Pierre-Joseph Buc'hoz. Plantes de Chine

Plant of the Month: Chili Pepper

Few foods elicit such strong reactions as chili peppers. Why do we love something that hurts so much?
Source: http://beeld.teylersmuseum.nl/Digital_Library/Emags/149b_439-2/pubData/source/images/zoompages/zoompage86.jpg

Plant of the Month: Sunflower

With the invasion of Ukraine, it seemed like sunflowers suddenly appeared on the political landscape. Yet they’ve long held symbolic and economic value in Europe.
An illustration of Rafflesia arnoldii, 1821

Plant of the Month: Corpse Lily

The largest flower on the planet—a gigantic, pungent parasite—reveals deep genetic mysteries and unique conservation challenges.
From The Mountains of California, by John Muir (New York: The Century, 1898)

Plant of the Month: White Sage

An important part of Indigenous spirituality and identity, the aromatic evergreen shrub is being threatened by poachers and over-commercialization.
Arachis hypogaea, Warren Delano collection of Chinese export paintings of fruits, flowers, and vegetables, ca. 1794–1852, Botany Libraries.

Plant of the Month: Peanut

The peanut, a natural hybrid of two species, originated in Bolivia. It now plays a critical role in food cultures around the world.
Illustration of Drosera arcturi

Plant of the Month: Sundew

Beautiful but deadly, the carnivorous sundew has long fascinated amateur and expert botanists alike—and may possess untapped medicinal value.
Performance of Color-Based Versus Semantic Segmentation

Botanists Use Machine Learning to Accelerate Research

A new artificial intelligence program called ARADEEPOPSIS will help botanists rapidly classify plant phenotypes.
Jacques Cartier at Hochelaga engraving from A popular history of the United States: from the first discovery of the western hemisphere by the Northmen, to the end of the first century of the union of the states; preceded by a sketch of the prehistoric period and the age of the mound builders

Plant of the Month: Tree of Life

Indigenous people in North America used the conifer as an effective cure for scurvy during cold winters.
Watercolor No.185, Marsh Ragwort

Victorian Botanical Paintings

Amateur botanist Margaret Rebecca Dickinson painted the wildflowers she collected in the English countryside.
Litograph of A. Faguet, Dracaena stricta

Plant of the Month: Cordyline

Plantfluencers? Back in the nineteenth century, it was the dazzling leaves of cordyline that set trends in domestic style.