A Practice Note providing an overview of US plant patent law under 35 U.S.C. §§ 161 to 164, including the nature and scope of plant patent protection and the legal requirements and procedures for preparing, filing, obtaining, and enforcing plant patent rights. This Note also discusses the legal and practical differences among plant patents, utility patents, and plant variety protection (PVP) certificates granted by the US Department of Agriculture under 7 U.S.C. § 2402.