Books list

Desiccation and Survival in Plants: Drying without Dying

Black, Michael J. & Pritchard, Hugh W. (eds.) (2002). Wallingford : CABI Publishing (412 pages).

In the past twenty years there has been a revolution in plant sciences, as new methods of molecular biology and biophysics have been applied to investigate environmental stress, particularly desiccation tolerance. Today, there is a good level of understanding of how plant cells cope with extreme water stress.

This book is divided into four sections, dealing with 1) the technical background to desiccation tolerance studies; 2) the frequency and levels of dehydration stress tolerance in biological systems; 3) mechanisms of damage and tolerance, and 4) a brief prospect and retrospect. It covers orthodox and recalcitrant seeds, pollen and spores, vegetative parts, and other plant tissues.

• ISBN 0851995349
• Buy from CABI publishing

Manual de Recolección de Semillas de Plantas Silvestres

Gold, Kate, León-Lobos, Pedro & Way, Michael W. (2004). Boletín INIA 110. La Serena , Chile: Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias, Centro Regional de Investigación Intihuasi (62 pages).

• ISSN 0717-4829
• Download publication (pdf) 

Compendium of Information on Seed Storage Behaviour (2 volumes)

Hong,T.D., Linington, Simon H. & Ellis, R.H. (1998) Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

The importance of seed storage has been recognised ever since man domesticated plants and wanted to save seed for the next season, but for global genebanks, the problem is more much complex. This book provides a guide to ensuring the maintenance of seed viability for long periods in a very wide range of species.

Volume 1: Families A - H

Volume 2: Families I - Z

• ISBN 1900347490 
• Buy from Kewbooks.com

Seeds: Time Capsules of Life

Kesseler, Rob & Stuppy, Wolfgang (2006), London: Papadakis (264 pages).

This lavishly illustrated book is the result of a collaboration between London-based artist Rob Kesseler and Wolfgang Stuppy, the Millennium Seed Bank's seed morphologist. The story begins with the evolution of seeds and fruits, discusses their structure and dispersal through space and time, and finally reveals the enormous role that seeds play nowadays in saving rare and threatened plants from extinction. The story ends with a chapter about the Millennium Seed Bank Project (MSB).

Using seeds collected in the UK and many of the MSB partner countries, the highlights of the book are photographs taken with a scanning electron microscope (SEM) that have subsequently been artistically enhanced by Rob Kesseler.

• ISBN 1901092666  
• Out of print, but new edition available - see below

Seeds: Time Capsules of Life 2nd edition

Kesseler, Rob & Stuppy, Wolfgang (2009) London: Papadakis Publisher (264 Pages).

The 2nd edition of this book. Contains over 60 new images. Editions also available in other languages.

• ISBN 9781906506001 UK edition
• ISBN 978160887117 US edition
• UK edition out of print, but more compact US edition published by Earth Aware available from Amazon in the US

Atlas of the Vegetation of Madagascar / Atlas de la Vegetation de Madagascar

Moat, Justin & Smith, Paul P. (2007) Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (124 pages).

This first vegetation atlas for Madagascar, supported by the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, has combined vegetation data from fieldwork and satellite images into a map-based information system. The result is a conservation tool which will help Madagascar’s government and people to plan a more sustainable future. This atlas is also of great use to anyone studying or visiting the island.

Presented in both French and English, the atlas gives a brief history of vegetation mapping in Madagascar; the methodology used in compiling these new maps; and detailed descriptions of each vegetation type, illustrated with photographs and diagrams. Trends in deforestation, extent of occurrence and levels of protection are assessed for each vegetation type. Additional information includes roads, trails, rivers, airports, reserves and a full place name index.

The atlas comprises 36 maps in A3 format, all in high resolution colour.

• ISBN 9781842461983
• Buy now from Kew Books 

The Biology of Seeds: Recent Research Advances

Nicholas, Gregorio, Bradford , K.J., Come, D. & Pritchard, Hugh W. (eds.) (2003) Wallingford: CABI Publishing (472 pages).

