The plant kingdom includes flowering plants, trees, ferns and mosses; however this website currently limits the category to flowering plants and ferns. Plants have cell walls with cellulose and characteristically obtain most of their energy from sunlight via photosynthesis using chlorophyll; however there are a few exceptions in which some parasitic plants have no chlorophyll at all. Many plants also produce flowers and seeds for reproduction.
Plants play an important role in supporting life on Earth. They breathe carbon dioxide and expel oxygen, which is necessary for the survival of all animals, including humans. They are also a food source for most of living things on Earth, but in the fruits and vegetables they produce, as wells as the products of their decay which are a necessary food source for bacteria and even other plants.
Connecticut has a great diversity of plants, many of which are edible and quite a few that are dangerous or poisonous. Edible plants include wild raspberries, blueberries and blackberries in the summer, as well as wild strawberries in the spring. Perhaps most commonly recognized plant in Connecticut is the toxic and blister-causing poison ivy, which is extremely abundant in the state. Children learn about this plant at an early age using the mnemonic 'Leaves of three, let it be.'