Are You Spraying The Right Weeds? Apps Can Help

Attacking weeds early on is key to stopping them from spreading. In order to do that, you need to know what weeds you’re up against. There are several apps available to distinguish which weed you’re fighting, but how accurate are they?

Researchers at Michigan State University (MSU) have been measuring app identification accuracy for four years. This year, the researchers tested eight apps:

1.    Picture This
2.    Planet Net
3.    PlantStory
4.    LeafSnap
5.    iNaturalist
6.    Seek
7.    PlantSnap
8.    GardenAnswers

All the apps tested used photo recognition software to identify plants, but some tested in the past required more descriptive input from the user, similar to traditional plant keys. The students tested numerous plants at various growth stages.

They say the apps correctly identified anywhere from 11% to 67% of the plants they photographed, while 25% to 80% of the images were partially identified correctly.

According to the researchers, Picture This—found on the Apple App Store and Google Play—came out on top, successfully identifying 67% of the 130-plants photographed. This app has reigned champion in the test for four years in a row. 

Grassy varieties proved the most challenging for many apps, with less than 10% accuracy. According to MSU, grasses are difficult to identify using whole plant images, as close inspection of fine structures is often required for grass identification.

MSU researchers say these apps are a great starting point, but it’s important to double-check the results with a trusted source.