Showing titles in Botany & Plants

LONGLISTED FOR THE WAINWRIGHT PRIZE 2022 ‘A remarkable and powerful book, the rarest of things … Nicolson is unique as a writer … I loved it’ EDMUND DE WAAL Few places are as familiar as the shore – and few as full of mystery and surprise. How do sandhoppers inherit an inbuilt compass...

Brought to you by Penguin. A dazzling scientific detective story from the ecologist who first discovered the hidden language of trees No one has done more to transform our understanding of trees than the world-renowned scientist Suzanne Simard. Now she shares the secrets of a lifetime spent...

An accessible and compelling story of a scientist's discovery of plant communication and how it influenced her research and changed her life. In this "phytobiography"--a collection of stories written in partnership with a plant--research scientist Monica Gagliano reveals the dynamic role plants...

From the acclaimed author of Rewild Yourself comes a brilliant new book that reveals the natural joys to be discovered on your doorstep. In the autumn of 2020, Simon Barnes should have been leading a safari in Zambia, but Covid restrictions meant his plans had to be put on hold. Instead, he...

Concrete Botany is a gritty, kick-in-the-guts look at the ecological disturbance humans have caused and the resilience of the plants living amongst it. Delivered in his raw and unapologetic yet botanically accurate tone, Joey Santore—the unforgettable host of Crime Pays but Botany...

Dr. Catherine Kleier invites us to open our eyes to the phenomenal world of plant life and to the process she calls “Natura Revelata”, the joy of celebrating and learning from the secrets of nature. As Dr. Kleier shares her knowledge with contagious excitement for her subject, she emphasizes the middle ground: Instead of focusing on cell microbiology or the study of ecosystems and habitats, she stresses the basic biology, function, and the amazing adaptations of the plants we see all around us.

In The Book of Cannabis, Jeremy Narby―renowned author of The Cosmic Serpent―delivers a sweeping, clear-eyed exploration of cannabis as both plant and cultural phenomenon. From its ancient medicinal and ritualistic roles to its vilification, Narby traces how cannabis became one of the most controversial plants in modern history.

In his follow-up to the best-selling Around the World in 80 Trees, Jonathan Drori takes another trip across the globe, bringing to life the science of plants by revealing how their worlds are intricately entwined with our own history, culture and folklore. From the seemingly familiar tomato and dandelion to the eerie mandrake and Spanish 'moss' of Louisiana, each of these stories is full of surprises. Some have a troubling past, while others have ignited human creativity or enabled whole civilizations to flourish. 

Brought to you by Penguin. A poetic and intimate essay collection on the lives of plants and their entanglement with our human worlds A seed slips beyond a garden wall. A seaweed drifts through an ocean. A tree is planted on a shifting border. A shrub is uprooted from its culture and its land...

For over half a century, landmark natural history series Living World has provided an inspiring introduction to the flora and fauna of Great Britain and beyond. Filmed on location at key ecological sites, it sees BBC wildlife presenters joined by guest experts for enthusiastic discussions and close encounters with our native wildlife. These classic archive programmes have all been specially selected by Chris Packham, who introduces each episode and gives us an overview of the places, people and species featured on the show.

Most gardeners realize that plants need to be fed but know little to nothing about the nature of the nutrients involved or how they get into plants. Teaming with Nutrients explains how nutrients move into plants and what both macro-nutrients and micro-nutrients do once inside. It shows organic gardeners how to provide these essentials.

While plants may not have brains or move around as we do, cutting-edge science is revealing that they have astonishing inner worlds of an alternate kind to ours. They can plan ahead, learn and have rich subjective experiences. They can even be put to sleep. If you can look in the right way, a world full of drama unfurls. In Planta Sapiens, Professor Paco Calvo offers a bold new perspective on plant biology and cognitive science. Using the latest scientific findings, Calvo challenges us to make an imaginative leap into a world that is so close and yet so alien.

'Forest bathing' or shinrin-yoku is a way of walking in the woods that was developed in Japan in the 1980s. It brings together ancient ways and wisdom with cutting-edge environmental health science. Simply put, forest bathing is the practice of walking slowly through the woods, in no hurry, for a morning, an afternoon or a day. It is a practice that involves all the senses and as you gently walk and breathe deeply, the essential oils of the trees are absorbed by your body and have an extraordinary effect on positive feelings.

For most of 2020, Mikes Dilger’s day-job of travelling to the four corners of the British Isles all but disappeared. Having been confined to one place by the Covid pandemic, and with daily dog walks his sole permitted outdoor pursuit, the simple pleasure of getting to know the flowers at his feet reignited a long-buried botanical passion. Now Mike is on a mission: to see a thousand different wild plants in one calendar year, and assess how our fascinating flora is faring in modern Britain.

A Foundational Conservation Story Revived. Ancient writers observed that forests always recede as civilizations develop and grow. The great Roman poet Ovid wrote that before civilization began, “even the pine tree stood on its own very hills” but when civilization took over, “the mountain...

Brought to you by Penguin. To truly grasp the wisdom of a tree, you need to begin thinking like one... From New York Times bestselling author Robert Moor comes a wondrous, curious journey through the wilds of nature and the gnarls of history, exploring how trees – from the mightiest sequoia to...

Dr Rosa is no stranger to the Amazon. Growing up with the rainforest as her back garden, she learnt the lessons of the rainforest from her grandmother, a native healer in natural medicine. In this debut, you'll learn about Dr Rosa's journeys in the Amazon: her treacherous encounters with a boiling river, her conservation work with stingless bees, her experience of taking ayahuasca as a natural psychedelic—and all the amazing biodiversity of the rainforest.

The Atlas of Deadly Plants explores the stories and uses of some of the most deadly plants and fungi from across the world, illuminating their socio-cultural significance, as well as their effects on the human body.

'A nuanced invitation to see the city as a place of wild co-existence and possibility.' OLIVIA LAING 'Meticulously researched and elegantly written' VICTORIA BENNETT While it's easy to think of the city as a human domain - a place that belongs to us alone - the reality is that nature is always...

"In this thought-provoking, handsomely illustrated book, Italian neurobiologist Stefano Mancuso considers the fundamental differences between plants and animals and challenges our assumptions about which is the ‘higher’ form of life.” —The Wall Street Journal “Fascinating…full of...