This book presents edited and revised papers from the seventh International Workshop on Seeds, held in Salamanca, Spain, in May 2002. The key topics addressed include seed development, germination and dormancy, as well as desiccation, seed ecology and seed biotechnology.

• ISBN 0851996531 
• Buy from CABI publishing

Comparative Storage Biology of Tropical Tree Seeds

Sacandé, Moctar; Jøker, D. ; Dulloo, M.E. & Thomsen, K.A. (eds) (2004) IPGRI: Rome (363 pages).

This book is the culmination of a six-year project, which aims to improve handling and storage of forest tree seeds. Participants from Africa, Asia and South / Central America were trained, and gained sufficient experience during the execution of the project to ensure the creation of novel, detailed data sets to share with a global audience. A key feature of this project was its collaborative nature, such that investigations of most seed lots were replicated, usually in at least two countries, using the same standard protocols. These joint endeavours were communicated in the project newsletters, which reached many stakeholders worldwide. The end product is this book on the storability and management of seeds of 52 tropical forest tree species.

• ISBN 9290436417 
• Out of print

Growing Hardy Orchids

Seaton, Philip, Cribb, Phillip, Ramsay, Margaret & Haggar, John (2011) Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (128p.)

Growing Hardy Orchids introduces an exciting array of orchids from 47 diverse genera that can be cultivated in a cool greenhouse or outside. The book contains information on the orchid family, habitat and ecology, conservation, composts, glasshouse techniques, cultivation in the garden, pests and diseases and explains how to raise orchids from seeds to flowering plants. There are 160 colour photographs and illustrations. The book is aimed at amateur and professional gardeners, orchid enthusiasts, horticulturalists, conservationists and students.

• ISBN 978 1 84246 175 4
• Buy now from the Kew Shop

Growing Orchids from Seed

Seaton, P. and Ramsay, M. (2005) Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. (82 pages)

An easily accessible book which describes in detail how to raise your own orchids from seed from obtaining the seed to harvesting and storing, sowing and germination and problem solving. The book is aimed at both the amateur and professional grower and contains many illustrations and photographs to guide the reader without the need for specialist laboratory equipment or chemicals.

• ISBN 1-84246-091-9
• Buy this now from the Kew shop

Growing Windowsill Orchids

Seaton, P. (2010) Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. (60 pages)

A comprehensive guide to looking after orchids in the home. Contains chapters on buying orchids, caring for them and pests and diseases as well as chapters on the different types of orchids. The author also explains the science of orchids and discusses their conservation. The book is written in very accessible language and is full of illustrations and photographs.

• ISBN 978-1-84246-427-4
• Buy now from the Kew shop

Seeds for Life: Music and Conservation in Kenya

The production of this audio CD is a collaboration between the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Masdafarai. It is the brainchild of Dan Massie and Tim Pearce and is a pioneering project to demonstrate the power of music to communicate positive messages about the environment and conservation. All profits from the sale of the disc will go directly into the Seeds for Life project. The accompanying leaflet contains information about six useful plant species that are being researched and supported by RBG Kew's Millennium Seed Bank and the Kenyan Seeds for Life partners.

• Find out more
• Buy this CD

Field Guide to the Trees and Shrubs of the Miombo Woodlands
 

Smith, Paul P. & Allen, Quentin (2004), Royal Botanic Gardens , Kew (176 pages).

A practical field guide to the sixty most common species of trees and shrubs of the Miombo Woodlands in south-central Africa. Organised by species, each entry has line and watercolour illustrations and a distribution map.

• ISBN: 1842460730
• Buy now from Kew Books 

Ecological Survey of Zambia: the traverse records of C.G. Trapnell, 1932-43

Smith, Paul P. (ed) (2001) Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

A two-volume work with two maps and a memoir. This publication is a collation of field records made over a ten year period. Colin Trapnell, Oxford educated, was posted by the Colonial Office to Northern Rhodesia at the end of 1931 to undertake an ecological survey. What resulted was a comprehensive record of Zambia which has been edited to include extracts from his personal diaries. The field records contained in these volume were made during 1932-1943.

