How we write Flori guides

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Flori guides help people look after their plants and stay safe around wild mushrooms. This page explains how we choose topics, which sources we rely on, how we handle safety and how to report a mistake.

Who writes the guides

Guides are published by the Flori team, the people who build the Flori app. Drafts are written with the help of AI writing tools and then checked against the sources cited at the end of each guide. We do not invent experts, reviewers, studies, quotes or statistics. When a guide is updated, the date at the top changes.

Which sources we use

Every guide lists its sources. We rely on established horticultural and safety organisations, for example:

  • the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) and the Missouri Botanical Garden;
  • university extension services such as University of Minnesota Extension, UF/IFAS, NC State Extension and UC IPM;
  • Kew's Plants of the World Online and USDA PLANTS for plant names and native ranges;
  • the ASPCA for plant toxicity to cats and dogs;
  • the North American Mycological Association and national poison centres for mushroom safety.

Numbers such as temperatures, light levels and watering intervals must match these sources. Where sources disagree, we give a range.

Mushroom safety

No Flori guide, photo or app result can tell you that a wild mushroom is safe to eat. We never suggest eating a wild mushroom based on an app, a photo, its smell, taste or colour, and we name the common myths as myths. When a species is edible but has dangerous look-alikes, we always show the look-alikes. Every mushroom guide ends with what to do after eating an unknown mushroom: call your poison centre straight away (Türkiye UZEM 114, US 1-800-222-1222, UK NHS 111) and keep a sample.

Pets, pesticides and health

We say clearly when a plant is toxic to cats, dogs or people, citing the ASPCA. For pests we start with the least toxic option and remind readers to follow the product label. Our guides are not medical or veterinary advice: if a person or pet may have been poisoned, contact a poison centre or a vet.

Photos

Photos of plants and mushrooms come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences (public domain, CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA). The photographer and licence are credited under each photo. A photo of a species always shows that species; we do not use AI-generated images of plants or mushrooms. Captions describe what the photo shows and are not an identification guide.

The Flori app in our guides

Some guides mention features of the Flori app, such as identification, Dr. Flori diagnosis or care reminders. We only describe features that exist, and we keep these mentions short. Guides are free to read and do not depend on the app.

Corrections

If you find a mistake or an outdated piece of advice, email ask.flori.app@gmail.com with the page address. We check the report against our sources and update the guide.