Paleobotany
Palaeobotany is the study of fossil plants. These fossils are found in the layers of earth and certain layers of rocks. It is also spelled as Palaeobotany (Gr. Palaeon = old; botany = study of plants).
Introduction
It is the branch of Palaeology. It deals with the identification of the plant remains from geological contexts and use for the biological construction of the plant environments .
Palaeobotany includes the study of terrestrial plant fossils as well as the study of prehistoric marine autotrophs such as photo synthetic algae, weeds or kelps. Its synonym is Palaeophytology. A closely related field is palynology which is the study of fossilized and extinct spores and pollens.
Types of Fossils
Remains of macroscopic parts e.g., branches, petioles, leaves, fruits and seeds are termed mega-fossils and those of microscopic structures e.g. pollens and spores are termed microfossils.
 If a fossil cannot be assigned to any genus containing extinct species, its genus is termed organ genus and if it cannot be assigned to a family it is placed in a form genus.

Significance of Palaeobotany:
1. Palaeobotany research is helpful in solving the problems connected with the formation of earth and evolutionary (gradual development) relationship among plants.

2. It helps to discover the earliest occurrence of different kinds of plants in the geological record. This knowledge of sequential occurrence of taxa is then used to develop an understanding of environmental relationship among groups of plants.

3. Palaeobotany research may be helpful in determining what fossil plants were like, and the kinds of animals that utilised then as food and habitat. This information may be helpful to infer the characteristics of the ancient environment including the type of climate in which plants grow (reconstruction of ancient ecological system and climate is known as palaeoecology and paleoclimatology respectively.)

4. It is said that long ago continents moved. Palaeobotany helps in the study of problem.

5. The knowledge of Palaeobotany is also helpful in solving certain problems connected with the search of petroleum and coal.

6. Palaeobotany has also become important to the field of archaeology (the analysis and interpretation of plant tissues found at archaeological sites) primarily for the phytoliths (a minute particle formed of mineral matter by a living plant and fossilized in rock) in relative dating and relative Palaeoethnobotany.