2 volumes & 2 maps

• ISBN 1842460021 (vol. 1)
  ISBN 184246003X (vol. 2)
  ISBN 1842460048 (vol. 3)
  ISSN 1842460056 (set)
• Buy now from Kew Books 

Common Trees, Shrubs and Grasses of the Luangwa Valley

Smith, Paul P. (1995) Zennor, Cornwall: Trendrine Press (46 pages).

• ISBN 0951256238 
• Out of print

Seed Conservation: Turning Science into Practice 

Smith,Roger D., Dickie,John B. , Linington,Simon H. , Pritchard,Hugh W. and Probert,Robin J. (eds.) (2003), Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (1023 pages).

A landmark review of the current scientific knowledge that underpins seed banking - a technology which plays a key role in the conservation of both domesticated and wild plant species. The book is the outcome of a workshop in 2001 hosted at Wakehurst Place by the Millennium Seed Bank Project, and reflects international collaboration on the seed conservation of wild plant species.

56 chapters divided into 3 sections: Planning and collecting; Seed processing and testing; Seed storage and utilisation.

• ISBN 1842460528
• Access to the full text of the book is available here
• Buy now from Kew Books  

The Bizarre and Incredible World of Plants

Stuppy, Wolfgang; Kesseler, Rob; Harley, Madeline (2009) London, Papadakis Publisher. 144pp

Extraordinary pictures of pollen, seeds and fruit. This book contains some of the most beautiful and informative images from three earlier groundbreaking books. Each picture has been created by a scientist and an artist using images from a scanning electron microscope, coloured to reveal the extraordinary beauty and structure of the world of nature. Editions in other languages also available.

• ISBN 9781906506025 
• Buy from Amazon

Fruit: Edible, Inedible, Incredible
 

Stuppy, Wolfgang & Kesseler, Rob. (2008) London: Papadakis (264 pages).

In this beautifully illustrated book the authors explore the astonishing natural history of fruits. They explain the structural reasons for the amazing diversity of fruits and the key role that fruits and seeds play in the survival of a species. The various dispersal strategies evolved by plants are described with special attention to the co-adaptive evolution between plants and their animal dispersers. The kind of strategy pursued, whether it involves wind, water, animals and humans or the plant's own explosive forces, is reflected in a plethora of different colours, sizes and shapes - some of them edible, many of them inedible and quite a number of them incredible!

This publication captivates its readers with amazing hand-coloured scanning-electron micrographs showing breathtaking structural details of a wide variety of fruits and seeds from all over the world.

• ISBN 9781906506025
• Out of print but 2nd edition now available -see below

Fruit: Edible, Inedible, Incredible 2nd edition

Stuppy, Wolfgang & Kesseler, Rob (2011) Winterbourne, Papadakis (264 pages)

2nd edition of this book with extra images.

• ISBN 1906506183
• Buy from Amazon

Database of Tropical Tree Seed Research (DABATTS)

Tompsett, Paul B. & Kemp, R. (1996). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (263 pages).

This book is a print version of the DABATTS database. It contains information on the seed physiology of specific tropical tree species, particularly Dipterocarpaceae, Meliaceae and Araucariaceae. The information is of particular interest to those concerned with the storage and germination of tropical tree seeds,  scientific research and in biodiversity management.

• ISBN 1900347067 
• Out of print

Database of Tropical Tree Seed Research (DABATTS): User Manual

Tompsett, Paul B. & Kemp, R. (1996), Royal Botanic Gardens (18 pages and two 3.5" computer discs).

• ISBN 1900347059
• Out of print

Wild Wheats: a Monograph of Aegilops L. and Amblyopyrum (Jaub. & Spach) Eig (Poaceae)

Van Slageren, Michiel W. (1994), ICARDA/Wageningen Agricultural University Papers 94 (7): i-xiv, (1-512 pages).

• ISBN 9067543772 
• Out of print, but may be available second-hand - try ABE books