Economically Useful Plants and Entrepreneurial Botany

Economically Useful Plants and Entrepreneurial Botany

Indroduction 

The land and water of the earth sustain a vast assemblage of plants upon which all other living forms are directly or indirectly dependent. Pre-historic humans lived on berries, tubers, herbage, and the wild game which they collected and hunted that occupied whole of their time. Domestication of plants and animals has led to the production of surplus food which formed the basis for civilizations. Early civilization in different parts of the world has domesticated different species of plants for various purposes. Based on their utility, the economically useful plants are classified into food plants, fodder plants, fibre plants, timber plants, medicinal plants, and plants used in paper industries, dyes and cosmetics. Selected examples of economically important plants for each category are discussed in this chapter.