Updated

Updated · MLive.com · Jul 11

University of Michigan Launches Free Offline Michigan Flora App for 3-Volume Plant Guide

Updated

Updated · MLive.com · Jul 11

University of Michigan Launches Free Offline Michigan Flora App for 3-Volume Plant Guide

Q: Without collecting user data, how does the Michigan Flora app fund its continuous updates and long-term technical maintenance?

The app appears to be funded through institutional and philanthropic support, not through user-data collection. What is explicitly known is that development received financial assistance from the Michigan Botanical Society and the Michigan Botanical Foundation, and the app was created and is curated by the University of Michigan Herbarium and University of Michigan researchers. The available reporting does not describe any advertising, subscription, or data-monetization model. That means the most evidence-based answer is that ongoing updates and technical maintenance are likely sustained through University of Michigan resources tied to the Herbarium’s research, education, and public-outreach mission, supplemented when available by outside support such as botanical organizations and foundations. The app also benefits from drawing on the existing Michigan Flora Online database, which reduces the need to build a separate content system from scratch. In short, there is no indication that the app funds itself through users. Instead, it is best understood as a university-backed public-service tool, with initial outside financial assistance and probable continued support from institutional budgets, partnerships, and mission-driven funding rather than commercial data collection.

3 articles · Updated · MLive.com · Jul 11

July 9 marked the launch of the free Michigan Flora mobile app, giving Apple and Android users offline access to what University of Michigan says is the state's most complete plant identification guide.
The app addresses a key fieldwork problem: the Michigan Flora website required Wi-Fi or cell service, while many users identify plants in remote areas without a connection.
Users can identify plants by physical traits or by common and scientific names, with entries covering habitat, location, nativity, growing conditions and photos.
The tool also links to iNaturalist, letting users upload plant photos and use the app to improve identification accuracy from those images.
Built by the UM Herbarium and university software engineers, the app extends a reference first published in 3 volumes from the 1970s to 1990s and republished in 2012.