Plant taxonomy involves describing, identifying, classifying, and naming plants using a hierarchy system. It is important for communication and discovering genetic inheritance. Taxonomy is used to identify known plants and new species. The system is fluid and can change as new information is discovered. Using scientific names from a recognized taxonomic system ensures clear communication.
Plant taxonomy is a branch of science that deals with describing, identifying, classifying, and naming plants. Different systems are used to taxonomize plants, with the most familiar being the hierarchy of Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species. Biologists who work with plants use plant taxonomy on a daily basis to sort and make sense of the plants they work with, and to effectively communicate information to other biologists.
Taxonomy has very ancient roots. By simply naming things, humans are starting to taxonomize them, as names allow people to distinguish between the various elements they interact with. For example, freezers and refrigerators look similar and function similarly, but they are also very different, which is why two different terms are used to refer to these common appliances. In biology, taxonomy is particularly important because it can be used to make sure that people are talking about the same thing and to discover similarities, differences, and information about genetic inheritance.
When plants belong to the same genus, for example, it means they are closely related and their common ancestor is not far off. Plants of the same class, on the other hand, are more distant from each other, although they are more closely related than plants of the same phylum. Each step along the hierarchy is designed to narrow down the identification of an implant more precisely.
Whenever researchers think they have found a new plant species, they try to fit it into the existing plant taxonomy system by using its characteristics to classify it. Along the way, they may discover that the plant has already been discovered, described and named. Plant taxonomy is also very fluid; plants may be displaced as people learn more about them, such as when genetic testing reveals that two plants are actually the same species, or when tests show the plants are more distantly related than they are the biologists thought.
People also use plant taxonomy to identify known plants. People interested in wildflowers, for example, often carry plant keys with them so that when they see a plant in the field, they can follow a series of prompts to find out what the plant is and to learn more about it. The correct identification and classification of plants also interests nurserymen and gardeners. When a gardener comes in and asks for a “nasturtium,” for example, the nursery won’t know if the gardener is referring to plants in the genus Nasturtium, or plants in the genus Tropaeolum which are commonly known as nasturtiums, but if the gardener uses a scientific name from a recognized taxonomic system, the nursery will know exactly what the gardener is asking for.
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