Through words and photographs, environmental scientist Gretchen C. Daily and photographer Charles J. Katz describe how one relict tree-the magnificent Ceiba pentandra in Sabalito, Costa Rica-carries physical and spiritual importance. The people in the town of Sabalito call the tree la ceiba, a term said to be derived from a Taino word referring to a type of wood used for making canoes in the West Indies. Ceiba evokes times and places where people hollowed out the great cylindrical trunks and glided along languid rivers winding through lush tropical forest. Today the tree is known by different names in regions ranging from southern Mexico and the Caribbean to the southern edge of the Amazon Basin and in western Africa. The ceiba has survived what is probably the highest rate of tropical deforestation in the world. It is a legendary and vital tree in centuries-old forests in places like Costa Rica that were once almost completely forested (98 percent in the mid-twentieth century) and decades later have suffered devastating deforestation (34 percent by 1980). One Tree grew out of a conversation between photographer Chuck Katz and acclaimed ecologist Gretchen Daily about the relict tree-a single tree that remains standing in a pasture, for example, after the forest has been cleared from the land, and takes on iconic importance for the animals, plants, and people in the ecosystem. During a trip the authors took to Costa Rica, Katz focused his lens on the ceiba and a story was born. In descriptive language interwoven with scientific fact, Daily discusses the tree's historical and natural history and the ceiba species in general. She touches on the science of the Costa Rican rainforest and its deforestation and the cultural traditions, legends, and folklore of forests and relict trees. Katz's photographs of the massive tree and the village that takes care of it create an intimate work celebrating the visual and biological intricacies of trees.

A celebration of beer-its science, its history, and its impact on human culture "Curatorial eminences Rob DeSalle and Ian Tattersall serve up a potent scientific brew. . . . A marvellous paean to the pint, and to the researchers probing its depths."-Barbara Kiser, Nature "Forced to choose between this book and a pint of hazy IPA, I would be at a loss. Better to consume them at the same time-both will go down easily, and leave you in an improved condition."-Bill McKibben What can beer teach us about biology, history, and the natural world? From ancient Mesopotamian fermentation practices to the resurgent American craft brewery, Rob DeSalle and Ian Tattersall peruse the historical record and traverse the globe for engaging and often surprising stories about beer. They explain how we came to drink beer, what ingredients combine to give beers their distinctive flavors, how beer's chemistry works at the molecular level, and how various societies have regulated the production and consumption of beer. Drawing from such diverse subject areas as animal behavior, ecology, history, archaeology, chemistry, sociology, law, genetics, physiology, neurobiology, and more, DeSalle and Tattersall entertain and inform with their engaging stories of beer throughout human history and the science behind it all. Readers are invited to grab a beer and explore the fascinating history of its creation.

Field Guide to Fynbos features over 1,000 species from the Cape Floristic Region – home to one of the world’s richest floras. This fully updated edition focuses on the most common and ‘showy’ plants.

An introduction unpacks the world of fynbos – including origins, diversity, climate and adaptations – and is followed by a photographic key and descriptions of the fynbos families. Species descriptions are accompanied by photographs, distribution maps, comparisons with similar species, and notes on traditional uses.

For botanists and amateurs alike, this will remain an indispensable guide to South Africa’s most renowned flora.

This practical pocket field guide, published in association with the Wildlife Trusts, includes more than 180 wild flower species from Britain and the near Continent. Each species account contains accurate artworks that show details of the flowers, leaves and growth habit of the plant. A concise written account outlines further essential information, such as size, description, habitat, flowering time and distribution to help you identify wild flowers. The easy-to-follow layouts and illustrations artworks aid quick and precise identification, and make this book an indispensable reference in the field as well as at home. It is compact enough to fit in the pocket, yet packed with essential information for the nature enthusiast.

The Chihuahuan desert is the second largest in North America and its northern, or United States, portion occupies southeastern Arizona, southern New Mexico, and Texas west of the Pecos River. Hot, dry, and windy, the desert is home to a unique community of plants that have adapted to its harsh environment. Visitors to the area will find this volume a practical identification guide, offering descriptions of seventy-five representative species of northern Chihuahuan Desert plants. Each illustrated profile includes the plant's common and Latin name and a brief description, as well as its role in human history, its relationship to the surrounding flora and fauna, medicinal uses, nutritional value, habitat, toxicity, and other interesting facts.

