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Books > Sport & Leisure > Natural history, country life & pets > Plant life: general
The islands of Britain and Ireland hold a rich heritage of plant
folklore and wisdom, from the magical yew tree to the bad-tempered
dandelion. Here are traditional tales about the trees and plants
that shape our landscapes and our lives through the seasons. They
explore the complex relationship between people and plants, in
lowlands and uplands, fields, bogs, moors, woodlands and towns.
Suitable for all ages, this is an essential collection of stories
for anyone interested in botany, the environment and our living
heritage.
Can we imagine a world without flowers? Flowers are beautiful,
offering us delight in their colour, fragrance and form, as well as
their medicinal benefits. Flowers also speak to us in the language
of the plant form itself, as cultural symbols in different
societies, and at the highest levels of inspiration. In this
beautiful and original book, renowned thinker and geometrist Keith
Critchlow has chosen to focus on an aspect of flowers that has
received perhaps the least attention. This is the flower as teacher
of symmetry and geometry (the 'eternal verities', as Plato called
them). In this sense, he says, flowers can be treated as sources of
remembering -- a way of recalling our own wholeness, as well as
awakening our inner power of recognition and consciousness. What is
evident in the geometry of the face of a flower can remind us of
the geometry that underlies all existence. Working from his own
flower photographs and with every geometric pattern hand-drawn, the
author reviews the role of flowers within the perspective of our
relationship with the natural world. His illuminating study is an
attempt to re-engage the human spirit in its intimate relation with
all nature.
"A paradigm-smashing chronicle of joyous entanglement that will
make you acknowledge your own entanglement in the ancient and
ever-new web of being."--Charles Foster, author of Being a Beast
Are trees social beings? In this international bestseller, forester
and author Peter Wohlleben convincingly makes the case that, yes,
the forest is a social network. He draws on groundbreaking
scientific discoveries to describe how trees are like human
families: tree parents live together with their children,
communicate with them, support them as they grow, share nutrients
with those who are sick or struggling, and even warn each other of
impending dangers. Wohlleben also shares his deep love of woods and
forests, explaining the amazing processes of life, death, and
regeneration he has observed in his woodland. After learning about
the complex life of trees, a walk in the woods will never be the
same again. Includes a Note From a Forest Scientist, by Dr.Suzanne
Simard
Plants and Habitats combines the species and habitat approaches to
plants and vegetation. Most of it is an identification guide to 700
plant species selected as those which are common, conspicuous or
useful ecological indicators; species which collectively make up
most of the vegetation in Britain and Ireland. There is also a
separate habitats section describing the flora, ecology and
management of habitats. With this combination of approaches Plants
and Habitats aims to help people understand our vegetation at all
scales, from individual plants to whole landscapes. The structure
and plain English writing style are designed to help with species
identification by non-specialists.Plants and Habitats is
illustrated throughout with colour photos and some line drawings.
For those working with habitat classifications, National Vegetation
Classification (NVC) codes are incorporated throughout and there
are summary tables cross-referencing various classifications. The
book is written for a wide readership including those working or
training in subjects connected with ecology, conservation, land
management, and other environmental matters.
Paul Wood's brilliant and acclaimed London's Street Trees sold out
three printings in its first edition, is a fixture in London's
bookshops and museum and gallery gift shops, and was republished in
Spring 2020 in a new, revised and expanded edition. One of its most
popular features is the handful of 'tree walks' at the back, while
the author is still leading his own guided 'street tree walks'
every weekend somewhere in the capital. So now here is a whole book
of tree walks around the capital - some for an hour or two, others
for an afternoon, and several to while away a whole day. They take
you to Ealing and Highgate, to see nineteenth-century London Planes
lining the Embankment, newly-planted Persian Silk Trees in
Brockley, and a whole Dawn Redwood forest at Canary Wharf - while
pointing out the architecture and social and natural history along
the way. You'll find trees taking you to the haunts of Seventies
rock stars, in search of a long-buried circus elephant, and to some
London's highest ground with the most stunning views over the
capital.
Seasonality is an uplifting look at British wildlife through the
seasons of the year, but it is also about our relationship with
that wildlife. The author, a keen and passionate naturalist, takes
us on a journey through spring, summer, autumn and winter, and on
this journey we look at how our wildlife lives throughout the year,
how it adapts and changes as necessary. The author shares how
wildlife makes him feel, how he derives joy and a sense of
well-being from the wildlife he sees and describes. But he also
shares his frustration at how some of our actions and land
management impact on our increasingly pressurised wildlife. It
shares the delight of watching birds in the garden, fox cubs in the
countryside and peregrines in the city. It shares the sadness of
seeing stuffed examples of extinct birds, the anger at the
mismanagement of potentially wildlife-rich hedgerows, and the
confusion and contradiction of the management of our so-called
natural spaces. It is a book of delights and frustrations, but
above all hope and celebration. Whether it is the flash of bright
yellow butterfly wings signalling that spring has arrived, the
slicing of the air by sickle-shaped swifts telling us that summer
has come, the wonderful show of colour that the leaves of trees
display in the autumn, or the deep-throated chuckle of fieldfares
gleaning berries in the winter, the seasons are full of life and
this book describes them in vivid detail. The role of the seasons
in our own lives may have diminished, but for wildlife the seasons
are everything, they are the framework within which everything
happens. Seasonality is your guide, through a naturalist's eyes and
thoughts, to the incredible journey of the four seasons. The
seasons of the year roll on regardless, an endless cycle that
dictates the rhythm of life.
