2010 Annual Report

Weed Gallery gets makeover

UC IPM has redesigned its Weed Gallery to make it as easy for readers to find an unknown weed as one they know the name of. The gallery guides readers through several main plant divisions—such as broadleaves or grasses and leaf or plant shape—to quickly narrow the search. From the results, readers can choose among photos of specific weeds.

In addition, individual weed descriptions have a new look with more photos and more information. Each page links to the Calflora Web site to show where the weed grows in California.

The former UC IPM Weed Gallery presented only a menu of more than 150 weed names to choose from, rather than photos categorized by a visual plant characteristics. This often resulted in numerous clicks to find an unidentified weed.

The new gallery helps readers find more information more quickly in several ways:

• Already know the name of a weed? Use the “View by weed name” link on every page of the new gallery. 
• Want to know more about plants and their parts? Use the tutorials, with their illustrations and information that distinguish broadleaf, grass, and sedge plants and also define plant parts used in characterizing certain plant species.
• Want to identify common weeds found in turf? The broadleaf and grass categories link to The UC Guide to Healthy Lawns.

UC IPM staff worked with weed specialists UC IPM Advisor Cheryl Wilen, Affiliate Advisor John Roncoroni, and former UC IPM Advisor Anil Shrestha to improve the Weed Gallery. Many others also provided helpful suggestions.

For more information, access the weed gallery.

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