Discover the fascinating world of Ireland's diverse and astonishing collection of native wildflowers. This new edition reflects the many changes to our botanical knowledge since The Wildflowers of Ireland was first published in 2014. There's updated information on the distribution of native wildflowers, along with more than 90 additional species, all beautifully photographed by the author. For ease of identification, the species are divided into colour categories and within each category the species are grouped by, for example, the number of petals in the flower or whether the species carries its flowers in a cluster or a spike. In easily understood terminology, focus is put on the main identifying features of each plant, by colour, size, shape of flower, leaf, habitat, flowering season, and where in Ireland it might be found. This is a must for enthusiasts of all ages and levels of experience.

Since Antiquity few trees have had a greater impact on the world's culture and economy than the mulberry. The sole food of the silkworm, the leaves of the mulberry brought prosperity not only to ancient China, but to all nations that learned the art of silk production. Mulberry bark was used to make the first paper and the succulent, blood-red fruit of the Black Mulberry has inspired poets from Ovid to Shakespeare. The medicinal properties of all parts of the tree have been known for millennia, making it a tree of choice for medieval monastery gardens, while its anti-diabetic effects are opening exciting avenues of research today. This sumptuously illustrated book tells the remarkable story of the mulberry tree and its migrations from China and Central Asia to almost every continent of the globe. It will appeal to all who wish to know more of the rich history of this emblematic tree.

Confucius called them the "king of fragrant plants," and John Ruskin condemned them as "prurient apparitions." Across the centuries, orchids have captivated us with their elaborate exoticism, their powerful perfumes, and their sublime seductiveness. But the disquieting beauty of orchids is an unplanned marvel of evolution, and the story of orchids is as captivating as any novel. As acclaimed writer Michael Pollan and National Geographic photographer Christian Ziegler spin tales of orchid conquest in "Deceptive Beauties: The World of Wild Orchids", we learn how these flowers forests to the Arctic, from semi deserts to rocky mountainsides; how their shapes, colors, and scents are, as Darwin put it, "beautiful contrivances" meant to dupe pollinating male insects in the strangest ways. What other flowers, after all, can mimic the pheromones and even appearance of female insects, so much so that some male bees prefer sex with the orchids over sex with their own kind? And insects aren't the only ones to fall for the orchids' charms. Since the "orchidelirium" of the Victorian era, humans have braved the wilds to search them out and devoted copious amounts of time and money propagating and hybridizing, nurturing and simply gazing at them. This astonishing book features over 150 unprecedented color photographs taken by Christian Ziegler himself as he trekked through wilderness on five continents to capture the diversity and magnificence of orchids in their natural habitats. His intimate and astonishing images allow us to appreciate up close nature's most intoxicating and deceptive beauties.

A full-color illustrated guide to the natural history of the most poisonous plants on earth This richly illustrated book provides an in-depth natural history of the most poisonous plants on earth, covering everything from the lethal effects of hemlock and deadly nightshade to the uses of such plants in medicine, ritual, and chemical warfare. Featuring hundreds of color photos and diagrams throughout, Plants That Kill explains how certain plants evolved toxicity to deter herbivores and other threats and sheds light on their physiology and the biochemistry involved in the production of their toxins. It discusses the interactions of poisonous plants with other organisms--particularly humans-and explores the various ways plant toxins can target the normal functioning of bodily systems in mammals, from the effects of wolfsbane on the heart to toxins that cause a skin reaction when combined with the sun's rays. This intriguing book also looks at plants that can harm you only if your exposure to them is prolonged, the ethnobotany of poisons throughout human history, and much more. A must for experts and armchair botanists alike, Plants That Kill is the essential illustrated compendium to these deadly and intriguing plants. Provides an authoritative natural history of the most poisonous plants on earth Features hundreds of color illustrations throughout Looks at how and why plants produce toxins Describes the effects of numerous poisonous plants, from hemlock and deadly nightshade to poppies and tobacco Explains poisonous plants' evolution, survival strategies, physiology, and biochemistry Discusses the uses of poisonous plants in medicine, rituals, warfare, and more

