In this little book, a somewhat popular condensation of his more technical work published previously, Dr. Kingsbury continues his campaign to enlighten the public concerning those problem plants, the poisonous ones. He covers the poisonous plants from Socrates and the well-known poison hemlock, to the recent case of a man killed by eating apple seeds, which are quite poisonous.
The second volume of Huntia, ably edited by George H. M. Laurence, was published October 15, 1965. Like the first, it is filled with the most fascinating articles on the most fascinating subjects concerning “the literature on systematic botany and horticulture, botanical voyages and explorations, early agriculture, medical botany, and the related subjects of botanical biography, iconography, and bibliography.”
Indeed, one cannot fully comprehend biological processes without understanding the biochemical and biophysical principles behind them. The author in his book stipulates the foundation in biochemical and biophysical concepts before applying them to the functional aspects of the cell. This is of fundamental importance in appreciating the significance of life.
The subject is treated as “an account of fungus life in its numerous guises, both real and legendary”. This is a semi-popular account of some common fungi which aims to tell how they have influenced mankind through ancient times to the present era.
This book has long been recognized for its value in providing the student of plant pathology a small amount of information about a large number of fungi. It includes brief descriptions of classes, orders, families, genera, and representative species of fungi known to cause plant diseases in the United States and some plant pathogens which may be introduced into this country. The many illustrations represent most of the important genera of plant pathogens.
This is one of the true classics in taxonomic mycology which for many years has been unavailable to many people. The authors attempted to bring together descriptions of North American genera and species of this large and varied group of ascomycetes. It remains as one of the most extensive single compilations of the ascomycetes.
The book is intended as a treatment of the morphology and taxonomy of the important phycomycetes. Following an introductory chapter which gives relationships of phycomycetes with other microorganisms and fungi, an entire chapter is devoted to a general discussion of the various stages in the phycomycetes and includes a key to 8 orders. All students of the fungi would do well to, read this chapter as a review of terminology.
In Barbara Gillespie Pickard’s introduction to this classical work, she says “If asked to choose the scientific report which most clearly marks the beginning of the modern study of plant growth, a great many botanists would select Charles Darwin’s The Power of Movement in Plants,” and she concludes that “no doubt, in this age of ever more complicated and expensive science, readers will appreciate the refreshing simplicity of Darwin’s observations on plant movement.”
This unusual book, first published in Sweden in 1961 under the title “Naturen som Formgivare,” was written by a noted Swedish surgeon who has long been devoted to an intensive study of design in living plants. In this work he has brought together some beautifully executed photographs of unusual plant materials which should be of interest to artists, designers, sculptors, architects, teachers, students, and naturalists. The materials come from all parts of the world and are accompanied by charming accounts of the subjects. There are acorns and lichens, seedpods and mosses, grasses and sedges, spines and “horns,” flowers and seeds, plumes and parachutes, spirals and needles, all in a heterogeneous mixture that never fails to be of interest.
This beautifully illustrated book (sketches by Ned Smith) ties together ecology and evolution, natural selection and animal behavior. It is a general ecology textbook, but it is more than that. It could serve as a reference book in bio-geography and constitutes an excellent beginning for students of wildlife management. There are excellent accounts of the major habitats, lakes, ponds, bogs, swamps, marshes, streams, estuaries, the seashore, the forest, the grasslands, the desert, the tundra. Excellent bibliographies are provided for further study.