Unlike most books on economic botany this is not an encyclopaedic listing of plants and their uses. Instead it is an attempt at understanding why plants are used. Economic botany is a multidisciplinary study and the purpose of this book is to provide an introduction to some of the scientific principles, processes, and practices involved. The subjects discussed include the role of economic and ethnobotany, plant collecting, taxonomy and nomenclature, the environment and the physiological, morphological and anatomical adaptations of the plant, plant conservation, plant breeding and propagation, the marketing of crops and crop products, basic human and animal nutrition, human and animal foods, desirable insect foods, timber and wood products, fuel, fibres, biochemicals, human and veterinary medicine, plant toxins, lower plants and their products, the role of plants in ameliorating the environment, and the social uses of plants. It is hoped that this book will appeal to both the student and practitioner, irrespective of their primary discipline.