SECRET LANGUAGE OF TREES

Particularly in the last year people have discovered that trees and woodlands make people happier and less stressed, that they have shaped our world and can give us benefits in our daily lives. Trees are not just individuals, they are complete ecosystems, each an island of biodiversity in its own right. Woodlands are a secret world linked directly to our past. Here conservationist Dr Nick Atkinson of the Woodland Trust and Tony Kirkham from Kew Gardens join wildlife enthusiast Gill Davies to reveal all aspects of the complex, enlightening language of trees. They look at small trees and shrubs, trees as treatments and inspiration, the spirit of the forest, fungi and other parasites and forests in crisis. They begin with the good old Christmas tree, the Fir from the Abies family with more than 50 evergreen coniferous species such as the Frazer and the California Red. For each there is the Latin name, habitat, meanings (evergreen can mean poverty), secrets and special associations (many Native American peoples link fir trees to spirituality) and other intriguing information like the silver fir's soft wood is easily worked and is popular for carpentry, its bark yields a high-quality turpentine, and Burgundy pitch and other resin products. For each there is a gorgeous colour photograph, beginning with the Acacia, a stunning red Maple the unembraceable massive Baobab, Horse Chestnut and Buckeye, the Alder which grows near streams and water courses and provides an early source of nectar and pollen for bees as well as food for butterflies and moths. Our favourite is the crazy Monkey Puzzle tree which can live for 1000 years and reach up to 130 feet high, now regarded as a living fossil. Page after page of intriguing natural history and gorgeous colour artworks. 152pp, colour.