Forensic botany is the application of the plant sciences to legal matters. Most often this means using clues from plants in order to aid in the solution of serious crimes such as murder, kidnapping, and the cause of death of a victim. Many aspects of plant science are employed, including plant anatomy, the study of plants cells; plant taxonomy, which deals with the identification of plants; plant systematics, focusing on plant relationships to other plants; plant ecology, which deals with plants and their environments; and palynology, which is the scientific study of plant pollen and spores.

Plant cells possess cell walls made of cellulose, a complex carbohydrate compound that is virtually indestructible in comparison with most other natural compounds subject to decay. Plant cell walls can remain intact for thousands of years even though the cytoplasm long since has disappeared. The walls around pollen grains and...