A Survey of the Vascular Flora of Adams County, North Dakota

Abstract

Adams County was identified as one of the floristically understudied counties in North Dakota. To produce a county flora, uncultivated plants were collected from every township in Adams County during 2015, 2016, and 2018. Collections were made from school land, North Dakota Wildlife Management Areas, private land, and abandoned cemeteries. Along with 96 plants identified by others, but not found in this study, a flora for the county is presented with 463 total species. These are classified in 72 families and 268 genera. The largest families represented were the Compositae with 133 species, the Gramineae with 65 species, the Cruciferae with 35 species, the Leguminosae with 31 species, and the Polygonaceae with 22 species. Five state noxious weeds were found: Carduus nutans L., Cirsium arvense (L.) Scop., Artemisia absinthium L., Euphorbia esula L., and Linaria vulgaris Mill. A comparison of the species richness of Adams County with the eight adjacent counties is included in an attempt to assess the completeness of the study. Scatter plots are constructed showing the species richness for each county against both total county land area and uncropped hectarage. Maps depict the mineral and agricultural development of Adams County and the surrounding areas.