One tree, in one garden. Can it really make a difference? In RHS The Tree in My Garden, award-winning wildlife author Kate Bradbury reveals the amazing effect planting a single tree in your garden can have - and dares to imagine what would happen if every gardener up and down the country did the same. Combining practical gardening advice, eye-opening scientific research, reflections on the cultural importance of different species, and evocative accounts of how vital trees are for countless different forms of wildlife, this book will leave you in no doubt that every garden needs a tree! This terrific tree book features a directory of 50 key species, each one beautifully illustrated by Lucille Clerc and packed with information about each tree's appearance, care needs, and the wildlife it supports - to help you choose the best tree for your own garden, or learn more about the trees you may already have. Dive into the pages of this tree identification book to discover: - 50 illustrated profiles of a wide range of trees suitable for different gardens and preferences - Eye-opening accounts of the importance of trees for our planet, our wildlife, and ourselves - Essential practical information to help readers choose, plant, prune, and care for their tree - Ideas for making your own leaf mould and ways to get involved in community planting projects - Stunning illustrations by Lucille Clerc that convey the beauty and the mystery of trees This book is perfect for anyone wanting to attract more wildlife to their garden! So whether you're an environmentalist intent on reducing your carbon footprint, a budding gardener looking to choose the best tree for your outdoor space or you're simply seeking a guide about the natural history of the trees in your garden, RHS The Tree In My Garden is something the whole family can explore, discover and love. No garden should be without a tree. Plant one, watch it grow - and become part of something bigger!

This superbly illustrated book is a comprehensive identification reference to over 550 of the most important and best-known trees of Britain and Europe, from Iceland in the north to the Mediterranean in the south. A detailed introduction looks at the origins of trees, their evolution over time and the ways in which they have adapted to suit the variety of terrains in which they thrive. The book then presents an extensive illustrated directory of the most common, popular, prolific or unusual trees, including maps illustrating the region in which each tree can be found. With over 1600 beautiful photographs, artworks and illustrations, this volume is perfect for home or study.

Object Lessons is a series of short, beautifully designed books about the hidden lives of ordinary things. Tree explores the forms, uses, and alliances of this living object's entanglement with humanity, from antiquity to the present. Trees tower over us and yet fade into background. Their lifespan outstrips ours, and yet their wisdom remains inscrutable, treasured up in the heartwood. They serve us in many ways-as keel, lodgepole, and execution site-and yet to become human, we had to come down from their limbs. In this book Matthew Battles follows the tree's branches across art, poetry, and landscape, marking the edges of imagination with wildness and shadow. Object Lessons is published in partnership with an essay series in The Atlantic.

Following the publication of Part One of this work, "Coast Plants", a self-appointed committee consisting of Rolf Nordhagen, Johannes Lid, Knut Faegri, Per Stormer and Olav Gjaerevoll decided that mapping of Norwegian vascular plants should continue, priority given to alpine plants and species belonging to the southern and southeastern floral elements. The work includes discussion of the concept of alpine plants, the distribution of the Scandinavian alpine plants, the history of the alpine flora, the ecology of alpine plants, and the species.

Where mountains meet ocean in Alaska's Alexander Archipelago, white skeletons of dead yellow cedar trees stand prominently amidst a verdant landscape of old-growth forests. Researchers spent nearly three decades deciphering the cause of the majestic species' death and uncovering climate change as the culprit. Lauren E. Oakes, a young scientist at Stanford University, was one of them. But even as she set to record the demise of a species, she soon found herself immersed in an even bigger, and totally unexpected, story: how the people of Alaska were adapting to the tree's disappearance, and how the tree itself, seemingly doomed, was adapting to a changing world. In Search of the Canary Tree is the story of six years that Oakes and her team spent in the Alaskan wilds, studying thousands of trees and saplings along the archipelago of southeast Alaska. Far from losing faith in the survival of our woodlands, she discovered the resiliency of forgotten forests, flourishing again after years of destruction and decomposition. And, through deep encounters with loggers, naturalists, Native weavers, and enthusiasts of the yellow cedar, Oakes discovered how the people of Alaska were determined to develop new relationships with the emerging environment. Where many scientists and commentators have found in climate change an unmitigated disaster, Oakes found beacons of hope even in the disorienting death of a species. Above all else, Oakes shows us that, although we can respond to climate change with either fear or denial, we can also find in it a new world, and one that doesn't necessarily have to be for the worst. Eloquent, insightful, and deeply heartening, In Search of the Canary Tree shows how human and natural resilience can help preserve ourselves, even in our rapidly changing world.

