Trees of New England: A Natural History |
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Trees of New England: A Natural History
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by Charles Fergus and Amelia Hansen
Sales Rank: 639734
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Discount: 25 %
$2.99
At Amazon
on 6-22-2008.
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Features
Cover Type: Paperback with 328 pages
Published by: Falcon; First edition October 1, 2005
Written in: English
ISBN 10 Number: 0762737956
ISBN 13 Number: 978-0762737956
Book Dimensions:
8.8 x 6 x 0.9 inches
Weighs: 1.1 pounds
Product Description
A gorgeously written natural history of the more than seventy tree species that grow in New England. Includes detailed illustrations and range maps.
Back Cover Copy
Taking up where field guides leave off, Trees of New England offers an engaging look at the natural history of the region's native and common nonnative tree species. From alder through hornbeam to witch-hazel, you'll learn how and when trees reproduce; how their physical structure protects them from the elements; and how diseases, insect pests, and environmental degradation are affecting trees today.
Noted naturalist Charles Fergus communicates his love for trees in every description and gentle detail, providing information on characteristics and physical makeup as well as personal anecdotes, notable cultural and historical tidbits, and full, rich descriptions of the interplay between trees and animals and trees and humans. Discover interesting and little-known facts such as:
The acorns of the white oak are less bitter-tasting than those of the red oak; some are sweet enough to eat without any preparation.
The wood of the sugar maple provides flooring that lasts longer than marble and is used for baseball bats said to propel the ball farther than white ash.
In colonial times, the British practice of reserving the tallest, straightest white pine trees for the Royal Navy fueled anti-British sentiment leading to the Revolutionary War.
Accompanying the splendidly written narrative are range maps for most species and gorgeous line drawings of tree features for easy identification. Sit and savor this captivating book-it will enhance your appreciation of the majestic trees that populate our landscape.
Reader Reviews
When looking for a New England tree field guide, I chose this book over "Native and Naturalized Trees of New England and Adjacent Canada: A Field Guide" by DeGraaf and Sendak because "Trees of New England" appeared to have more and better illustrations. A closer inspection proved that "Trees" didn't have as many as I thought. While this is my biggest criticism of the work, they can be forgiven because this book isn't primarily a field guide, but a natural history book. Also, what illustrations it does have are of exceptional quality. Amelia Hansen should be commended. I will look for other books that she has worked on. One thing that struck me was frequent references to other books that I have read, like Tom Wessels' "Reading the Forested Landscape" and Bernd Heinrich's "The Trees in my Forest", both very special works. "Trees", however, should have come first. While Wessels, Heinrich, and others will layer rich detail about specific trees or situations, they don't give the reader an overall picture of area trees. Hence, I needed a field guide. Charles Fergus lists 75 native trees and 15 common introduced species, tells us about their size, range, and other basic information, then gives us some history and maybe tells us about his personal experience with it. I much appreciated the inclusion of lumber uses of the tree. This information is given primarily in paragraph form rather than chart form, which can make a quick lookup difficult. He will repeat himself from section to sections, which can be a little annoying if you read the book cover to cover like I did, but necessary for those who read the sections reference style. If I were to nitpick, I would have grouped the Populus trees together (aspens, cottonwoods, and poplar), included the introduced trees in the main section rather than in a chapter in the back, and included more of Amelia's wonderful illustrations. The first two nits, I realize, are personal preference, and the last might have made the book larger and more expensive than the publisher might have wanted. This book offers great foundation knowledge and more. Not entirely a natural history book, not exactly a field guide, but a great balance between them.
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Trees of New England: A Natural History
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Price: $2.99
Updated on 6-22-2008.
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