Plant physiology Julius von Sachs unified the pieces of plant physiology and put them together as a discipline. His "Lehrbuch der Botanik" was the plant physiology bible of its time. Researchers discovered in the 1800s that plants absorb essential mineral nutrients as inorganic ions in water. In natural conditions, soil acts as a mineral nutrient reservoir but the soil itself is not essential to plant growth. When the mineral nutrients in the soil are dissolved in water, plant roots absorb nutrients readily, soil is no longer required for the plant to thrive. This observation is the basis for hydroponics, the growing of
Artificial reproduction Artificial reproduction Artificial reproduction/propagation is the creation of new life by other than the natural means available to an organism. Examples include artificial insemination, in vitro fertilization, cloning and embryonic splitting, or cleavage. Cutting plants' stems and placing them in compost is also a form of artificial reproduction. We can grow many plants from one plant by using the man-made methods. The process of growing many plants from one plant by man-made methods is called artificial propagation of plants. A number of methods of artificial propagation of plants are used in agriculture (for raising crops), and horticulture (cultivation of vegetables,