Books you may like to hear about

[Maggi Young]

No but Magnus published a recent document about Pradesh flora

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/327098053_Notes_on_the_alpine_flora_of_Arunachal_Pradesh_including_several_species_new_to_India

  Thanks, Yann!

[Maggi Young]

Plant Explorer: A Plantsman's Travels in Northern Vietnam by Richard Baines, Curator  of  Logan Botanic Garden   

"This is a beautifully illustrated and in depth account of plant exploration and conservation in Northern Vietnam.
Richard is the Curator of Logan Botanic Garden and has a particular interest in Rhododendrons, Magnolias and Camellias. A regular writer for horticultural magazines and the national press he has also appeared on TV, Radio and Social Media. An extensive lecturer, including Guest Lecturer on the Hebridean Princess.
This informative and unique book is available to buy at Logan Botanic Garden Office Monday-Friday between 9am & 3pm. Priced at £20 -a  fantastic bargain for yourself or an ideal Christmas gift for a loved one.

Available to buy online now: meantime showing as  sold  out but  new  stock coming  soon   
https://rbgeshop.org/products/plant-explorer-a-plantsmans-travels-in-north-vietnam?variant=37403443986586




Richard Baines  with Lithocarpus pachylepis




 Gordonia axillaris

[FrazerHenderson]

Entangled Life: how fungi make our worlds, change our minds and shape our futures by Merlin Sheldrake
Great cover, well illustrated 358pp (including 40pp of bibliography for further enquiry)

I read a lot of non-fiction during 2020 covering a range of disciplines some for pleasure (mainly natural history), some inevitably for work (on planning, economics and transport) and some for topical interest (viruses, politics). And this is the book which left the greatest impression. I thoroughly recommend it.

It is full of insight and wonder bringing together wide-ranging knowledge and research and conveying it in an engaging style. Almost every page is thought-provoking. It tackles everything, as the sub-title suggests, from fungi’s role in the creation of life, to how it can and does influence our thinking and approach, to ultimately where we as a race or our planet may wish to be.

The book is timely: it showcases solutions – using fungi – to address major issues through mycomedicine, mycoremediation (using fungus to breakdown pollutants), mycofiltration, mycofabrication (using fungus as building or insulation material), sustainable food production, energy production etc..
 
As the nature writer Robert MacFarlane says about this book “A dazzling, vibrant, vision-changing book. Sentence after sentence stopped me short. I ended it wonderstruck at the fungal world…”. I can play no greater compliment to the book and particularly its subject matter to say that I am now beginning to consider all things differently. 

Access the website https://www.merlinsheldrake.com/entangled-life and see what became of a copy of his book…and delve also into a range of interesting articles.

[Yann]

Blumen der Türkei




https://archive.org/download/stapfia-34-103-271/stapfia-34-103-271.pdf

[Yann]

Einige Endemiten aus der türkischen Pflanzenwelt im Bild



https://ia802905.us.archive.org/18/items/stapfia-54-001-110/stapfia-54-001-110.pdf

[Yann]

Photographs of Plants from some Anatolian salt steppes

Realling interesting ebook, i was able to identity 12 years old photos with it.



https://ia802908.us.archive.org/12/items/stapfia-68-001-160/stapfia-68-001-160.pdf

[Gerdk]

These are very beautiful and descriptive books - Thank you Yann!

Gerd

[Maggi Young]

Rhododendron flowers disected - new  book from David Purvis

https://rbgeshop.org/collections/book-of-the-month/products/rhododendron-dissected-flora-in-close-up?fbclid=IwAR2TDL2D4Y1bxCJiiuSFGP7L72E85wYiEUEGWV0YuX1JJqwYh7EWMiIMI9I

"Rhododendrons are seen from a very different perspective in this beautiful new book from the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.  Rhododendron Dissected features photographs that capture the macro and micro floral and leaf characteristics of rhododendrons, essential for botanical identification, making the images both highly diagnostic and are visually stunning.

Rhododendron is the most diverse genus in the heath and heather family (Ericaceae) comprising of over 1000 species.  It is found growing wild across the Northern hemisphere and as far south as northern Australia, and grows in the mountains of SW China, the Himalaya and SE Asia where it forms an important part of montane ecosystems.

The species featured in the book are mainly from China and the Himalaya, reflecting the Garden’s historic ties and current links to countries, research organisations and floras in areas of high biodiversity value.