How afforestation reveals the often-concealed politics between humans and plants In Plant Life, Rosetta S. Elkin explores the procedures of afforestation, the large-scale planting of trees in otherwise treeless environments, including grasslands, prairies, and drylands. Elkin reveals that planting a tree can either be one of the ultimate offerings to thriving on this planet, or one of the most extreme perversions of human agency over it. Using three supracontinental case studies-scientific forestry in the American prairies, colonial control in Africa's Sahelian grasslands, and Chinese efforts to control and administer territory-Elkin explores the political implications of plant life as a tool of environmentalism. By exposing the human tendency to fix or solve environmental matters by exploiting other organisms, this work exposes the relationship between human and plant life, revealing that afforestation is not an ecological act: rather, it is deliberately political and distressingly social. Plant Life ultimately reveals that afforestation cannot offset deforestation, an important distinction that sheds light on current environmental trends that suggest we can plant our way out of climate change. By radicalizing what conservation protects and by framing plants in their total aliveness, Elkin shows that there are many kinds of life-not just our own-to consider when advancing environmental policy.

Tree sitters. Logger protests. Dying timber towns. An iconic species on the brink. The Timber Wars consumed the Pacific Northwest in the late 1980s and early1990s and led political leaders to ask scientists for a solution. The Northwest Forest Plan was the result. For most of the twentieth century, the central theme of federal forest management in the Pacific Northwest had been logging old-growth forests to provide a sustained yield of timber. During the 1970s and 1980s, however, a series of studies by young scientists highlighted the destructive impact of that logging on northern spotted owls, salmon, and the old-growth ecosystem itself. Combining this new science with newly minted environmental laws like the Endangered Species Act, environmental activists obtained court injunctions to stop old-growth logging on federal land, setting off a titanic struggle in the Pacific Northwest to find a way to accommodate conservation imperatives as well as the logging that provided employment for tens of thousands of people. That effort involved years of controversy and debate, federal courts, five science assessments, Congress, and eventually the president of the United States. It led to creation of the Northwest Forest Plan, which sharply and abruptly shifted the primary goal of federal forestry toward conserving the species and ecosystems of old-growth forests. Scientists went from spectators to planners and guides, employing their latest scientific findings and expertise to create a forest plan for 20 million acres that would satisfy the courts. The largest upheaval in federal forest management in history had occurred, along with a precipitous decline in timber harvest, and there was no going back. In this book, three of the scientists who helped craft that change tell the story as they know it: the causes, development, adoption, and implementation of the Northwest Forest Plan. The book also incorporates personal reflections from the authors, short commentaries and histories from key figures— including spotted owl expert Eric Forsman—and experiences from managers who implemented the Plan as best they could. Legal expert Susan Jane M. Brown helped interpret court cases and Debora Johnson turned spatial data into maps. The final chapters cover the Plan’s ongoing significance and recommendations for conserving forest and aquatic ecosystems in an era of megafires and climate change.