The mountains of Caucasia lie between the Black and Caspian Seas and on the boundary between Europe and Asia. They include the highest, most dramatic, least spoiled and least known mountain ranges of the northern hemisphere after the Himalayas and Rockies. The area supports about 6,400 species of vascular plant of which a quarter occur nowhere else (i.e. they are endemic to the region), and about 850 species of vertebrate animal of which some 120 are endemic. This is the highest percentage of endemism in the temperate world, and makes Caucasia one of the most important hotspots of biodiversity on Earth. Mountain Flowers & Trees of Caucasia describes and illustrates in full colour nearly all the wild flowers, trees and shrubs that can be found over 1,000 metres above sea level - 1,009 species. The authors hope that this field guide will encourage you to visit the mountains of Caucasia to delight in their unique and spectacular assemblage of flowering plants, and so contribute to its conservation. The authors include an overview of vegetation in Caucasia, along with a key to families, and keys to genera of selected families. This second edition has increased the number of species described to over a thousand, and adopted the modern systematic order of Plant Families described by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group to show evolutionary relationships. The order of genera within each Family generally follows that of Flora Europaea. To ease the problem of synonyms, Mountain Flowers not only makes use of The Plant List (tPL), which is easily accessible on line, but gives a substantial list of other synonyms not included in tPL. Each species has a unique number which allows its description, photograph, synonyms and index entry to be easily linked.

ISA has developed a series of Best Management Practices (BMPs) for the purpose of interpreting tree care standards and providing guidelines of practice for arborists, tree workers, and the people who employ their services. This BMP, updated in 2019, provides reasons why pruning should be undertaken, explains pruning types, provides background on pruning cuts, reviews sample pruning specifications, and comments on the timing and necessity of these operations. Chapters in this BMP include: Pruning Systems. Pruning Objectives. Pruning Cuts. Pruning Practices. Poor Pruning Practices. Pruning Conifers, Palms, and Bamboo. Pruning Specifications. Glossary.

Ireland's wild plants have been part of our culture and folklore from the earliest times, featuring in the Brehon Laws, early Irish poetry and herbal medicine. Plants are described in seasonal order and different aspects are examined: their roles in magical protection, charms and spells, emblems in children's games, Irish place names and folklore. This beautifully illustrated and comprehensive compilation of natural history, mythology and folklore will entertain and enlighten all interested in the wild plants of Ireland.

Trees and humans essentially want the same thing - to live good, happy, purposeful lives and to flourish. We are inextricably bound. Trees provide us with the necessities of life - they clean the air we breathe, fill us with awe as we walk through forests and provide timber for the houses we live in, yet there are deeper reasons for our arboreal admiration that go beyond utility and beauty. Tree Glee looks at the psychology behind our fascination with trees, examining exactly how they comfort, restore and revitalise us and what we can learn from the wisdom of woodlands to improve our own wellbeing. It explores the importance of trees in our leafy suburbs and urban landscapes, sharing magical stories of remarkable ancient trees across the globe and inviting readers to reflect on their own personal 'treestory'. Featuring captivating photos and with chapters on forest bathing and nature therapy, woodland wellbeing and tree mythology Tree Glee explores how by deepening our appreciation and connection to trees and by celebrating and protecting them, we can flourish together.

Any appreciation of Louisiana's beautiful outdoors must include the lush variety of the state's ferns and lycophytes. Their striking diversity in form, color, and size makes identifying the array of species in the region enjoyable for hobbyists and professionals alike.

With illustrations and full-color photographs accompanying a complete description of more than sixty varieties, Ray Neyland's A Field Guide to the Ferns and Lycophytes of Louisiana offers an engaging reference for all levels of interest and expertise. Detailed line drawings of plant structures, a glossary of terms, and dichotomous keys make discovering Louisiana's diverse fern family -- the second largest in the country -- both easy and enjoyable.

In addition to providing the geographic range, similar species, and traditional and current uses, Neyland's guide follows the spread of ferns and lycophytes into areas of eastern Texas, southern Arkansas, and Mississippi.

Wandering the woods in search of mushrooms is one of life's great pleasures. But be careful to pick the right ones With "Edible Mushrooms" in your backpack, you'll know to pick only the safest, most delicious chanterelles, truffles, morels, and more. Author Barbro Forsberg presents forty edible species and reveals how, when, and where to find them--knowledge gained over the course of four decades spent mushrooming in the woods.
Discover such aspects of mushrooming as:
Characteristics of edible mushrooms, per species
Cooking, cleaning, and drying the day's bounty
Edible, inedible, or toxic? Photographs and descriptions for what to pick and what to avoid
Poisonous varieties and how to recognize them
All content has been verified by a professional mycologist. Plus, nature and educational photographs illustrate how mushrooms grow, the environments where you can expect to find them, and the ways in which the same species may vary from one sample to the next. So whether you're an experienced mushroom hunter or a novice to the art, with "Edible Mushrooms" you can confidently recognize, pick, and eat the tastiest wild mushrooms.

