Increased atmospheric nitrogen deposition and changes in the management of heathlands have caused a significant change in the species composition of the NW-European heathlands. This change from ericaceous towards gramineous dominance is analysed in detail in Heathlands: Patterns and Processes in a Changing Environment. Special emphasis is put on the effects of increased atmospheric nutrient input on nutrient cycling, competition between plant species and plant--herbivore interactions. The possibilities for the long-term conservation of heathlands are discussed by considering regeneration from seed and the usefulness of mathematical management models. The book provides a synthesis of pure and applied plant ecology. It is vital reading for plant ecologists, biological conservationists, heathland managers and government decision makers.

-- For backyard gardeners or serious naturalists
-- A complete source for information about which plants grow best in nearshore environments
-- Characteristics of each plant, including form, flower and fruit date, geographic distribution, habitat, reproduction, and propagation
-- Ornamental, medicinal, toxic, physical, edible, and ecological aspects of each plant, covering modern uses and folkloric beliefs

27 chapters cover the distribution, economic importance, conventional propagation, micropropagation, tissue culture studies, and in vitro production of important medicinal and other pharmaceutical compounds in various species of Anchusa, Brucea, Catharanthus, Chrysanthemum, Coleus, Corydalis, Coreopsis, Emilia, Ginkgo, Gloriosa, Hypericum, Inonotus, Leucosceptrum, Lilium, Linum, Mosses, Nandina, Penstemon, Prunus, Pteridium, Quassia, Ribes, Senecio, Taraxacum, Thermopsis, Vanilla, and Vitiveria. Like the previous five volumes on medicinal and aromatic plants (Volumes 4, 7, 15, 21, and 24), this book contains a wealth of useful information for advanced students and researchers in the field of plant biotechnology and chemical engineering, pharmacy, botany and tissue culture.

Annual desert plant species of unrelated taxa in the Negev Desert of Israel have developed complementary sets of adaptations and survival strategies as ecological equivalents with physiological, morphological and anatomical resemblances, in the various stages of their life cycles. After 40 years of research in hot deserts Yitzchak Gutterman provides a comprehensive treatise of such adaptations and strategies. In doing so he covers the following topics: post-maturation primary seed dormancy, which prevents germination of maturing seeds before the summer; seed dispersal mechanisms with escape or protection strategies; cautious or opportunistic germination strategies; seedling drought tolerance. The day-length is an important factor in regulating flowering as well as the phenotypic plasticity of seed germination which is also affected by maternal factors.

Dramatically revised and greatly expanded, the second edition of Forensic Botany features triple the amount of images, including a 16-page color insert to aid with macro and micro identification. This edition also features new high profile cases involving the use of botanical evidence, analysis and updating of plant databases, and database sampling. New chapters provide coverage of plant poisons and toxicology, plant bioinformatics, use of plants for death investigation and clandestine grave identification, and the applications of botany to archeology. The book discusses plant biology from a forensic point of view and offers practical guidelines for how to use botanical evidence in a case.

Forest vegetation is distributed in monsoon Asia continuously from boreal forests through temperate to tropical rain forests. This vegetation - the richest in the world - is being subjected to global change on an unprecedented scale. It has been predicted that boreal forests will experience the most significant change in response to global warming, while tropical forests are endangered by rapid changes in land use due to high population pressure. An increase in atmospheric CO2 concentration will severely affect ecosystem function in this area. This volume presents a review of terrestrial ecosystems in monsoon Asia and assesses possible effects of global change on the structure and function of forest ecosystems and feedback routes to the global carbon cycle. Audience: Vital reading for plant ecologists, vegetation scientists, environmental managers and government decision makers.

This volume is the last contribution of a series of With the present book, a further gap concern studies concerned with the plant material of one ing leaf morphology and leaf venation, as well and the same area of Venezuelan Guiana. The as some structural peculiarities of physiological importance, is closed so that an exhaustive survey studies originated through a collaboration with the forest engineer Dr. B. Rollet, the FAO expert in of bark and leaf morphology and anatomy as well forest inventory who collected the material of tree as of fruit and seed structure of the plants of a barks, leaves, fruits and seeds in Venezuelan certain well-known area is herewith given. Not Guiana around the "Rio Grande," "EI Paraiso," only were hundreds of species studied, but and "EI Dorado" camps. In the first place, tree structural characteristics were related to "forest barks of about 280 species of dicotyledons stratification," i. e. to the different micro climatic belonging to 48 families were studied (family by conditions in the forest, as the height of the trees family) by Roth in separate publications which and shrubs studied was known. It is of common mainly appeared in Acta Botanica Venezuelica knowledge that in the lower forest layers, light is a and in Acta Biol6gica Venezuelica (see the bibli limiting factor, while humidity is sufficiently avail ography in Roth 1981)."

