Medical botany
Botany, also called plant science(s), plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek word βοτάνη (botanē) meaning "pasture", "grass", or "fodder"; βοτάνη is in turn derived from βόσκειν (boskein), "to feed" or "to graze".
Botany originated in prehistory as herbalism
with the efforts of early humans to identify – and later cultivate –
edible, medicinal and poisonous plants, making it one of the oldest
branches of science. Medieval physic gardens, often attached to monasteries, contained plants of medical importance. They were forerunners of the first botanical gardens attached to universities, founded from the 1540s onwards. One of the earliest was the Padua botanical garden.
These gardens facilitated the academic study of plants. Efforts to
catalogue and describe their collections were the beginnings of plant taxonomy, and led in 1753 to the binomial system of Carl Linnaeus that remains in use to this day.
This all important course in natural medicine is a thorough survey of the plant kingdom and its famalies with special emphasis on medicinal plants and their relation to genus and species found throughout the world. Plant identification and nomenclature is important to both western and oriental practitioners for proper plant identification. 98 short lessons survery the various plant families.
A must take course for any practicing herbalist, naturopath, nature cure and/or nutritonist. 75 clock hours.