Why do we spend so much time indoors, which is not our natural habitat? Why have trends such as forest-bathing become so popular? The answer to the last question lies in the proven benefits we obtain from our connection with nature - from increased productivity to feelings of happiness and an enhanced sense of wellbeing. For millions of years, humans developed in natural environments, in close contact with sunlight, vegetation and fresh air. But most of us spend 80-90% of our time indoors far from the environments for which we are naturally suited and in which we evolved. Skogluft's mission is to bring a natural living environment back into your home and workplace. Based on years of research data on the impact between nature and people, gathered together by a Norwegian mechanical engineer, Jorn Viumdal, Skogluft reveals how installing a wall of easily available plants in your home environment can dramatically improve health, strengthen the immune system and increase productivity. The plants are easily available, cheap to buy and simple to look after. Here is a low-tech solution to a problem created by our increasing dependence on a world dominated by high technology. Learn the simple techniques to beautify your world and create air you can live with all year around and experience the health and wellness effects for yourself.

Published for the first time in German, this is the first local field guide to cover all the commonly encountered plants and animals of the southern African region in one compact and easy-to-use volume.

More than 2 000 species (1 200 of them illustrated) are described in 11 categories - from lower invertebrates to insects and spiders; vertebrates, inlucing frogs, freshwater fishes, birds, reptiles, and mammals; and plants, from fungi and ferns to wild flowers, grasses and trees. Each category has been compiled by an expert in the field and is colour coded for easy reference.

In 2006, the award-winning Eagle's Complete Trees and Shrubs of New Zealand was published to widespread acclaim and quickly became a modern classic for New Zealand botanists, gardeners and art-lovers. By popular demand, this accessible, affordable new edition presents a beautiful selection of 163 full-colour, full-page reproductions of Audrey Eagle's botanical paintings for new readers to discover and existing fans to savour. Every plant is depicted in full colour, including Eagle's many detailed enlargements which show the flowers, leaves and seeds of each plant in technically superb detail, while an appendix containing comprehensive notes, drafted in consultation with expert botanists, gives information on every plant. A fresh introduction gives new insights into Audrey Eagle and her life's work, and sets her place in the prestigious history of the botanical illustration of New Zealand's unique native flora.

A unique window on the floral wonders of the Mediterranean world The Mediterranean - a land of blue skies, warm sunshine, rugged mountains and azure seas. Yet this familiar image conceals another Mediterranean - a secret landscape populated by a dazzling variety of wild flowers and plants, from spectacular orchids and ancient olive trees to delicate snowdrops and hardy cacti. Following on from their widely acclaimed Flora of the Silk Road, Chris and Basak Gardner present a stunning selection of 600 of the finest wild flowers that grow in the Mediterranean regions of the world. Travelling across five continents - Europe, North America, Africa, South America and Australia - the authors reveal the rich botanical profusion that makes up the flora of the Mediterranean regions of the world. For each region, a succession of the most outstanding flowers is featured, from the spectacular and exotic to the beautiful yet familiar, with each plant presented in its natural habitat. Beginning with the countries of the Mediterranean Basin, the reader is taken along the rugged Atlas Mountains, through Andalucia and Italy, to arrive at the amazing botanical richness of Greece, southern Anatolia and Jordan. In California and Chile the journey is through flowering deserts, snow-capped peaks and towering forests of redwood and monkey puzzle trees, beside a coast lapped by the Pacific Ocean. The ancient landscapes of Southern Australia provide a truly remarkable assemblage of astonishing flora, whilst the Western Cape of South Africa is home to an unimaginable diversity of flora. The accompanying text provides descriptions of the species, plant families and their distribution, as well as offering guidance to those wishing to photograph plants in the wild. With 600 stunning colour photographs, and presenting a breadth of flora never before brought together in a single volume, the authors offer a unique window on the floral wonders of the Mediterranean world.

Get back to nature with this easy to use guide to Britain's greenery. From the experts at Westonbirt Arboretum in the depths of the Cotswolds, with one of the most beautiful gardens in the world, comes this beautiful pocket guide covering 100 popular wild plants and flowers. Categorised by type of plant, the simple layout ensures that this text is easy to use 'on the go'. Meadow Saffron, Sweet Woodruff and Solomon's Seal are just a few examples of the vibrant entries - each accompanied by two beautiful images and a short description. Illustrated with enchanting colour artwork, depicting each plant and their individual bloom or sprig, this covetable book will educate and entertain with text by two leading experts from the Arboretum and the Forestry Commission.

