Missouri Plants Plant Facts: The total number of native and introduced plant species and hybrids in Missouri is about 3,200. More than 550 of them are of concern to conservationists because they are rare or their numbers are low or declining. Hawaii has three native species of orchids. Missouri, by comparison, has 35 native kinds of orchids. More than half of the world's food supply is provided by just three grasses: wheat, rice and corn. Nearly 40 percent of all prescribed medicines are derived from plants and fungi or are designed from naturally occurring chemical compounds. These medicines include aspirin, as well as drugs that treat childhood leukemia, breast cancer and heart disease. Only a small percentage of plants has ever been analyzed for medicinal benefits. Some could yield cures for devastating diseases like cancer and AIDS. Some of these plants could be in Missouri.

Wild Ginseng Harvest Regulations

American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) is an important Missouri forest resource that is harvested and sold for medicinal purposes. Use this brochure to learn more about wild Ginseng harvest regulations.

Related Links from the Missouri Conservationist

• Tree Architecture
• Wildflower Favorites
• Looking at Lichens
• Only in the Ozarks (Missouri bladderpod)
• Purple Loostrife on the Loose
• Missouri's First Botanists
• Water Gardening
• Return of the Native...Shrubs
• Hitching a Ride (seed dispersal mechanisms)
• The Plant Sleuths
• Rattlesnake Weed
• A Winter Surprise (mistletoe)
• Ghost Flowers (Indian pipe)
• The Tree with Red Mittens (sassafras)
• A Tree in Paradise
• Plant Poaching
• Silphium
• Frost Flowers
• Wildflower Favorites