PHARMACEUTICAL BOTANY 
CHAPTER I 
FUNDAMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS 
Botany is the Science which Treats of Plants 
DEPARTMENTS OF BOTANICAL INQUIRY 
1. Morphology treats of the parts, or structure of plants. It is 
divided into: 
(a) Macromorphology or Gross Anatomy which deals with the ex¬ 
ternal characters of plants or their parts; ( b ) Micromorphology or 
Histology which considers the minute or microscopical structure of 
plants and plant tissues; and (c) Cytology which treats of plant cells 
and their contents. 
2. Physiology deals with the study of the life processes or func¬ 
tions of plants. It explains how the various parts of plants perform 
their work of growth, reproduction, and the preparation of food for 
the support of animal life from substances not adapted to that use. 
3. Taxonomy or Systematic Botany considers the classification or 
arrangement of plants in groups or ranks in accordance with their 
relationships to one another. 
4. Ecology treats of plants and their parts in relation to their 
environment. 
5. Plant Genetics seeks to account for the resemblances and dif¬ 
ferences which are exhibited by plants related by descent. 
6. Phytopathology treats of diseases of plants. 
7. Phytogeography or Plant Geography treats of the distribution 
of plants upon the earth. The center of distribution for each species 
of plant is the habitat or the original source from which it spreads, 
often over widely distant regions. When plants grow in their 
native countries they are said to be indigenous to those regions. 
When they grow in a locality other than their original home they 
are said to be naturalized. 
