Plants grow and reproduce, spreading their influence across land through this growth of species. In Macbeth, William Shakespeare uses plants to create a sense of growth and depth of conflict because growth reflects the accumulation of minor effects that become major conflicts. As each problem swells, lineage, evil, and unnaturalness combine to form a large discord and a civil war.

Shakespeare uses plants to depict the conflicting hopes of the nobles about the path of the crown. King Duncan speaks to Macbeth about Duncan’s plans for the future. Because Macbeth inherits both the titles of Thane of Glamis and Thane of Cawdor, Duncan tells Macbeth that he will “[begin] to plant thee and will labor / To make thee full of growing” (1.4.32-33). The act of planting is a way to produce trees, which symbolize the passing on of the crown. Although Malcolm is next in line to receive the crown, Duncan “plants” Macbeth because of Macbeth’s skill as a warrior. Duncan “labor[s]” to make Macbeth a mentor for the king because Duncan favors him after defeating the Thane of Cawdor, a traitor. “Growing” signifies Macbeth’s coronation as king of Scotland. Duncan’s favoring Macbeth leads to Macbeth’s ambition to become king. Macbeth plans the murder of Duncan, causing a clash between Duncan’s and Macbeth’s separate interests over the successor to the throne.

As Macbeth acts upon his ambition, his greed grows and causes other people to become suspicious of his loyalty to Scotland. The Weird Sisters prophesize that Macbeth will become king; however, his children will not. As Macbeth thinks of the prophecy, he furiously states that “Upon [his] head they placed a fruitless crown” (3.1.66) because he desires his relatives to be the kings of Scotland in the future. Macbeth feels disheartened because he bears a “fruitless crown.” The word “fruitless” implies that Macbeth cannot produce “fruit,” or children. The fruit is a plant’s way to reproduce, paralleling the passing on of the crown to his children. He states that the Weird Sisters “[place]” the crown on his head because he believes that Weird Sisters control both his future and the path of the crown. Macbeth thinks that the prophecy impedes his family’s continuation of his reign, directing him to kill everyone in his way. This swelling of hate of not having a continual legacy to the crown accumulates into a desire to rid Scotland of anyone who is a disturbance to Macbeth’s legacy. Nevertheless, the Weird Sisters predict that Banquo’s children will be kings of Scotland. As Banquo reminisces of the prophecy, he recalls that he “should be the root and father / Of many kings” (3.1.5-6). The use of the word “root” describes Banquo as the foundation of many kings. A plant uses its roots to fix itself firmly in a position. As a root, Banquo represents the stable support for the rest of the tree to grow on. Banquo fears that Macbeth attempts to fulfill the prophecy. While Banquo questions Macbeth’s motives, Macbeth fears Banquo’s suspicion and plots for Banquo’s murder. Macbeth’s evil actions lead to the growth of suspicion and ambition, which combine to form a conflict over lineage.

The consequences of evil actions also lead to larger discord as people fear for their lives and for their country. As Macbeth kills innocent people, Macduff flees from Scotland, leaving his wife and children behind, in search of Malcolm. Macduff realizes that “This avarice / sticks deeper [and] grows with more pernicious root” (4.3.100-101) because Macbeth’s acts of murder cause chaos. “Avarice” refers to Macbeth’s greed for more power, and he kills anyone whom he thinks will impede his progress of retaining his control over his country. This greed for power “sticks deeper” because as the Weird Sisters’ prophesy comes to fruition, Macbeth continues to search for more ways to gain power. The “pernicious root” grows “deeper” when Macbeth murders of innocent people. This reference to the root portrays the graveness of the situation. A root of a plant is deep into the ground, elucidating Macbeth’s craze over power that has gone too far because depth illustrates the magnitude of a problem. His malevolent actions cause others to flee and to plot a counterattack to remove him from power.

Out of fear of Macbeth’s malicious actions, many nobles flee to England to join Malcolm in their quest to overthrow Macbeth. During the march to Birnam Wood, Lennox comments that the army will do anything to “drown the weeds” (5.2.35-36). Lennox compares Macbeth’s rule to “weeds” because weeds take over another plant’s space and water, killing the plant. These “weeds” represent evil actions as they cause the death of other innocent species. Weeds also spread rapidly, paralleling the swift proliferation of Macbeth’s cause of harm. Macbeth’s slaughtering of innocent people whom he thinks are in the way of his being king are evil actions. These actions are the causes of chaos and this war to overthrow him.

The disturbance of the Chain of Being through Macbeth’s murdering of the king and a few nobles causes Lady Macbeth to sleepwalk. The doctor cannot cure Lady Macbeth of her sickness or “pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow” (5.3.51). Lady Macbeth’s condition is troubling because she has a “rooted sorrow,” which consists of the guilt for causing all of the murders of innocent people through her convincing Macbeth to kill Duncan. The use of the root as an adjective portrays the depth of the problem because “rooted” creates the sense of permanence. Lady Macbeth’s “sorrow” is “rooted” because her guilt overwhelms her other emotions and leads to her committing suicide. Macbeth’s killing of innocent nobles leads to Lady Macbeth’s sleepwalking and the gathering of an army to overthrow Macbeth, spreading disturbance throughout Scotland.

Macbeth’s ascent to power in an abnormal fashion causes his mounting paranoia about people taking his power away from him. He finds it necessary to kill innocent people because he suspects some plot to overthrow him. These murders lead nobles to flee from Scotland to unite against Macbeth’s regime. These soldiers decide that they will do as “much as it needs / To dew the sovereign flower and drown the weeds” (5.2.35-36). The army understands that change is imperative and that they must bring down Macbeth from his throne as soon as possible. They realize that they must do as “much as it needs” because Macbeth’s rule over Scotland has become similar “weeds.” Macbeth’s killing of nobles is similar to weed’s taking over the resources of other plants, leading to their destruction. The army realizes Macbeth’s unnatural ascent to power and the need to purge against Macbeth’s evil influence over society. Lennox mentions that the army must “dew the sovereign flower” to reinstate Malcolm as the rightful king. “Dew” has a more positive connotation while the word “drown” describes destruction. The army needs to “drown” Macbeth because they need to rid the malicious king and replace him with the benevolent Malcolm. Malcolm’s army knows of Macbeth’s abnormal rise to power and wants to rid Scotland of this evil influence.

Macbeth’s unnatural ascent through power and coincidental inheritance of a reputation of a traitor, Malcolm understands the need for change. After Malcolm becomes king, he states that the renaming of thanes as earls will “be planted newly with the time” (5.8.78) because he understands that change must occur quickly. When a person plants a seed, he creates a new plant through consistent care. This parallels Malcolm’s “planting” of a new era because Malcolm starts a time where Scotland rejects the traditions of the Anglo-Saxon’s calling nobles as thanes. Because these rules will “be planted newly with the time,” there is a sense of change and a new start. The nobles understand the need for change as they see the depth of the troubles as Macbeth uses his powers in an unusual way.

The growth and development of plants parallel the growth of small consequences that overlap into major problems. The consequences of legacy start a chain reaction, causing evil to spread as unnatural ambition fuels greed. While plants naturally grow and spread their influence with seeds and roots, humans broaden their influence through conflicts and quarrels without accomplishing any positive effects.