User:James

Welcome to my WikiBotanicals user page. I am an administrator and am here to help. If you're new to this wiki and have questions, feel free to contact me.

March 2013
I am continuing with the importing and formatting of works in the public domain. My aim is to provide a basis from which to begin the process of sorting content. These imports are not to be taken as current but rather a framework from which to assess. My objective is to establish a format and convention for WikiBotanicals. Accomplishments:


 * 1) Project pages are to be used for the genus of plants.  Users can create pages in the main namespace for a genus, which is fine, but ultimately an administrator will "move" it to the project namespace.  This strategy is consistent across all WikiCollectables wikis.  That is, pages ABOUT collecting, or a SERIES of items, are considered a "project".  Pages about single items (a collectable) or, in this case, a species of botanical, are articles.  This is because botanicals (plants) are what is ultimately collected, or bought and sold.
 * 2)  Initial sample layouts have been created.  I am accumulating them in the help namespace:
 * 3) Plant Page Sample (main namespace)
 * 4) Genus Page Sample (project namespace)
 * 5) Project Page Sample (project namespace)
 * 6) I have initiated a format for page titles and naming convention.  Examples:
 * 7) Agave mckelveyana
 * 8) Cylindropuntia bigelovii
 * 9) Agave Deserti var. simplex
 * 10) Agave utahensis var. eborispina

Following is a list of pages created thus far covering some genus of plants:

My next step is to sort the use of synonyms. This, I'm sure, can be done by redirecting and disambiguation.

Final note. Assembling Cactus and Succulents of the Mojave Desert was so satisfying, I plan to continue by selecting from the world's most famous gardens. I've been reviewing a few on-line and I can't wait.

Feb 23
Just completed my rough draft of the Cactus and Succulents of the Mojave Desert pages. I think the structure of pages is good but some of the content may be out of date. I'm looking for opportunities to update.

I must say, the experience of creating these pages has left me with a desire to cover other gardens in the United States, then visit them.

Feb 12
I am creating new pages, beginning with Dendrobium and Lotus, and plan to document some of my favorite botanicals.

An article that is in-the-works is one covering the cactus and succulent collection at the Springs Preserve, here in Las Vegas. Xeriscaping is a big deal out here in the desert and folks are discovering clever ways to beautify their properties using local plants. A wonderful project.

Images
Following is a list of folks who have allowed me to use their images on WikiBotanicals.

Reference

 * Royal Botanical Gardens
 * The International Plant Names Index
 * Cactus and Succulent Society of Southern Nevada
 * USDA Classification of Plants