Outline of botany

Last updated October 23, 2025

The following outline is an overview of and topical guide to botany , the biological academic discipline involving the study of plants.

Core concepts

Subdisciplines

Branches of botany

Core branches

Molecular botany – study of plants at a molecular level (DNA, RNA, etc.)
Palynology – study of pollen and spores
Phytochemistry – study of chemicals derived from plants, especially the structures of the large number of secondary metabolites found in plants, the functions of these compounds in human and plant biology, and the biosynthesis of these compounds
Plant anatomy/Phytotomy – study of the internal structure of plants, i.e., the structure of plant cells and tissues
Plant biochemistry – study of chemical processes of primary and secondary metabolism
Plant cell biology – study of the structure (ultrastructure) and function (cell physiology) of plant cell
Plant cytology – study of the structure and function of plant cells, including their organelles and components
Plant developmental biology – study of how a single plant cell grows and develops into a complex, multicellular organism
Plant evolution – subset of evolutionary phenomena that concern plants
Plant evolutionary developmental biology – study of plant developmental programs and patterns from an evolutionary perspective
Plant genetics – study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity specifically in plants
Plant histology – study of the microscopic structure of plant tissues
Plant morphology – study of the physical form and external structure of plants
Plant physiology – study of fundamental processes of plants (photosynthesis, transpiration, nutrient uptake, etc.)
Plant reproductive biology – study of how plants reproduce using both sexual and asexual methods

Classification

Bryology – study of mosses, hornworts and liverworts
Dendrology – study of woody plants (shrubs, trees and lianas) and their taxonomic classifications
Floristics - branch of phytogeography which studies plants in a specific geographical region
Lichenology – study of lichens
Mycology – study of fungi
Phycology/Algology – study of algae
Phytogeography/Plant Biogeography – study of plant distributions
Phytosociology/Phytocoenology/Plant sociology – study of groups of species of plant that are usually found together in a community and their interactions
Plant systematics – study of plant classification and evolutionary relationships
Plant taxonomy – science that finds, identifies, describes, classifies, and names plants
Pteridology – study of ferns

Environment and ecology

Plant ecology – subdiscipline of ecology that studies the distribution and abundance of plants, the effects of environmental factors upon the abundance of plants, and the interactions among plants and between plants and other organisms
Geobotany/Botanical geogrpahy – branch of biogeography that is concerned with the geographic distribution of plant species and their influence on the Earth's surface
Conservation biology – study of the conservation of nature and of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems
Invasion biology – study of invasive species dynamics
Astrobotany – study of plants in space environments

Historical

Paleobotany – study of fossil plants
Paleoethnobotany/Archaeobotany – study of past human-plant interactions through the recovery and analysis of ancient plant remains
Paleophycology/Paleoalgology – subdiscipline of paleobotany dealing with the study and identification of fossil algae and their evolutionary relationships and ecology

Applied

Agroforestry/Agro-sylviculture/fForest farming – polyculture land use management system that integrates trees with crops or pasture, combining agricultural and forestry technologies
Agronomy – science and technology of producing and using plants by agriculture for food, fuel, fiber, chemicals, recreation, or land conservation
Arboriculture – culture and propagation of trees
Economic botany – study of the relationship between people (individuals and cultures) and plants of economic use and value.
Ethnobotany – interdisciplinary field that studies the relationships between humans and plants, focusing on traditional knowledge of how plants are selected, used, managed, and perceived in human societies
Floriculture – branch of horticulture which studies the efficient production of the plants that produce showy, colorful flowers and foliage for human enjoyment in human environments
Forestry – management and conservation of forests
Horticulture – cultivation of garden plants
Marine botany – study of aquatic plants and algae that live in seawater
Olericulture – study of vegetables
Plant biotechnology – technology to modify plants and using plants to synthesize products
Plant breeding – science of changing the traits of plants in order to produce desired characteristics and improve the quality of plant products for use by humans and animals
Pomology – study of fruits and nuts and their cultivation
Silviculture – practice of controlling the growth, composition/structure, as well as quality of forests to meet values and needs, specifically timber production
Viticulture/Viniculture/Winegrowing – branch of horticulture dealing with the cultivation and harvesting of grapes

Disease

Plant pathology/Phytopathology – study of plant diseases
Plant bacteriology – study of bacteria that cause diseases in plants.
Plant virology – study of viruses that infect plants
Plant nematology – study of nematodes that parasitize plants
Plant parasitology – study of parasitic plants
Plant disease epidemiology – study of how plant diseases develop and spread within populations of plants

Emerging and nontraditional

Plant intelligence/Plant neurobiology – study of how plants process information from and sense, communicate, and respond to their environment
Plant bioacoustics – study of how plants produce, perceive, and respond to sounds and vibrations in their environment

Plant physiology

Metabolism & Nutrition
- Photosynthesis
  - Chlorophyll
- Respiration
  - Cellular respiration
- Plant nutrition
  - Aleurone
  - Phytomelanin
- Cellulose
- Starch
- Sugar
- Sap
Water Relations & Gas Exchange
Plant growth and development
Responses to Stimuli
- Tropism
- Nastic movements
Environmental stress physiology

History

Major plant groups

Algae
Bryophytes
- Anthocerotophyta (hornworts)
- Bryophyta (mosses)
- Marchantiophyta (liverworts)
Pteridophytes
- Lycopodiophyta (club mosses)
- Pteridophyta (ferns and horsetails)
- Rhyniophyta (early plants)
Gymnosperms
- Pteridospermatophyta (seed ferns)
- Cycadophyta
- Ginkgophyta
- Gnetophyta
- Pinophyta (conifers)
Angiosperms
- Dicotyledon/Eudicots
  - Asteraceae (sunflowers)
  - Cactaceae (cacti)
  - Fabaceae (legumes)
  - Lamiaceae (mints)
  - Rosaceae (roses)
- Monocotyledon
  - Araceae (aroids)
  - Arecaceae (palms)
  - Iridaceae (irises)
  - Orchidaceae (orchids)
  - Poaceae (grasses)

Lists

General species concepts

Notable botanists

In alphabetical order by surname:

Aristotle
Arthur Cronquist (angiosperm evolution)
Charles Darwin (formulated modern theory of evolution)
Carl Linnaeus (father of systematics)
Gregor Mendel (father of genetics)
John Ray
G. Ledyard Stebbins (angiosperm evolution)
Theophrastus (uses and classification)
Robert Thorne (angiosperm evolution)
Gilbert White
List of Russian botanists

Scholarly societies

American Society of Plant Biologists

External links

Flora and other plant catalogs or databases

The Virtual Library of Botany
High quality pictures of plants and information about them from Catholic University of Leuven
Curtis's Botanical Magazine Archived 2007-07-01 at the Wayback Machine , 1790–1856
The Trees Of Great Britain and Ireland Archived 2007-07-22 at the Wayback Machine , by Henry John Elwes & Augustine Henry, 1906–1913
Botanik-Datenbank (ger.)
Plant Directory (ger.)
USDA plant database
The Linnean Society of London
Native Plant Information Network

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