Overview

Readers of this expansive, three-volume encyclopedia will gain scientific, sociological, and demographic insight into the complex relationship between plants and humans across history. Comprising three volumes and approximately half a million words, this work is likely the most comprehensive reference of its kind, providing detailed information not only about specific plants and food crops such as barley, corn, potato, rice, and wheat, but also interdisciplinary content that draws on the natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities. The entries underscore the fascination that humans have long held for plants, identifies the myriad reasons why much of life on earth would be impossible without plants, and points out the intertwined relationship of plants and humans—and how delicate this balance can be. While the majority of the content is dedicated to the food plants that are essential to human existence, material on ornamentals, fiber crops, pharmacological plants, and carnivorous plants is also included.

Full Product Details

9781598847741

Table of Contents

Reviews

Contributing authors are impressively numerous and diverse in their knowledge and backgrounds. . . . Serves well as an up-to-date and helpful quick reference for the most common cultivated plants. Summing Up: Recommended. - Choice

This encyclopedia provides a useful overview of its topic and can serve as a jumping-off point for further research. - Library Journal Contributing authors are impressively numerous and diverse in their knowledge and backgrounds... Serves well as an up-to-date and helpful quick reference for the most common cultivated plants. Summing Up: Recommended. - Choice [U]seful both as an overview of the place of plants in human civilization and as an outline guide to some of the issues and technique required for their cultivation. - Reference Reviews

Author Information

Christopher Cumo, PhD, is an independent scholar who has authored three books and a number of articles, essays, reviews, and short stories.

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