This magnificent compendium is the fourth in a series of catalogues describing selections of rare books and other material in the Oak Spring Garden Library, a collection assembled by Mrs. Rachel "Bunny" Lambert Mellon. Herbaria describes sixty-three books and manuscripts about herbs and includes exquisite illustrations selected from the works themselves. Spanning the fourteenth to nineteenth centuries, and featuring works by Brunfels, Culpeper, Monardes, and Linnaeus, among others, this authoritative catalogue will prove fascinating to botanists, bibliophiles, garden historians, and herbalists alike.

A passionate and informative celebration of trees and of man's ingenuity in exploiting their resources: the perfect gift for anyone who cares about the natural world.

Trees are marvels of nature, still-standing giants of extraordinary longevity. In a beautifully written sequence of essays, anecdotes and profiles of Britain's best-loved species (from yew to scots pine), Max Adams explores both the amazing biology of trees and humanity's relationship with wood and forest across the centuries.

Embellished with images from John Evelyn's classic Sylva (1664), The Wisdom of Trees a gift book that will delight anyone who cares about the natural world and our interaction with it.

**FEATURED ON COMEDY CENTRAL'S "TALES FROM THE TRIP" YOUTUBE SERIES** The Wild Kindness: A Psilocybin Odyssey is the lyrical, unforgettable memoir of Bett Williams's relationship with psilocybin mushrooms, otherwise known as magic mushrooms. In pursuit of self-healing, she begins experimenting with mushrooms in solitary ceremonies by the fire. Word soon gets out about her New Mexican desert mushroom farm, though, and people arrive in droves. Not long after, the police read her her Miranda Rights, her relationships fall out of whack, and her dog Rosie just might be CIA. On a quest to find help through the psychedelic community, Bett is led to Cleveland to meet Kai Wingo, an African American leader within a high-dose psilocybin community, and to Huautla de Jimenez, home of well-known, well-respected curandera Maria Sabina. Back home, Bett begins a solid ritual practice with the help of her partner and friends, bearing in mind the medicine's indigenous roots and power to transform one's life. Amidst the mainstream flood of New Age practices and products, The Wild Kindness: A Psilocybin Odyssey is a dreamlike reminder that psilocybin mushrooms are a medicine of the people, not to be neatly packaged, marketed, or appropriated. Bett Williams brings to the table one of the best overviews of contemporary psychedelic culture in a long time. -THE EROWID REVIEW In general, this is a balm. It is the polar opposite of that Michael Pollan book. -GOSSAMER Like any good memoirist, Williams performs surgery on herself and holds up each organ for inspection...This is a book that requires you to "go with the flow," but the flow is awfully inviting. -MOLLY YOUNG, Vulture

Tropical Plants of Costa Rica is the essential guide to Costa Rica's native and exotic plant species. In this comprehensive volume, Willow Zuchowski introduces readers to an array of the country's dazzling and diverse flora-from rainforest giants over sixty meters in height to miniature orchids with petals that measure less than one millimeter in length. Covering almost 600 species from all of Costa Rica's regions, Tropical Plants of Costa Rica includes 820 photographs and 120 black-and-white illustrations to aid in the identification of these plants. Detailed species accounts offer descriptions of the plants as well as a rich trove of information about their natural history, distribution, conservation status, potential medicinal uses, and role in human societies. This second edition-in a more compact size for easier use in the field-adds more than 100 species along with a new section focusing on the Osa Peninsula, many new photographs, and updates on scientific names. The only book on the flora of the country intended for serious and casual plant enthusiasts alike, Tropical Plants of Costa Rica is an indispensable resource for the visitor, gardener, student, and researcher.