A flower is not a flower alone; A thousand thoughts invest it' All
over the world, flowers are an integral part of human culture
whether it is the perfect table centre for a wedding, a beautiful
bouquet for a birthday, a message of thanks, or to pay one's
respect at a funeral. But, while everyone knows that red roses
signify love, few may realise that an entire language of flowers
exists with every bloom, folliage and plant having a particular
emotion attached, be it hazel for reconcilliation, wisteria for
welcome or ivy for fidelity. This unique language was created by
the romantic early Victorians who carefully planned every bouquet
and posy so as to deliver a desired message. Bringing the language
to a new generation, this beautifully illustrated miscellany
contains fifty profiled flowers, a dictionary searchable by
emotion, and ideas for creating bouquets and arrangements for
specific occasions. This gift book is a novel present that any
flower lover will want to own.
Used by humans since ancient times, evergreen oak forests still
cover extensive mountain areas of the Mediterranean Basin. These
broadleaved evergreen forests occupy a transitional zone between
the cool-temperate deciduous forest biome and the drier
Mediterranean pine forests and shrublands. Slow growing and casting
a deep shade, the sclerophyllous holm oak ("Quercus ilex")
absolutely dominates the closed canopy of many Mediterranean
evergreen oak forests. This is a synthesis of 20 years of research
on the structure, function, and dynamics of holm oak forests in two
intensively studied experimental areas in Spain. By combining
observational measurements at the leaf, tree, plot, and catchment
scales with field experiments and modelling, the authors explore
how these forests cope with strong water limitation and repeated
disturbances.
Our forests, with their billions of trees, are the backbone of
agriculture, the skeleton of lumbering, and the heart of industry.
Even now, in spite of their depletion, they are the cream of our
natural resources. They furnish wood for the nation, pasture for
thousands of cattle and sheep, and water supply for countless
cities and farms. They are the dominions of wild life. Millions of
birds, game animals, and fish live in the forests and the forest
streams. The time is coming when our forests will be the greatest
playgrounds of America. It is necessary that we preserve, protect,
and expand our timberlands. By so doing we shall provide for the
needs of future generations.
FROM THE AUTHOR OF THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER,THE HIDDEN LIFE OF
TREES 'A simultaneously stimulating and soothing blend of nature
writing and science ... Strongly encourages tree hugging for our
own, human sake' Guardian Summer Reads 2021 A powerful return to
the forest, where trees have heartbeats and roots are like brains
that extend underground. Where the colour green calms us, and the
forest sharpens our senses. In The Heartbeat of Trees, renowned
forester Peter Wohlleben draws on new scientific discoveries to
show how humans are deeply connected to the natural world. In an
era of climate change, many of us fear we've lost our connection to
nature, but Wohlleben is convinced that age-old ties linking humans
to the forest remain alive and intact. We just have to know where
to look. Drawing on science and cutting-edge research, The
Heartbeat of Trees reveals the profound interactions humans can
have with nature, exploring: the language of the forest the
consciousness of plants and the eroding boundary between flora and
fauna A perfect book to take with you into the woods, The Heartbeat
of Trees shares how to see, feel, smell, hear, and even taste the
forest. Peter Wohlleben, renowned for his ability to write about
trees in an engaging and moving way, reveals a wondrous cosmos
where humans are a part of nature, and where conservation and
environmental activism is not just about saving trees, it's about
saving ourselves, too.
A 1000-PIECE JIGSAW FOR NATURE LOVERS - Piece together a living,
breathing world of trees and fill the gaps in your knowledge as you
go with a comprehensive poster guide BESTSELLING AUTHOR - Text by
tree expert Jonathan Drori CBE, the author of the bestselling book
Around the World in 80 Trees, and upcoming Around the World in 80
Plants HOURS OF COSY FUN - Learn about 50 trees from around the
world - all from the comfort of home! THE PERFECT GIFT -
Illustration-led, highly finished jigsaw and illustrated poster for
maximum gift appeal AMAZING ARTWORK - Lucille Clerc's intricately
drawn world is bursting with minute detail Finished puzzle measures
48.5 x 68 cm (19 x 27 in.) Discover the world in 50 trees! From the
beech forests of southern Sweden to the North African argan trees -
goats aloft in their branches - passing by India's sacred banyan,
the Hawaiian koa, and right down to Australia's jarrah.
The debt medicine owes to botany is not commonly appreciated. In
the past, medicine relied almost entirely on plants, and even
today, many western medicines are plant derived. Despite this,
historians have largely neglected the study of domestic medicine,
practised by the ordinary person and passed down through
generations, in favour of 'official medicine'. The History of
Domestic Plant Medicine brings together manuscripts, letters,
diaries, personal oral interviews and other primary evidence to
produce a detailed picture of the medicinal use of native plants in
Britain from 1700 to the present day. Recording for posterity this
neglected aspect of our heritage, it is a valuable contribution to
the study of the folklore of modern Britain and a fascinating piece
of social history.
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