Vrikshayurveda Literature- A Review

As a science of life, Ayurveda considers all living beings under its purview. Its approach and application in plants is conceived as virkshayurveda which has a long history of genesis and development. The beginnings of agriculture in India can be traced to the Indus Valley Civilization. The developments in later periods are well illustrated in Vedas. The same pace of furtherance is maintained in post-Vedic periods also. This is very well depicted in the texts of Brahmanas. Puranas are rich in the status of plant life and cultivation. Encyclopedic works like Brihatsamhitha and Vishnudharmotharapurana are important sources of Vrikshayurveda of those periods. Exclusive texts on the subject such as Kashyapiya-krishi-geethi, krishi-parashara, upavana-vinoda true evidence of the Ancient Indian Plant Science. A short review of the treatises is the content of this article.