This seminal publication began life as a collaborative effort between the Irish botanist William Henry Harvey (1811-66) and his German counterpart Otto Wilhelm Sonder (1812-81). Relying on many contributors of specimens and descriptions from colonial South Africa - and building on the foundations laid by Carl Peter Thunberg, whose Flora Capensis (1823) is also reissued in this series - they published the first three volumes between 1860 and 1865. These were reprinted unchanged in 1894, and from 1896 the project was supervised by William Thiselton-Dyer (1843-1928), director of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew. A final supplement appeared in 1933. Reissued now in ten parts, this significant reference work catalogues more than 11,500 species of plant found in South Africa. Volume 5 appeared in three parts, the second comprising sections published between 1915 and 1925, covering Thymelaeaceae to Ceratophylleae. The 1933 supplement on Gymnospermae is also incorporated in this reissue.

Contrary to the general belief, the number of kinds of fungi that are really poisonous is comparatively few. Although there are a great deal of species that can be easily recognised and are quite safe to eat, only the Horse Mushroom (P. Arvensis) and the Common Mushroom (Psalliota Campestris) are commonly eaten in this country. That said, it cannot be emphasised enough that the only safe way to work out whether a fungus is safe to eat is to know its botanical characteristics. Such is the aim of this comprehensive treatise on the subject of mushroom taxonomy, making it the perfect guide for anyone interested in mushroom hunting with the aim of preparing their bounty for consumption. This text contains timeless information is as valuable today as when it was originally published and constitutes a must-read for anyone venturing out into the wonderful world of mushroom-hunting. We are proud to republish Edible and Poisonous Fungi complete with a new prefatory introduction to the subject.