Botanici

Botanici, or botanists, are scientists who study plant life. They investigate plant structure, function, reproduction, growth, diversity, evolution, and interactions with ecosystems. They work in universities, research institutes, herbariums, botanical gardens, museums, and agricultural or governmental organizations, contributing to basic biology, agriculture, environmental management, and conservation.

Core fields include taxonomy and systematics, plant anatomy and physiology, plant ecology and population biology, genetics and molecular biology, ethnobotany and economic botany, horticulture and agronomy, conservation biology, and paleobotany. Practitioners collect specimens, classify species, design experiments, study plant communities, and publish findings in scientific literature.

Education typically features a bachelor's degree in botany or plant sciences, followed by graduate training for research careers. Modern botanists use microscopy, molecular techniques, DNA sequencing, herbarium curation, GIS and bioinformatics, and fieldwork. Collaboration with other scientists—ecologists, agronomists, taxonomists, and chemists—is common.

Historically, the term botany derives from Greek botane, meaning plant. Early botanists such as Theophrastus and Dioscorides laid foundations in plant description and medicinal uses. Carl Linnaeus established a formal binomial nomenclature in the 18th century, shaping taxonomy. The field expanded with genetics, genomics, and conservation science in the modern era.