What Rare Plant Publications and Resources Does ANPC Offer?

Updated

The Alberta Native Plant Council (ANPC) publishes and distributes several rare plant and flora references, most of which can be purchased or ordered through external retailers or directly from the Council. The main titles are The Rare Vascular Plants of Alberta, 2nd Edition, Vascular Flora of Alberta: An Illustrated Guide, 2nd Edition, its companion Vascular Flora of Alberta: Illustrations and Maps, and Wildflowers of Whitehorse Wildland Provincial Park. Availability and purchase channels differ by title, so check each one before ordering.

Rare Plant and Flora Publications

Publication What it covers How to get it
The Rare Vascular Plants of Alberta, 2nd Edition Rare vascular plant species in Alberta Available for purchase, ordered through UBC Press
Vascular Flora of Alberta: An Illustrated Guide, 2nd Edition Illustrated keys to all native and naturalized vascular plants in Alberta Paperback or e-book through Amazon.ca
Vascular Flora of Alberta: Illustrations and Maps Companion resource to the keys, with enhanced illustrations and maps Available through Amazon.ca
Wildflowers of Whitehorse Wildland Provincial Park Wildflowers of that specific provincial park Available through the Alberta Native Plant Council

The two Vascular Flora of Alberta volumes work as a set: the illustrated guide provides the identification keys, while the illustrations and maps volume supplements those keys with enhanced visuals and distribution maps. If you are identifying plants in the field or a herbarium, the pair is more useful together than either alone.

Rare Plant Storymaps and Online Resources

Beyond books, ANPC hosts online resources relevant to rare plant documentation:

  • Rare Plants within Coal Leases of the Eastern Slopes of Alberta — a storymap compiled by ANPC volunteers documenting known rare plant occurrences within proposed coal mine footprints in the eastern slopes of Alberta's Rocky Mountains.
  • Recommended Plant Lists by Natural Region — a storymap with species recommendations adapted to each of Alberta's natural regions, aimed at native plant gardening.
  • Alberta Wetland Plant List — a plant list resource for wetland species.
  • Native Plant Source List — available in both Excel and PDF formats.
  • Native Plant Suppliers and Demonstration Bed Interactive Map — for locating suppliers and demonstration plantings.

These are hosted on the ANPC website and are generally accessible without a purchase, though some may require navigating to a linked storymap platform.

Conservation and Advocacy Materials

ANPC also produces materials tied to specific conservation cases. One example is the information the Council provided in March 2026 to the Municipal District of Taber regarding a proposal to convert approximately 3,100 acres of native grassland into irrigated cropland. This kind of material is not a formal publication but is part of ANPC's advocacy and stewardship output, and it illustrates how the Council applies its botanical expertise to land-use decisions.

How to Decide What You Need

  • For identifying plants in Alberta — start with Vascular Flora of Alberta: An Illustrated Guide, 2nd Edition, and add the Illustrations and Maps companion if you need visual and distribution detail.
  • For rare species specifically — The Rare Vascular Plants of Alberta, 2nd Edition is the dedicated reference.
  • For a specific park — Wildflowers of Whitehorse Wildland Provincial Park covers that area only.
  • For free, current information — the storymaps (rare plants in coal lease areas, recommended plant lists by natural region) and the wetland plant list are the most accessible starting points.

Purchase links and ordering details for each title are listed on the ANPC website's publications section; the Council notes that The Rare Vascular Plants of Alberta can be ordered through UBC Press, while the Vascular Flora titles go through Amazon.ca.