For the first time, this extraordinary compilation showcases weird, mysterious and bizarre plants from around the world. Plants trick, kill, steal and kidnap, and this unique book explores a fascinating world in which plants have turned the tables on animals. Author Chris Thorogood showcases these plant behaviours, the interrelationships among plants, the interdependencies between plants and animals, and the intrigue of plant evolution. All types of weird and sinister are featured in this book, from carnivorous plants that drug, drown and consume unsuspecting insect prey; giant pitcher plants that have evolved toilets for tree shrews; flowers that mimic rotting flesh to attract pollinating flies, and orchids that duplicitously look, feel and even smell like a female insect to bamboozle sex-crazed male bees.

Leaves are all around us in backyards, cascading from window boxes, even emerging from small cracks in city sidewalks given the slightest glint of sunlight. Perhaps because they are everywhere, it's easy to overlook the humble leaf, but a close look at them provides one of the most enjoyable ways to connect with the natural world. A lush, incredibly informative tribute to the leaf, Nature's Fabric offers an introduction to the science of leaves, weaving biology and chemistry with the history of the deep connection we feel with all things growing and green. Leaves come in a staggering variety of textures and shapes: they can be smooth or rough, their edges smooth, lobed, or with tiny teeth. They have adapted to their environments in remarkable, often stunningly beautiful ways from the leaves of carnivorous plants, which have tiny "trigger hairs" that signal the trap to close, to the impressive defense strategies some leaves have evolved to reduce their consumption. (Recent studies suggest, for example, that some plants can detect chewing vibrations and mobilize potent chemical defenses.) In many cases, we've learned from the extraordinary adaptations of leaves, such as the invention of new self-cleaning surfaces inspired by the slippery coating found on leaves. But we owe much more to leaves, and Lee also calls our attention back to the fact that that our very lives and the lives of all on the planet depend on them. Not only is foliage is the ultimate source of food for every living thing on land, its capacity to cycle carbon dioxide and oxygen can be considered among evolution's most important achievements and one that is critical in mitigating global climate change. Taking readers through major topics like these while not losing sight of the small wonders of nature we see every day if you'd like to identify a favorite leaf, Lee's glossary of leaf characteristics means you won't be left out on a limb Nature's Fabric is eminently readable and full of intriguing research, sure to enhance your appreciation for these extraordinary green machines.

Nineteenth-century English nature was a place of experimentation, exoticism, and transgression, as site and emblem of the global exchanges of the British Empire. Popular attitudes toward the transplantation of exotic species-botanical and human-to Victorian greenhouses and cities found anxious expression in a number of fanciful genre texts, including mysteries, science fiction, and horror stories. Situated in a mid-Victorian moment of frenetic plant collecting from the far reaches of the British empire, Novel Cultivations recognizes plants as vital and sentient subjects that serve-often more so than people-as actors and narrative engines in the nineteenth-century novel. Conceptions of native and natural were decoupled by the revelation that nature was globally sourced, a disruption displayed in the plots of gardens as in those of novels. Elizabeth Chang examines here the agency asserted by plants with shrewd readings of a range of fictional works, from monstrous rhododendrons in Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca and Mexican prickly pears in Olive Schreiner's Story of an African Farm, to Algernon Blackwood's hair-raising ""The Man Whom the Trees Loved"" and other obscure ecogothic tales. This provocative contribution to ecocriticism shows plants as buttonholes between fiction and reality, registering changes of form and content in both realms.