Origins of Plastids looks at symbiosis and symbiogenesis as a mechanism of evolution. This theory of endosymbiotic evolution postulates that photosynthetic prokaryotes living as endosymbionts within eukaryotic cells gradually evolved into the organelle structures called chloroplasts. The theory is controversial but has been strongly advocated by Lynn Margulis. Based on a colloquium held at the Bodega Bay Marine Laboratory of the University of California at Davis, Origins of Plastids reviews recent data on this most basic problem in plant evolution. In it, leading researchers in the field apply the theory of endosymbiotic evolution to plastid origins, producing an important new reference work for both professionals and graduates interested in the origins of life, the origins of the eukaryotic cell and its organelles, and the evolution of the higher plants in general. Origins of Plastids represents the state-of-the-art in its field. It should find a place on the bookshelves of people interested in microbiology, plant science, phycology, cell biology, and evolution.

With one volume each year, this series keeps scientists and advanced students informed of the latest developments and results in all areas of the plant sciences. The present volume includes reviews on genetics, cell biology, physiology, comparative morphology, systematics, ecology, and vegetation science.

Progress and Future of Pyrethroids, by Yoshio Katsuda Pyrethrin Biosynthesis and Its Regulation in Chrysanthemum cinerariaefolium, by Kazuhiko Matsuda Recent Advances of Pyrethroids for Household Use, by Kazuya Ujihara, Tatsuya Mori and Noritada Matsuo The Biological Activity of a Novel Pyrethroid: Metofluthrin, by Masayo Sugano and Takao Ishiwatari Advances in the Mode of Action of Pyrethroids, J. Marshall Clark and Steven B. Symington Mammal Toxicology of Synthetic Pyrethroids, by Ryozo Tsuji, Tomoya Yamada and Satoshi Kawamura Biotransformation and Enzymatic Reactions of Synthetic Pyrethroids in Mammals, by Kazuki Mikata, Naohiko Isobe and Hideo Kaneko Environmental Behavior of Synthetic Pyrethroids, by Toshiyuki Katagi Ecotoxicology of Synthetic Pyrethroids, by S. J. Maund, P. J. Campbell, J. M. Giddings, M. J. Hamer, K. Henry, E. D. Pilling, J. S. Warinton and J. R. Wheeler

"Molecular Pharmacognosy" discusses the application of molecular biology in resource science and authentication of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). This book reviews the latest developments in pharmacognosy, introduces a series of new views and insights, presents the hotspots and focus of the field of study on molecular pharmacognosy, and predicts a new direction of study on the resource science of TCM. Furthermore, the book also provides an open communications platform for the development of molecular pharmacognosy. This book is intended for biomedical scientists and researchers in the fields of molecular biology, traditional medicine and natural pharmaceutics.

Professor Lu-qi Huang is Director of the Collaborating Centre of the World Health Organization for Traditional Medicine (Chinese Materia Medica) and Vice-Chairman of the Australia Chinese Association for Biomedical Sciences Inc.

Culinary Herbs & Spices of the World is a reference guide to more than 120 different culinary herbs, spices and flavourings from all the well-known culinary traditions of the world. It is a scientifically accurate and richly illustrated review of the physical appearance, correct names, botany, geographical origin, history, cultivation, harvesting, culinary uses and flavour ingredients of more than 120 different herbs and associated species. A new perspective on the botanical and chemical principles of tastes and flavours is presented, making it an interesting and colourful contribution to the culinary exploration of the world. A fully illustrated, scientifically accurate guide to practically all commercial herbs and spices, with more than 600 colour photographs. Written in an easy style with notes on propagation, cultivation and culinary uses, the book will appeal to a wide readership, from gardeners and food enthusiasts to botanists and academics. Some exotic herbs and spices - especially from Africa and China - are introduced for the first time to European and American readers. The best-known use or signature dish for each herb or spice is given, highlighting hitherto poorly known culinary traditions. Introductory chapters include a concise overview of the main culinary traditions of the world and a fascinating glimpse into the chemistry of taste and flavour. Includes a quick guide and checklist to the culinary herbs and spices of the world.

Many aspects of phytogeography have gained loped numerical techniques which allow the com greatly from the recent development of analytical bination of quantitative floristic and vegetational and numerical methods. The new methods have analyses with mapping and causal or evolu opened up new avenues of research, leading to a tionary deductions. The papers selected for the better understanding of the distribution and book show approaches for higher and lower plant evolutionary patterns of species and communities. forms. Several papers dealing with relevant in During the 1987 Botanical Congress in Berlin, formation on vegetation for the respective areas Drs Nimis and Haeupler organized a symposium appear for the first time. The combination of in which examples of present-day phytogeogra new approaches successfully applied to new phic work were discussed. After the symposium problems should be very stimulating to young it was agreed that a proceedings volume should scientists as many papers demonstrate how to be edited by Drs Nimis and Crovello. From the make efficient use of the new developments in lectures presented, those dealing primarily with information science for species-oriented phyto numerical methods were selected for the book. geography. This is the second volume of the T: VS series that While the book does not intend to serve as a deals with new aspects and methods of phyto textbook, it can be viewed as a guide to the geography."

