'plant-related' originates from the combination of 'plant' and 'related', where 'plant' refers to living organisms of the kind exemplified by trees, shrubs, herbs, grasses, ferns, and mosses, and 'related' means connected or associated.

'Plant' comes from the Old English 'plante', which was derived from Latin 'planta', meaning 'sprout' or 'shoot'. 'Related' comes from the Latin 'relatus', the past participle of 'referre', meaning 'to bring back'.

Initially, 'plant' referred to any living organism that grows in the ground, and 'related' meant connected. The combination 'plant-related' has maintained its meaning of being associated with plants.