Theftalanus, are you asking if there is a chance that somewhere on this planet there is a plant that has not yet been found/identified?
Tropical forest areas surely still have lots of them. Botanists are trying to discover and name them before they are lost to deforestation. Awhile back entirely new kinds of plants with black leaves were discovered on a cloud forest ridge, only to be wiped out by clearing for agriculture soon after.
I'm still trying to figure out what we are talking about here, or am I so obtuse I just can't figure it out.
Yes for me if you think to Wolemipine unknown in life for many time or Zelkova Sicula discovered in Sicily (Italy)in the1997!!and plant under sea , again many not identified!! no problem the earth is a mistery again. Think positive alex
Well, if you can manage to get through the door, there are quite a large number of species from Ecuador and other areas yet unnamed that can be seen at the research greenhouses of the Missouri Botanical Garden. On a recent visit, Dr. Tom Croat took my wife and I through those greenhouses and I saw and photographed quite a large number of specimens with only numbers. Those accenssion numbers tell Dr. Croat where and when the plant was collected (exact coordinates) and are the first step along the way to being granted a name. But it is a long process! Every possible contender has to be eliminated before the plant can be granted a new name and much has to be learned about the species such as the flowering habit, vein count, blade size, variations and a great deal more. I am attaching one photo of an extremely rare anthurium from Ecuador. This plant has leaf blades at least 8 feet long! This one is likely the only one of this species in a collection anywhere and Dr. Croat has yet to figure out what it is! I have at least 6 specimens in my own collection that are not identified and are yet to be named. Many exotic aroid collectors have similar species. Some of us "bug" Dr. Croat and Dr. Eduardo Gonçalves from Brazil almost nuts asking them "what is this"? Most of us just watch them grow and photograph them in hopes one of the world's top botanists will be able to eventually tell us what we've found! On a recent Discovery Channel feature quite a few previously unknown species were found in Borneo. The rain forests of the world hold much that is yet to be "discovered". That is one reason it is so important to support your local botanical garden. There are likely botanists and researchers there trying right now to figure out what some new plant may actually be! I read somewhere there are over 2,000,000 known tropical species and likely a very large number yet to be discovered. It's a big job, and fortunately some people are out there doing it! That is why it is important for you as a collector to keep your own records! Write down and tag the plant with what information you can learn, where you got it, how large it was when you received it, has it flowered, what have you observed? Many new observations are brought to the attention of qualified botanists every year by collectors.
