chatfield State Park and there was Persicaria amphibia, just as easy as that. I should have realized what it was by the similarity of the flower to Bistorta vivipara, but seeing it growing in water threw me initially. Of course when I want to maintain my witch-y or wizard-ly reputation of knowing everything I never let on that I use such tools.

And iNaturalist is great for finding pictures to upload to Commons. It has been a total lifesaver for me working on my Draft:List of Penstemon species. 🌿MtBotany (talk) 16:43, 28 October 2023 (UTC)

DYK for Vanilla odorata

On 10 November 2023, Did you know was updated with a fact from the article Vanilla odorata, which you recently created, substantially expanded, or brought to good article status. The fact was ... that euglossine bees distribute the seeds of vanilla tlatepusco? The nomination discussion and review may be seen at Template:Did you know nominations/Vanilla odorata. You are welcome to check how many pageviews the nominated article or articles got while on the front page (here's how, Vanilla odorata), and the hook may be added to the statistics page after its run on the Main Page has completed. Finally, if you know of an interesting fact from another recently created article, then please feel free to suggest it on the Did you know talk page.

theleekycauldron (talk • she/her) 00:02, 10 November 2023 (UTC)

@Theleekycauldron Hi Leeky! I'm running in small circles here. Made it to the front page with bees and plants. 🌿MtBotany (talk) 00:21, 10 November 2023 (UTC)

well fantastic! I'm glad to hear it :) theleekycauldron (talk • she/her) 01:06, 10 November 2023 (UTC)

DYK for Pedicularis groenlandica

On 11 November 2023, Did you know was updated with a fact from the article Pedicularis groenlandica, which you recently created, substantially expanded, or brought to good article status. The fact was ... that little pink elephants are parasitic? The nomination discussion and review may be seen at Template:Did you know nominations/Pedicularis groenlandica. You are welcome to check how many pageviews the nominated article or articles got while on the front page (here's how, Pedicularis groenlandica), and the hook may be added to the statistics page after its run on the Main Page has completed. Finally, if you know of an interesting fact from another recently created article, then please feel free to suggest it on the Did you know talk page.

Aoidh (talk) 00:03, 11 November 2023 (UTC)

A barnstar for you!

		The Plantae Barnstar
		Thank you for your excellent DYK on Pedicularis groenlandica. Made me chuckle! W. Tell DCCXLVI (talk to me!/c) 16:07, 11 November 2023 (UTC)

@Wilhelm Tell DCCXLVI Thanks. Credit to @Fritzmann2002 for the inspired wording of the hook. 🌿MtBotany (talk) 19:29, 11 November 2023 (UTC)

DYK for Wyethia amplexicaulis

On 14 November 2023, Did you know was updated with a fact from the article Wyethia amplexicaulis, which you recently created, substantially expanded, or brought to good article status. The fact was ... that the scenic fields of northern wyethia (pictured) found in the western United States are sometimes a sign that an area has been overgrazed? The nomination discussion and review may be seen at Template:Did you know nominations/Wyethia amplexicaulis. You are welcome to check how many pageviews the nominated article or articles got while on the front page (here's how, Wyethia amplexicaulis), and the hook may be added to the statistics page after its run on the Main Page has completed. Finally, if you know of an interesting fact from another recently created article, then please feel free to suggest it on the Did you know talk page.

♠PMC♠ (talk) 00:01, 14 November 2023 (UTC)

Technical Page Move

Hello, your requested page move for Mahonia nervosa → Berberis nervosa has been completed. I think that leftover redirects have been cleaned up, but please check them out as you offered in the request. Thanks. ---DOOMSDAYER520 (TALK|CONTRIBS) 19:38, 15 November 2023 (UTC)

3000 Edits🌿

A good moment to take stock of what I have done.

Today I passed 3000 total edits to the English version of Wikipedia. I have over 4234 edits across all the Wiki projects, most of the others (over 1000) to Wikimedia Commons. I'm fairly happy with my editing over the last year. Over 60% mainspace edits so I'm staying focused on building an Encyclopedia and not getting bogged down in the minutia of "How should thus and such be properly classified?" Yes, some of the stuff in Wikipedia is useless/pointless, but that's the nature of human endeavor.

If I broke down my edits into smaller bites I could have a much higher number of edits, but that's not my goal. I like my edits to be as good and as useful as possible. To me that means reaching my own limits rather than doing one one tiny thing. A shovelful of knowledge rather than just one grain of sand, at least where that is possible. Keep going everyone! 🌿MtBotany (talk) 21:16, 14 December 2023 (UTC)

DYK for Castilleja integra

On 20 December 2023, Did you know was updated with a fact from the article Castilleja integra, which you recently created, substantially expanded, or brought to good article status. The fact was ... that orange paintbrushes are guarded by rufous hummingbirds? The nomination discussion and review may be seen at Template:Did you know nominations/Castilleja integra. You are welcome to check how many pageviews the nominated article or articles got while on the front page (here's how, Castilleja integra), and the hook may be added to the statistics page after its run on the Main Page has completed. Finally, if you know of an interesting fact from another recently created article, then please feel free to suggest it on the Did you know talk page.

RoySmith (talk) 00:03, 20 December 2023 (UTC)

Happy Holidays!

Hike395 is wishing you Happy Holidays! This greeting (and season) promotes WikiLove and hopefully this note has made your day a little better. Spread the WikiLove by wishing another user Happy Holidays, whether it be someone you have had disagreements with in the past, a good friend, or just some random person. Happy New Year!

Spread the cheer by adding {{subst:Happy holidays}} to their talk page with a friendly message.

— hike395 (talk) 21:54, 25 December 2023 (UTC)

New page reviewer granted

Hi MtBotany. Your account has been added to the "New page reviewers" user group. Please check back at the permissions page in case your user right is time-limited or probationary. This user group allows you to review new pages through the Curation system and mark them as patrolled, tag them for maintenance issues, or nominate them for deletion. The list of articles awaiting review is located at the New Pages Feed. New page reviewing is vital to maintaining the integrity of the encyclopedia. If you have not already done so, you must read the tutorial at New Pages Review, the linked guides and essays, and fully understand the deletion policy. If you need any help or want to discuss the process, you are welcome to use the new page reviewer talk page or ask via the NPP Discord. In addition, please remember:

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• Accuracy is more important than speed. Take your time to patrol each page, including checking for copyright violations using Earwig's copyright violation detector, checking for duplicate articles, and evaluating sources (both in the article, and if needed, via a Google search) for compliance with the general notability guideline.
• Please review some of our flowcharts (1, 2) to help ensure you don't forget any steps.
• Use the message feature to communicate with article creators and offer advice as much as possible.

The reviewer right does not change your status or how you can edit articles. If you no longer want this user right, you also may ask any administrator to remove it for you at any time. In cases of abuse or persistent inaccuracy of reviewing, or long-term inactivity, the right may be withdrawn at administrator discretion. If you can read any languages other than English, please add yourself to the list of new page reviewers with language proficiencies. HJ Mitchell | Penny for your thoughts? 17:20, 27 December 2023 (UTC)

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