Plant Classification Schemes

Scientists and others classify plants in various ways.

In 1753, Swedish scientist Carolus Linnaeus created a way of classifying plants. He gave them a two-part Latin name, which included their generic grouping, or genus, and their specific group, or species. His naming method is still used today.

An Artificial System

By the late 1700s, botanists sought a classification system that showed how plants naturally relate to each other. The Linnaeus system was considered "artificial," because, for example, Linnaeus classified cactus and pines together simply because they have several male reproductive parts, or stamens.

Evolutionary Thought

Charles Darwin's work "On the Origin of the Species" made evolution academically respectable. Near the turn of the 20th century German scientists Adolf Engler and Karl A. E. Prantl developed a classification system reflecting evolutionary history, grouping plants from the simplest to most complex. The plant kingdom today usually is divided into small and smaller groups as follows: plant division, classes, order, family, genus, species.

DNA

Modern classification systems are increasingly complex, however, with several levels of hierarchy. Scientists now compare the DNA of different plants. The Takhtajan System of flowering plant classification treats flowering plants as a division with two classes, monocots and dicots, which are two groups thought to be without much variation, but now are organized into subclasses.

Other Systems

There are other classifications systems. For example, gardeners classify plants according to whether they live their life cycles as annuals, biennials or perennials.

References

• The Franklin Institute Classification of Plants and Animals
• Cabrillo College; Introduction to Plant Classification; Peter Shaw
• Southern Illinois University Carbondale; A Look at the History of Plant Classification; January 2011
• Purdue University Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture; Plant Nomenclature; Matthew A. Jenks
• Texas A & M University Flowering Plant Gateway; Hugh D. Wilson
• University of Idaho Extension Master Gardener Program Handbook; Robert R. Tripepi, et al.; 2009

Resources

• University of Nebraska -- Lincoln Extension; Garden Terms; Anne Streich; 2007