In his introduction, Don MacCaskill wrote modestly, 'I think I became a naturalist'. He was, in fact, one of Scotland's foremost naturalists and a remarkable wildlife photographer as well. In a flashback to his early years in Kilmartin, a village in Argyllshire, we learn of his awakening interest in man's relationship with the wildlife all around him - why was it necessary to kill it? And when accident, or fate, took him into a career in forestry, an inborn love of trees, both in woodland and forest, flourished and became his life. Photography came a little later, mostly as a record of what he was discovering in the natural world, but is of a remarkable quality in a time when modern aids to getting that special photograph of mammal or bird did not exist. This book is an account of his first year at Ardgarten, as a young forester newly out of college. Full of enthusiasm and confidence, he thought he knew everything and there was many an occasion when he had to discover that he didn't! It is an honest and often humorous account of forestry in the days after the Second World War when the forest folk of that time, who often lived in isolated communities 'far from the madding crowd', were genuinely interested in the work they were doing. There were some fascinating characters too! Trees are surely the supreme example of a life force stronger than our own, wrote Don. Some, like the giant redwoods of North America, live for thousands of years. Some, like our own oaks and pines, may live for centuries. All, given the right conditions, will regenerate their species and survive long into the future. Don wrote, 'I love trees'. It was true - he couldn't help it.

The spectacular close-up images contained in this book show nature in a new light. The curious and inquiring photographic lens of Giovanni De Sandre reveals unexpected details, an amazing world hidden in well-known plants, some of which we use in the kitchen every day. Naturalis fons delivers a clear message to its reader: to appreciate the wonders of nature by learning to look with new eyes at the most common and apparently insignificant plants. Text in English, Italian and French.

Step into a forest in your home with this beautifully designed book. The Tree invites the steadfast, calming and meditative atmosphere of the woodland into your hands and home. From the sturdy oak to the fragrant magnolia, the sweet orange and enticing cocoa, these green companions are brought to life with an innovative paper design allowing you to press each illustration out of the page, transforming your book into a lovely object. Humankind has long had a deep connection with trees, and woodland conservation expert Steve Marsh shares the ancient folklore, unique characteristics and identifying features of over 50 beloved and revered species. This delightful woodland exploration is the perfect gift for any lover of trees. To see how your Paperscapes book transforms, check out the video below (just above the reviews) or have a look at the Paperscapes author page.

The Northeast offers a veritable feast for foragers. The woods, meadows, seashore, and even city neighborhoods are home to an abundance of delicious wild edible plants. A passionate wild foods expert, Leda Meredith emphasizes local varieties and traditions, showing you what to look for, when and where to look, and how to gather in a responsible way.Northeast Foraging is a hardworking guide packed with detailed information and clear photography for the safe identification of more than 120 wild plants. It also features a seasonal guide for foraging year-round and collecting tips for sustainable harvesting. It is applicable to New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, Rhode Island, Ontario, and Quebec.

The fynbos region is one of the most spectacularly diverse places on Earth. This is not an idle statement. When one considers the diversity of insects, freshwater and marine species also associated with the Cape, this hotspot is arguably the hottest of all. It is also confusingly heterogeneous, with a diversity of fine-scale habitats, from wetlands in the lowlands to seeps in the mountains, unique soil, nutrient, aspect and rainfall conditions, all of which combine to sustain and drive this diversity. Fynbos is a fire-adapted vegetation and needs fire to sustain itself: without fire the vegetation would thicken and senesce, permit trees to enter and dominate the system, and eventually exclude the precious nutrients liberated by fire and which the system depends upon for rejuvenation. This book is a guide that will help people who visit, live, manage or own land in the Fynbos Biome to appreciate and manage its extraordinary natural richness.

AS FEATURED ON 'BBC RADIO 4 'GOOD READS'. Woodlands Awards 2019: Woodland Books of the Year 'The oak is the wooden tie between heaven and earth. It is the lynch pin of the British landscape.' The oak is our most beloved and most common tree. It has roots that stretch back to all the old European cultures but Britain has more ancient oaks than all the other European countries put together. More than half the ancient oaks in the world are in Britain. Many of our ancestors - the Angles, the Saxons, the Norse - came to the British Isles in longships made of oak. For centuries the oak touched every part of a Briton's life - from cradle to coffin It was oak that made the 'wooden walls' of Nelson's navy, and the navy that allowed Britain to rule the world. Even in the digital Apple age, the real oak has resonance - the word speaks of fortitude, antiquity, pastoralism. The Glorious Life of the Oak explores our long relationship with this iconic tree; it considers the life-cycle of the oak, the flora and fauna that depend on the oak, the oak as medicine, food and drink, where Britain's mightiest oaks can be found, and it tells of oak stories from folklore, myth and legend.