The plant' is often the most neglected part of plant-based medicine. Throughout time, humans have searched, collected, and effectively used plants for healing. Currently, the medicinal plant-based business is flourishing at a dramatic pace and at the expense of an already declining population of plant species, many of which are on the verge of extinction. In spite of this history and popularity, the mystery of what transforms a plant into a medicinal plant persists, and there are chronic problems with ensuring the safety and efficacy of medicinal plant products. Therefore, there is a real need for a full characterization of medicinal plant species and for the development and application of novel technologies for the production of plant-based medicines. This book highlights some of the recent advances and new approaches to the development of technologies for plant-based medicines and is intended to stimulate new discussions among researchers, regulatory authorities, and pharmaceutical organizations, leading to significant advancements in the field.

This book is highly recommended on the basis of the following points:

- The editors are highly regarded in the field of mycorrhizal biology and one is co-author of the most comprehensive textbook on mycorrhizas;
- Chapters by international experts based on invited presentations at the 3rd International Conference on Mycorrhizas, supplemented by invited chapters on special topics;
- Mycorrhizas are being increasingly recognised as ubiquitous plant/fungal symbioses, with the potential to influence the function and ecology of around 90% of all land plants; perhaps the most common and also ancient terrestrial symbioses in existence;
- This book has a broad coverage of biology of symbioses between mycorrhizal fungi and plants, especially ecto- and arbuscular mycorrhizas (other recent texts have focused mainly on arbuscular mycorrhizal symbioses);
- Forward-looking review chapters by keynote speakers including an overview of research challenges for the future;
- Up-to-date research focus;
- Coverage includes: molecular diversity and detection of mycorrhizal fungi; cellular and molecular interactions between the symbionts; physiology of the interactions; implications of the symbioses for ecosystem processes, including agriculture;
- Several complementary chapters on some topics, ensuring that different perspectives are presented (recent edited volumes have had a smaller group of authors and hence narrower focus);
- Readership from advanced undergraduate students in biology (particularly plant science), postgraduate students and researchers in universities and government agencies.

The career of Erasmus Darwin (1731-1802) affords an extraordinary glimpse into the intellectual ferment of late-eighteenth- and early-nineteenth-century Britain. As a popular poet, practicing physician, inventor of speaking machines and mechanical birds, essayer of natural history from geology to meteorology, and proponent of an evolutionary theory that inspired his famous grandson Charles, he left a lasting impression on almost every branch of knowledge. His magnum opus, and the synthesis of his myriad interests, is The Botanic Garden (1792) - an epic poem that aims to "enlist the Imagination under the banner of Science." Part I, The Economy of Vegetation, sings the praises of British industry as a dance of supernatural creatures while part II, The Loves of the Plants, wittily employs metaphors of human courtship to describe the reproductive cycles of hundreds of flowers. Darwin supplements his accomplished verses with (often much longer) "philosophical notes" that offer his idiosyncratic perspective on the scholarly controversies of the day. Despite a recent surge of academic interest in Darwin, however, no authoritative critical edition of The Botanic Garden exists, presenting a barrier to further scholarship. This two volume set comprises a complete, meticulously transcribed, reading text - including all the poetry, prose apparatus, and illustrations - along with extensive commentary that situates Darwin within contemporary debates about the natural sciences. This set will be of interest to readers as the definitive reference edition of The Botanic Garden and due to its efforts to make the work more practically and intellectually accessible to seasoned and novice readers alike This second volume includes the full version of the second part of The Botanic Garden, The Lives of Plants along with the related textual apparatus consisting of the editors' annotations, discussion of the illustrations, textual notes, and a taxonomic table of the flowers mentioned.

"Fungal-Plant Interactions" is a synthesis of fungal physiology, plant pathology and biology for undergraduates and researchers. Interactions between higher plants and fungi at the cellular and biochemical level are covered together with their ecological importance and theories as to their evolution. Interactions between fungi and higher plants are considered at the cellular and whole plant level. The book gives an integrated presentation of aspects of fungal physiology, whole plant physiology, plant physiology and fungal ecology which are so often approached as separate disciplines. A modern treatment of the effects of fungal invasion on host plant physiology and biochemistry is made by reference to current experimental work and the use of new techniques and approaches as examples. The significance of fungal growth habits and life-style is considered in terms of the interaction strategies adopted, from mutualistic to biotrophic and necrotrophic interactions. Current views concerning the ecological importance and evolution of these strategies is discussed.