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How herbaria illuminate the past and future of plant science Collections of preserved plant specimens, known as herbaria, have existed for nearly five centuries. These pressed and labeled plants have been essential resources for scientists, allowing them to describe and differentiate species and to document and research plant changes and biodiversity over time—including changes related to climate. Maura C. Flannery tells the history of herbaria, from the earliest collections belonging to such advocates of the technique as sixteenth-century botanist Luca Ghini, to the collections of poets, politicians, and painters, and to the digitization of these precious specimens today. She charts the growth of herbaria during the Age of Exploration, the development of classification systems to organize the collections, and herbaria's indispensable role in the tracking of climate change and molecular evolution. Herbaria also have historical, aesthetic, cultural, and ethnobotanical value—these preserved plants can be linked to the Indigenous peoples who used them, the collectors who sought them out, and the scientists who studied them. This book testifies to the central role of herbaria in the history of plant study and to their continued value, not only to biologists but to entirely new users as well: gardeners, artists, students, and citizen-scientists.

A compact and contemporary guide to collecting, drying and storing plant specimens, suitable for both professional researchers and ardent amateurs.The long-awaited successor to Dr. Christoper Brayshaw's beloved Plant Collecting for the Amateur, Linda P.J. Lipsen's Pressed Plants goes to the heart of professional and amateur plant collecting today.Rich in illustrations, this beautiful book balances the ongoing history of plant collection with practical advice, and it includes the latest updates to best practices, such as how to preserve plant material for DNA extraction and how to navigate increasingly complex cultural and conservation considerations.Pressed Plants responds to the recent revival of enthusiasm for nature, biodiversity and conservation with an increased emphasis on how to document the biodiversity around us. It will help any reader feel that they can understand how to properly document plant biodiversity so it's understood, valued, an

A lavishly illustrated look at the mythological, historical origins, healing powers and medicine of flowers. The healing power of flowers permeates every aspect of our lives. Flowers help us mark every event and ceremony from birth to death and bring us joy and solace throughout the years. They have inspired poets, authors and artists and come to symbolise the whole range of human experience. From exuberant red peonies to sweet-smelling primroses, exotic lilies and heavenly-scented roses, flowers have the power to reconnect us with the conscious intelligence of nature that we are a part of and to heal our ills in a myriad of ways. Healing with Flowers is Anne McIntyre's revised and expanded edition of her previous work The Complete Floral Healer and it tells us the story of flowers and reminds us of their significance, which is as powerful today as it was in ancient times. Beautifully illustrated with vibrant colour photographs by Julie Bruton-Seal, the book explores sixty-four flowers from around the world - from Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) to Heartsease (Viola tricolor) alongside chapters on edible flowers, growing and gathering and distilling flowers. Each flower entry reveals the plant's historical and folkloric importance, details the modern medicinal use of the flower as a herbal remedy relating to its biochemical constituents, and explores its use in aromatherapy, homoeopathy and as a flower essence. A deeper understanding of the unique character of each flower - its story, personality and energy - is woven through this book and is a key resource for anyone who loves flowers, as well as gardeners and herbalists alike.

Biocultural collections cross the boundary between nature and culture, documenting the remarkable richness and diversity of human engagement with the natural world. With materials ranging from blocks of wood to DNA, and from ancient books to new websites, they play a diverse role in research and relaying valuable information about our world. Curating Biocultural Collections is the first book that both recognizes this role and provides wide-ranging advice for successfully managing these resources. Written and edited by experts from around the world, Curating Biocultural Collections draws on real-world experiences, providing examples from ethnobiology, anthropology, agriculture, botany, zoology, and museum curation. The book places a strong emphasis on meeting the needs of collection users and encourages ethical and equitable engagement with source communities. With one hundred photographs, including objects from little-known collections, alongside case studies and a carefully chosen bibliography, this book gives valuable insight for anyone working to preserve valuable resources.

The future of our food depends on tiny seeds in orchards and fields the world over. In 1943, one of the first to recognize this fact, the great botanist Nikolay Vavilov, lay dying of starvation in a Soviet prison. But in the years before Stalin jailed him as a scapegoat for the country's famines, Vavilov had traveled over five continents, collecting hundreds of thousands of seeds in an effort to outline the ancient centers of agricultural diversity and guard against widespread hunger. Now, another remarkable scientist—and vivid storyteller—has retraced his footsteps. In Where Our Food Comes From, Gary Paul Nabhan weaves together Vavilov's extraordinary story with his own expeditions to Earth's richest agricultural landscapes and the cultures that tend them. Retracing Vavilov's path from Mexico and the Colombian Amazon to the glaciers of the Pamirs in Tajikistan, he draws a vibrant portrait of changes that have occurred since Vavilov's time and why they matter. In his travels, Nabhan shows how climate change, free trade policies, genetic engineering, and loss of traditional knowledge are threatening our food supply. Through discussions with local farmers, visits to local outdoor markets, and comparison of his own observations in eleven countries to those recorded in Vavilov's journals and photos, Nabhan reveals just how much diversity has already been lost. But he also shows what resilient farmers and scientists in many regions are doing to save the remaining living riches of our world. It is a cruel irony that Vavilov, a man who spent his life working to foster nutrition, ultimately died from lack of it. In telling his story, Where Our Food Comes From brings to life the intricate relationships among culture, politics, the land, and the future of the world's food.