Wild flower identification and collection for botanical artists

Sarah Morrish has written a very useful blog post for botanical artists called ​Project Skills for Botanical Artists (i) - Identifying wild flowers & plants.  This is the first in a series of posts relating to skills needed by artists developing botanical art projects.

She makes an acute observation early on

Learning to identify plants and their characteristics goes hand in hand with producing accurate botanical illustrations and portraits - you cannot do the latter without the other.

​The importance of botany to botanical artists 

The article is packed full of useful tips for:

• those planning to work in the field for the first time; or
• those wanting to develop their knowledge about a specific theme for their botanical artwork by observing the plant in its natural habitat.

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The blog post covers:

• practical equipment you will need when collecting plant specimens in the field - plus an essential tip (see quote below) 
• useful books and other tools for identifying plants
• groups you can join to help develop your knowledge and have company for field trips

I'm certainly going to be adding her blog post into the tips provided in the Education section of this website.

Please follow the guidelines for your own country in regard to collecting.  Plantlife have some excellent advice -  Is it illegal to pick common wild plants in the countryside ?

Sarah Morrish's display of Twigs and Buds in Winter in Ancient Hedgerows at RHS Botanical Art Show 2016 in February this year

This website also has a useful section on Botany for Botanical Artists for those looking to identify plants and their distinctive characteristics which need to be highlighted when illustrating plants and flowers.

Note: Sarah Morrish is a botanical and natural history artist and tutor based in Southern England. You can out more about her and her courses on:

• Website - Nature's Details 
• Blog - The Natural Year
• Facebook - Natures Details - Botanical & Natural History Art
• courses - Natures Details Courses 2016