A must-read for anyone with an adventurous spirit, a yen to whittle and chop, and a desire to get out into nature and play with sticks! These 50 achievable ideas for making and playing with sticks - all with beautiful step-by-step illustrations - make a great gift. The next title in Pavilion's best-selling outdoor adventure series, 50 Things to Do with a Stick will introduce you to the joy of making something out of almost nothing. With a few gathered twigs and sticks, start with simple ideas such as making plant markers or tent pegs and work up to constructing a lantern or woven basket. Working with wood is common to nearly every culture - it's nature's most adaptable raw material, malleable yet strong, and biodegradable. Until the 1960s woodworking was taught widely in schools, but since then has been in decline, robbing generations of the satisfaction of making useful things by hand. Richard Skrein begins by guiding you in choosing sticks and tools. Four chapters with evocative illustrations take you step by step through projects to use at home; to make music and decorative objects with; to play with; and to use out and about - the perfect accompaniments to a camping trip (2020 and 2021 saw unprecedented campsite bookings in the UK, and this trend is set to continue). This is the perfect book for anyone wishing to be more self-sufficient. Find your inner explorer with these battery-free, no-emission ideas! Chapters include: Home Sticks: cutlery, coat hooks, brooms, candlesticks Stick Craft: jewellery, weaving, mobiles, picture frames Stick Play: catapults, musical sticks, magic wands, story sticks Camp Sticks: lanterns, ladders, stools, stick bread! Word count: 15,000 words

From wild carrot to serviceberries, pineapple weed to watercress, lamb’s quarter to sea rocket, Foraging Oregon uncovers the edible wild foods and healthful herbs of the Beaver State. Fully revised and updated, and helpfully organized by plant families, the book is an authoritative guide for nature lovers, outdoorsmen, and gastronomes. This guide also includes: Elderberry Sauce Mia’s Chickweed Soup Fireweed Jelly Shiyo’s Garden Salad Vegetable Chips Stinging Nettles Hot Sauce Wild Bread Northwest Brickle

The first book to demonstrate how plants originally considered harmful to the environment actually restore Earth's ecosystems and possess powerful healing properties
- Explains how invasive plants enhance biodiversity, purify ecosystems, and revitalize the land
- Provides a detailed look at the healing properties of 25 of the most common invasive plants
Most of the invasive plant species under attack for disruption of local ecosystems in the United States are from Asia, where they play an important role in traditional healing. In opposition to the loud chorus of those clamoring for the eradication of all these plants that, to the casual observer, appear to be a threat to native flora, Timothy Scott shows how these opportunistic plants are restoring health to Earth's ecosystems. Far less a threat to the environment than the cocktails of toxic pesticides used to control them, these invasive plants perform an essential ecological function that serves to heal both the land on which they grow and the human beings who live upon it. These plants remove toxic residues in the soil, providing detoxification properties that can help heal individuals.
"Invasive Plant Medicine" demonstrates how these "invasives" restore natural balance and biodiversity to the environment and examines the powerful healing properties offered by 25 of the most common invasive plants growing in North America and Europe. Each plant examined includes a detailed description of its physiological actions and uses in traditional healing practices; tips on harvesting, preparation, and dosage; contraindications; and any possible side effects. This is the first book to explore invasive plants not only for their profound medical benefits but also with a deep ecological perspective that reveals how plant intelligence allows them to flourish wherever they grow.

Not since Lee's Flora of the Clyde Area (1933) has there been a Flora covering Glasgow. This is the first ever Flora of the Glasgow area that relates how plants have changed over time. It is based on the results of some fifteen years' intensive research by members of the Glasgow Natural History Society and other field botanists working under the direction of Professor Jim Dickson, Dr Peter Macpherson and Keith Watson. The survey led to discoveries of many special plants, including some thought to be extinct, and revealed sites of great scientific and conservation interest. The book also uncovers some little known aspects of the city's natural, social and economic history and their bearing on wild plants. The Changing Flora of Glasgow is generously illustrated with photographs, maps, and paintings, many of them in colour, and including several sequences to show places and perspectives as they are now and how they were some 250 years ago. It combines immaculate scholarship with an accessible, entertaining style. An essential reference work for botanists and plant lovers, it will also be a much-read possession in homes in Glasgow and surrounding areas. With The Changing Flora of Glasgow, you can: *Discover how and why Glasgow's flora has changed since records began *Consult a catalogue of 1500 species *Identify plants previously thought extinct *Compare Glasgow's plant life with that of other European cities *Explore current conservation issues *Enjoy the lavish illustrations