Plant Biology

This guide covers the scientific study of plants, including their anatomy, morphology, physiology, biochemistry, taxonomy, cytology, genetics, evolution, and geographical distribution. It is designed to be a brief finding aid for information related to Plant biology targeted toward Boston University faculty, staff, and students. It includes both print and online materials. Annotation is provided in instances where the resource title is ambiguous. The guide is not comprehensive. If you need assistance locating these or any other sources, please contact the Science and Engineering Library reference department.

Find Articles using these electronic databases

Agricola 1966+  
Index to agricultural and related life science journals containing over 3.3 million bibliographic records of journal articles, monographs, theses, patents, software, audio-visual materials, and technical reports related to agriculture from 1979 to the present. Indexers regularly scan over 1,400 journals for input into the database.

BIOSIS  (Biological Abstracts)   1989+
This database consists of citations with abstracts to articles in over 7,000 life science journals worldwide and is very comprehensive across all of the life sciences.

Biological and Agricultural Index Full Text 1994+
This database include the core literature of biology and agriculture.

General Science Full Text   (WilsonWeb)   1984+
Citations, with abstracts, to journal articles selected from close to 200
English-language core and popular journals covering all science disciplines.
Includes access to the full text of articles for 25% of the journals.

Web of Science 1973+
Offering an electronic version of Science Citation Index, this database
covers articles in all areas of the sciences and enables users to search current and retrospective multidisciplinary information from approximately 8,500 of the most prestigious, high impact research journals in the world. Its most unique feature is the ability to search for cited references in journal articles.

Dictionaries and Encyclopedias

A Dictionary of Biology, 6th edition

A Dictionary of Plant Sciences, 2nd edition


The Arabidopsis Book
An Open Access project bringing together an encyclopedic description of this heavily studied plant species.

BioTech's Life Science Dictionary

Encyclopedia of Applied Plant Sciences
Science and Engineering Library: Reference TP248.16 .E53 2003

Nearctica: native conifers of North America
This Web site offers an introduction, a key to genera and species, access to genera and species from a checklist, and selected special conifers from various parts of North America.

Oxford Companion to the Garden

Red List ( International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources)
Lists threatened and endangered plant and animal groups.

World list of cycads
This web site provides users with an up-to-date listing of all cycad names and their synonyms along with other botanical and horticultural information.

Web Resources

AGRIS/CARIS Information Centre
AGRIS is the international information system for the agricultural sciences and technology. It was created by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in 1974, to facilitate information exchange and to bring together world literature dealing with all aspects of agriculture.

Biodiversity Hotspots
This web site focuses on 25 critically threatened ecosystems, or hotspots. The intention is to categorize and prioritize areas on all continents where biodiversity is at greatest risk and provide information about them for the purposes of planning and decision-making. For each of the hotspots, there is information about threatened and endangered plant and vertebrate species from the World Conservation Union (IUCN) Red List, along with an ecosystem description, commentary about unique biodiversity and human impacts, details about conservation action, related links, a bibliography for further reading, and an outline map.

Botany 301: taxonomy of flowering plants
This Web site is an ongoing, regularly updated resource of "pages and local linked content designed for personal use of Texas A&M systematic botany students and all others who have an interest in the Texas flora. While they are not designed for commercial use or publication, they are designed to maximize free and open flow of information relating to systematic botany.

FAO forestry
This Internet resource presents information on the UN's FAO Forestry Department, which exists to "promote national and international action for the effective conservation, sustainable management and efficient utilization of forest and related resources as an integral element of land use systems." Major sections include a country section containing forest and forestry information for many of the world's countries and access to the current issue of Unasylva, an international quarterly journal of forestry and forest industries.

Forest biology and dendrology educational sites
This web site features several outstanding and authoritative compilations of data about forestry, forests, and forest trees including fact Sheets for tree identification of tree and shrub species for all of North America. Also included on each species page are images of leaves, bark, twigs, branches, fruits, and overall aspect. Users can download species lists for states or regions of North America.

Integrated Taxonomic Information System
Web site for authoritative taxonomic information on plants, animals, and microbes of the world.

Internet Directory for Botany
This comprehensive index site covers all kinds of botanical information.

MendelWeb
This web site is an educational resource for teachers and students interested in the origins of classical genetics, introductory data analysis, elementary plant science, and the history and literature of science.

Natural selection
This web site provides a browsable and searchable collection of Internet resources about the natural world. Topics include Natural Resources & Energy, Palaeontology, Biology, Botany, and Zoology.

PLANTS national database
This site contains information about the approximately 45,000 currently recognized plant taxa, both vascular and nonvascular, known to occur as native or naturalized species within the boundaries of the US, including its territories.

Species 2000
This site contains a series of databases providing a uniform and validated quality index of names of all known species.

Transgenic crops: an introduction and resource guide
This site provides a summary of the work being done on transgenic crops and offers many linkages to other resources on the technology and issues surrounding transgenic crops.

Invasive Species Initiative
This site compiles a wealth of information about invasive plants designed to help all conservationists deal most effectively with invasive species .

Organizations and Research Centers

American Botanical Council
Gathers and disseminates information about herbs, medicinal plants and herbal research.

American Bryological and Lichenological Society
This group consists of professional botanists, botany teachers, and hobbyists interested in mosses, liverworts, and lichens.

American Phytopathological Society: Plant Pathology Online
APS s an international scientific organization that promotes the study of plant diseases and their control.

American Society of Plant Biologists
ASPB is a professional society devoted to the advancement of the plant sciences.

Botanical Society of America
This organization works to sustain and provide education about plants; encourage basic plant research; and foster communication within the botanical community.

ASU Center for the Study of Early Events in Photosynthesis
Arizona State University site that provides news and educational resources about photosynthesis.

International Mycological Association
Promotes the study of all aspects of mycology.

International Plant Genetic Resources Institute
IPGRI is an international research institute studying and promoting agricultural biodiversity.

Rainforest Action Network
This non-profit organization works to protect the Earth's rainforests and support the rights of their inhabitants through education, grassroots organizing, and nonviolent direct action.

World Agroforestry Centre
This nonprofit focuses on research and education in partnership with international institutions concerned with mitigating deforested tropical forests. World Agroforestry Centre's purpose is to mitigate tropical deforestation, land depletion, and rural poverty through improved agroforestry systems.

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Tracy Thrasher Hybl (thrashet@bu.edu)
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