Importance of Plants to Humans

Plants play a significant role in our lives. Without plants, there would be no more life existing on planet earth.

There are around three to four lakh identified plant species, and this list is still increasing.

They provide us with a variety of things to fulfil our daily requirements, including food to eat, air to breathe, clothes to cover our body, wood, medicine, shelter, and many products for human benefit. Plants are the primary producers, and all other living organisms on this planet depend on plants.

The ecosystem we live in is mainly composed of biotic and abiotic components.

Biotic components are primarily composed of flora and fauna. The word flora refers to plants, and fauna is all about the animals and their life. The abiotic features mainly include rocks, mountains, water bodies, etc.

There are more than 400,000 species of plants on this planet, and all play an essential role in supporting life on earth. This is done by maintaining the quality of the atmosphere by releasing oxygen into the atmosphere, absorbing carbon dioxide, and a lot more.

We have found a massive number of plants that are useful in our day to day lives. Plants are more intelligent than we think. Here we have many more details about plants that you might not be aware of.

Let us know more about how plants play an essential role in human life.

How Are Plants Important to Humans

Plants and Food

Plants are essential for human nutrition. Numerous plants and trees on this planet provide us with vegetables, fruits, seeds, species, essence, edible oils, beverages, and other food products.

Plants and Medicines

Plants are a great source of medicine. According to modern history, many life-threatening diseases were cured by preparing pastes from roots, herbs, barks, and different plants’ leaves. Aspirin, sandalwood, basil leaves, clove oil, and cinchona are a few examples of medicinal plants used even today in many pharmaceutical industries.

Plants and Industries

Besides food and medicines, plants and trees play an essential role in industries. Many raw materials are obtained by plants and giant trees used to produce various industrial products, including paper, spices, cosmetics, pencils, rubber, furniture, and other household products. Perfumes and other essential oils are extracted from different parts of a flower and seeds.

Plants benefit us by reducing both physiological and psychological stress, such as:

• Improves mood
• Boosts air quality
• Decreases risk of illness
• Encourages healthy eating
• Relieves stress and anxiety.

Other importance of plants include:

• Plants help with soil quality
• Spices and herbs are employed in flavouring foods and beverages.
• Planting trees helps fight climate change and mitigate its consequences
• Vegetation plays a dominant role in the earth’s water cycle by preventing soil erosion and increasing groundwater levels.
• Plants also provide habitat for insects, birds, monkeys and other small animals.
• Bioindicators are living organisms such as plants that are used for assessing environmental health and biogeographic changes taking place in the environment.
• Plants play a vital role in recycling matter in biogeochemical cycles.
• Cotton, jute, coir, hemp and flax are the different sources of plant fibres.
• During the process of photosynthesis, plants produce oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide.
• Many edible trees provide us with gum, rubber, paper, and other raw materials used to make paper.
• Plants also maintain the ozone layer and help save the earth’s life from damaging UV radiation.
• Plants also yield condiments like pepper, ginger, cardamom, turmeric, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, etc.
• There are a few plant species that provide dyes. These dyes are secreted from the roots, bark, leaves, fruit or wood of indigo, henna, and turmeric plants.
• Plants also provide us with some refreshing and stimulating beverages. This includes leaves of the tea plant, seeds of coffee and cocoa plants.
• Sunflower oil, groundnut oil, olive oil, mustard oil, almond oil, coconut oil, etc., are different types of oil extracted from oilseeds and fleshy fruits.

A single plant comprises roots, stem, leaves, flowers, fruits and seeds. All these parts of plants are beneficial to humans in several ways.

For instance: Coconut tree.

This tree is generally known as the kalpavriksha or tree of life, as every part of this tree is helpful for humans.

• The roots are used for making brushes, dyes and other medicines.
• The trunk is used as a good source of timbers.
• The leaves are used as the roofing material for houses, preparing brooms, wrapping rice in specific recipes, and fuel for cooking.
• Coconut oil is extracted from the kernel or meat of matured coconuts and is used worldwide as a source of cooking oil, medicines, and other various applications.
• Coconut fruit is used as an ingredient for preparing sweets, spicy powders, chutneys, curries and a lot more.

Like coconut trees, many herbs, shrubs, and trees play an essential role in human life.

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