Category: Issue 1

Welcome to the First Issue of Spiritual Botany Magazine!

Spiritual Botany is an interdisciplinary, on-line, open access magazine that was created to envision, explore, and appreciate the role plants and plant-based practices play in connecting us to our environment, health, consciousness, and spirituality.

Spiritual Botany Magazine / November 3, 2016

Greetings From the Editor

Warm greetings from Dr. Praveen Saxena, editor of Spiritual Botany Magazine.

Praveen Saxena / November 3, 2016

How Is Botany Connected to Spirituality and Human Health?

In honour of our first issue, we have asked experts from fields related to spiritual botany to send us their thoughts on how botany (the science of plants) is connected to spirituality, consciousness, and human health”.

Praveen Saxena and Christina Turi / November 3, 2016

The Effects of Experiencing Green Spaces on Health and Well-being: Insights Into a New Research Domain

There is increased interest in multidisciplinary studies that relate human health and well-being with environmental factors. One of the new frontiers relates to the effects that experiencing green spaces have on mental and physical health. The shinrin-yoku research model is presented here as an example of this captivating enterprise.

Verena Kulak / November 3, 2016

Spiritual Uses of the Buttercup Family in North America

Classic ethnobotany describes a strong connection between plants used to treat neurological diseases and those associated with ceremonial and/or ritualistic practices. This article examines current phytochemical and pharmacological understanding for several spiritual species belonging to the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae) which have previously been employed as medicines during ceremony

Christina E. Turi / November 3, 2016

Where’s Your Head at? Plant Intelligence and Medicinal Plants as a New Window Into This Complex Case

Can plants think? It is a controversial question that inspires both skepticism and interest. This article will highlight instances in which plants (though not in the same manner as animals), demonstrate kinship and altruism, the presence of reasoning or control centers, and the capacity to communicate with the surrounding environment.

Lauren A E Erland and Praveen K Saxena / November 3, 2016

Trees ‘N’ Traits: Cedars and “Resilience”

Neil Baldwin explores the extent to which our temperament might embody characteristics of certain tree species.

Neil Baldwin / November 3, 2016

Sacred Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn.)

Sacred Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) is the national flower of India and Vietnam and is widely employed for religious or spiritual purposes around the world. In honour of our first issue, the plant profile is dedicated to the ethereal sacred lotus, the flower which graces our spiritual botany logo.

Christina E. Turi and Praveen K. Saxena / November 3, 2016

Mycomagicians

Maya Goel marvels the world of saprophytes through poetry

Maya Goel / November 3, 2016

Peony Nascent

Sylvia Woods a visual artist based in Guelph, Ontario presents her painting of the European peony (Paeonia officinalis L.), a plant once regarded as a healing symbol during the Renaissance.

Sylvia D. Woods / November 3, 2016

What We Don’t See in Light’s Dark Reactions

An excerpt from a book of poetry entitled "A New Index for Predicting Catastrophes" by Madhur Anand

Madhur Anand / November 3, 2016

Plants: Nature’s Treasure Chests

Did you know that in the last 30 odd years approximately 73% of all small molecule antibacterial drugs are from or derived from natural sources including plants? Devanshi Shukla a high school student from Guelph, ON shares her experience while investigating plant antimicrobials during a recent visit to the Gosling Research Institute for Plant Preservation.

Devanshi Shukla / November 3, 2016

Seeing Plants as Persons

The notion that plants are intelligent beings capable of responding to their environment in a strategic and planned manner is a controversial topic amongst members of the scientific community. Sonnet L’Abbé questions how our intellectual embarrassment to accept plants as persons might hinder scientific advancements in plant science.

Sonnet L’Abbé / November 3, 2016