Plant Sciences and Phytosemiotics as part of culture
This article is dedicated to the impact of research in the field of biology, behaviorism and cognitive science of plants with upon the change of scientific and cultural discourses. A brief overview is given to vegetation cultural heritage, considering the factors of objectification of plants with acceptance of mechanistic worldview and demystification of nature. The author examines the current changes in comprehension of vegetation based on the new research in the area of electrophysiology and plant behaviorism, providing a short historical background of evolution of the attitude on plants in biology and semiotics. Emphasis is placed on the emergence of phytosemiotics as a part of semiotic system of humans and animals, its transformation into phytosemiotics per se under the influence of new research results in the area of neurobiology of plants and their behavior. The novelty of this work consists in the analysis of new data in the area of behavior and signaling of plants through the lens of biosemiotics, reconsideration of semiotic reality of plants: despite the fact that plants differ from animals in functionality and fundamentally contrasting morphology, they are still comparable, which put the planst on the same level with animals in semiotic reality, and acquire agency. This leaves a wide field for further research in not only plant biology and behaviorism, but also further development of phytosemiotics, ecosemiotics, ethics, and aesthetics. The author's special contribution is the reinterpretation of the plant semiotic niche: the transition of plants from the iconic semiosis to the index one.