Remarkable Plants That Shape Our World

Abstract

"Imagine a typical morning--munching on a bowl of cereal, sipping coffee, dressing for the day, riding to work. Every moment of this common routine draws on the power of plants, and the centuries of development that brought wheat, coffee beans, cotton, and rubber--among many others--into our daily lives. Remarkable Plants celebrates the wonder and utility of the green kingdom, taking a detailed look at how plants have shaped our world. It focuses on eighty key species and richly explores their history, highlighting their importance and bringing to light surprising stories. Organized thematically into eight sections, the book starts with "Transformers" (including rice, beans, olives) and moves through sections such as "Heal and Harm" (poppy, aloe, strychnos) and "Revered and Adored" (lotus, frankincense, rose). Each species is introduced with its common and scientific names and followed by an exploration of its cultural, historical, botanical, and symbolic associations. Hundreds of botanical illustrations show full plants as well as highlight distinctive leaves, blooms, and fruits. Rooted in one of the world's most important and renowned temples of greenery, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Remarkable Plants is a symbiotic balance of science and art that will open readers' eyes to the deep influence of the natural world on our modern one."--Publisher's description. Introduction: Utility and beauty -- Transformers : settling down, tending the fields. Wheat, barley, lentil, pea : founder foods of the fertile crescent ; Rice, millets, soybean, grams : Asian assets ; Maize, beans, squash : the 'three sisters' of the Americas ; Potato, sweet potato, groundnut, quinoa : South American heirlooms ; Sorghum, yams, cowpea staples : south of the Sahara ; Taro, breadfruit : fuelling Oceania ; Alfalfa, oat : speed the chariot and the plough ; Olive : the quintessential oil ; Grape : In vino veritas -- Taste : beyond the bare necessities. Saffron : the spice of conspicuous consumption ; Nutmeg, cloves, pepper : riches of the Indies ; Chilli peppers : some like it hot ; Garlic, onion, shallots, leek : hellfire and brimstone? ; Brassicas : eat your greens ; Asparagus : a delicacy ancient and modern ; Hop : the bitter in beer ; Tomato : the love apple -- Heal and harm : getting the balance right. Poppy : pleasure, pain and addiction ; Cinchona, artemisia : fighting malaria ; Rauvolfia : ancient Ayurvedic drug ; Coca : stimulant and nerve blocker ; Strychnos : medicine as poison ; Rhubarb : potent purge to 'superfood' ; Willow : tree of sorrow and pain reliever ; Citrus : vitamins and zest ; Aloe : the succulent and its healing gel ; Mexican yam : making 'the pill' ; Madagascar periwinkle : delicate flower, powerful treatment -- Technology and power : the material world. Cedar of Lebanon : foundation of the Phoenician empire ; Oak : might and majesty ; Yew : Medieval longbows, modern medicine ; Flax : linen and lino ; Hemp : textiles and old rope ; Cotton : clothing the world ; Bamboo : versatility and strength in a stem ; Mahogany : furniture timber of choice -- Cash crops : making it pay. Tea : tips of a global trade ; Coffee : waking up the world ; Sugar cane : the slave trade's sweetener ; Chocolate : food of the gods ; Tobacco : the sot weed factor ; Indigo, woad : searching for true blue ; Rubber : Amazonia's precious latex ; Banana : the world's favourite fruit ; Oil palm : economics versus the environment -- Landscape : plant aesthetics on the grand scale. Larch : stately conifers of the northern forests ; Redwoods : titans of the tree world ; Saguaro cactus : icon of the wild west ; Silver tree fern : shining Maori symbol ; Eucalyptus : Australia's signature tree ; Rhododendron : flowering mountains ; Mangroves : between land and sea -- Revered and adored : from the sacred to the exquisite. Lotus : sacred flower of purity and rebirth ; Date palm : bread of the desert ; Frankincense : the odour of sanctity ; Pomegranate : fertility, abundance, renewal ; Apple : fruit of temptation and eternal life ; Chinese plum or Japanese apricot : herald of spring ; Rose : flower of love ; Tulip : a mania for a bulb ; Orchids : strange and beautiful blooms ; Peony : flower of riches and honour -- Wonders of nature : the extraordinary plant world. Baobab : the upside-down tree ; Welwitschia : strange desert phenomenon ; Giant waterlily : 'a vegetable wonder' ; Pitcher plant : caught in a trap ; Rafflesia : the biggest bloom ; Sunflower : nature's inspiration ; Ginkgo : the great survivor.