Uses of Flowering Plants

Flowering plants are valued for their beauty and many have great practical value as well. Flowering plants produce all vegetables, fruits, and grains. Some flowering plants have medicinal properties, or are used for flavoring and garnishing food; these are popularly called herbs. (Herb also has another, more general meaning, which is explained below, under the subtitle Garden Flowers.) Herb gardens were the “medicine cabinets” of ancient and medieval homes. “Herbals” describing the various plants and their uses were among the first books printed by movable type. Herbs remain the source of many drugs, including digitalis, curare, and morphine.

The petals of the rose, nasturtium, violet, and a few other flowers have often served as food delicacies. Honey is made by bees from the nectar of blooms.

Flowers have been valued for their fragrance from the days when housewives gathered blossoms to strew on floors and in linen chests. The perfume industry still relies to a major extent upon oils and essences derived from fresh flowers.