The range and beauty of the genus is displayed to dazzling effect in this book, which features the images of David Purvis and an introduction by Alan Elliott from the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.  The Garden’s Rhododendron Collection is one of the most diverse in the world, comprising of 7,300 plants from 525 species, many of which are rare or threatened in the wild today. "

Published: 25 March 2021

[Maggi Young]

Frazer Henderson has been posting elsewhere in the forum about  these  free online  magazines -

"If you have an interest in cacti and succulent plants (including their alpine species) you may find the following online journals useful":

Xerophilia (free) -  http://xerophilia.ro

Echinocereus - www.echinocereus.eu

Cactus - Adventures International (free) - http://cactus-aventures.com/pageweb_ENG.html

Carpophyma (free)  - http://cactiguide.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=44658

Cactus & Succulent Review (free) - https://www.cactusandsucculentreview.org.uk/

[Maggi Young]

Online and Free are two of my favourite words! So I'll just take the chance to remind you all of the  SRGC's offerings  - the weekly Bulb Log Diary  https://www.srgc.org.uk/logs/index.php?log=bulb

 and the monthly   International Rock Gardener e-magazine!   https://www.srgc.org.uk/logs/index.php?log=international

[FrazerHenderson]

Useful link to the Cacti of Argentina (including upland species)

https://www.cactuspro.com/biblio_fichiers/pdf/Lambert/LambertEN.pdf

[FrazerHenderson]

Narcisos Silvestres Ibéricos, Colección Fotográphica, by Fernando Ureña Plaza.

Cracking photographs of Iberian narcissi

https://dafflibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Narcisos-silvestres-ib%C3%A9ricos.pdf

[Maggi Young]

Narcisos Silvestres Ibéricos, Colección Fotográphica, by Fernando Ureña Plaza.

Cracking photographs of Iberian narcissi

https://dafflibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Narcisos-silvestres-ib%C3%A9ricos.pdf

Couldn't  agree more, Frazer - the photographs of Fernado Ureña Plaza make a tremendous resource  for those  interested in seeing the  wild species and their  variations in the  wild.

[Maggi Young]

Scotland’s Gardens Scheme 2021 Guidebook
90th Anniversary Edition

Order your copy which features:

    Almost 500 gardens ranging from stately homes to small village cottages; allotments to therapeutic and physic gardens; from formal gardens to wildlife sanctuaries
    Raising money for 225+ charities
    80+ open by arrangement gardens – visit when it suits you
    Private gardens that are open only through Scotland’s Gardens Scheme

Available from https://scotlandsgardens.org/buy-the-guidebook/

[FrazerHenderson]

Book recommendations from some of those I’ve read this past year covering botanical, gardening and broader natural history subjects.

The Lie of the Land by Ian Vince (https://www.theguardian.com/science/gallery/2010/jun/11/lie-land-ian-vince-geology) which is a witty, readable guide to Britain’s geology. It certainly made me more aware of the influences on Britain’s landscape.

The World-ending Fire by Wendell Berry. (https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/mar/01/the-world-ending-fire-by-wendell-berry-review) Great essays from one of the sanest commentators around. I was particularly taken with “…the care of the earth is our most ancient, most worthy and, after all, our most pleasing responsibility. To cherish what remains of it and to foster its renewal, is our only legitimate hope.” Amen to that. And to think he wrote that in 1977 when we are on the cusp of COP26 in 2021 still trying to seek agreement on what to do ......

The Brother Gardeners by Andrea Wulf. (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3209054-the-brother-gardeners) An enthralling read covering botanical obsession and the exploration of America (with forays elsewhere in the world) for plants to satisfy the curiosity of Britain’s (landed) gardeners. In one sense it is a biography of Britain’s gardening history but as far removed from a dull list of achievements and events of a standard biography as can be imagined. Great fun.

The Invention of Nature: The Adventures of Alexander von Humboldt by Andrea Wulf. This is an absorbing, hugely enjoyable and informative book covering the life, work and legacy of probably Europe’s greatest natural historian (excepting perhaps Wallace and Darwin). His influence is recognised by the fact that there are more things named after him than anyone else. https://www.andreawulf.com/about-the-invention-of-nature.html

You should have been here last week: sharp cutting from a garden writer by Tim Richardson. This is a set of essays by the author drawn from a range of publications (viz Garden Illustrated, Garden Design Journal, Daily Telegraph). The author was sacked from the GDJ for being too polemical and controversial and I was rather looking forward to some controversial and challenging views being expressed and whilst there are some – he is at times irreverent - it is not nearly as cutting as I was expecting from the ‘blurb’. That said it remains an enjoyable, intelligent read with some welcome diversions into art and philosophy.  It did make me think about “What exactly is a garden?” – a simple question but hard, I feel, to answer as there is no universal, agreed view. https://reckless-gardener.co.uk/review-you-should-have-been-here-last-week/

The Great Naturalists edited by Robert Huxley. A really useful primer of 39 explorers and thinkers in the field of natural history from Aristotle (d. 322BC) to Wallace (d. 1913). A biography of each person is presented and their contribution to science and understanding. The essays vary in depth which is to be expected since there are multiple authors. Occasionally one lets out an ‘Ah ha’ when discovering relationships in person or in thinking between the protagonists. There is a helpful bibliography for more in depth study and treatment of the individuals covered in this compendium. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2067086.The_Great_Naturalists

The Fly Trap by Patrick Sjoberg. A truly original book – part memoire, part natural history (particularly about hoverflies and collecting), part meditation, part art – which is genuinely witty, engaging, informative and artless. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23164961-the-fly-trap