Books -> Garden Trees
Palms Throughout the World
 |
by:
Jones, David L.
|
Publisher:
Ball Publishing
Published: October 1, 1995
ISBN: 1560986166
Format:Hardcover
Pages:410
|
Read More, Buy It
|
Book Description
From Library Journal
Palms are an important plant family. Ornamentally, they symbolize a tropical landscape to most of us; economically, they provide important products to millions of people in both subsistence and modern commercial economies. Although
both of these books provide a wealth of information on palms, they differ in coverage. Field Guide to the Palms of the Americas takes a botanical approach to help readers identify palms naturally occurring in the Americas. A brief introduction and a key
to the genera are followed by descriptions of 67 individual species, including identification, characteristics, habitat, and interesting notes. A separate section of 64 color plates, a distribution map for each species, checklists, and a detailed
bibliography and index are also offered. Species descriptions are written by taxonomists but are reasonably comprehensible and interesting to the amateur; unfortunately, there is no glossary to explain technical terms. Palms Throughout the World, an
expansion of Jones's popular Palms in Australia (1984), takes a horticultural approach. Its descriptions of 800 species in 123 genera include cultivation and propagation information as well as descriptions, and its 350 color photographs are conveniently
located next to the species they illustrate. The long introductory section includes information on the structure, biology, and economic uses of palms as well as their disease and cultivation requirements. A glossary is provided. Both works would be
useful in academic horticultural libraries. Field Guide to the Palms of the Americas is the only comprehensive field guide for its area, although Natalie Uhl and John Dransfield's definitive Genera Palmarum (Allen Pr., 1987) provides more detailed
botanical information. Palms of the World is a more attractive book and would have greater appeal to general readers.?Marit MacArthur, Auraria Lib., Denver, Col.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Jones divides this
encyclopedic work into two parts. The first part deals with structure, economic importance (many communities in the tropics and subtropics depend on palms for their livelihood), cultivation, and pests and diseases. The second part is a 265-page
alphabetical listing of about 800 species in 123 genera. Each entry offers information on the plant's origin, distribution, and habitat and describes its general appearance (height as well as the configuration of fronds, leaflets, flowers, and fruit).
Included are 445 color photographs, 60 black-and-white line drawings, and a detailed glossary. George Cohen
Read More, Buy It
Track your book collections, book libraries with our software:
- tiny libraries, personal book collections: try our simple book organizer
- for small libraries we offer small and powerful library software for Windows
|
