Paleobotany

Paleobotany is the branch of paleontology dealing with the recovery and identification of plant remains from archeological (or even geological) contexts, and their use in the reconstruction of past environments and economies. It shares some common ground with palynology.

Plant remains are found in the fossil record from the Silurian period onwards, although they did not become significant until the Late Devonian period. Plant-derived macrofossils include tree trunks, fronds and roots. Plant-derived microfossils include pollen, spores, leaf cuticles, alginite, vitrinite and inertinite.