Lives of the Trees

Front Cover
Algonquin Books, Jan 19, 2010 - Gardening - 368 pages
Diana Wells, author of 100 Flowers and How They Got Their Names now turns her attention to something bigger—our deep-rooted relationship with trees. As she investigates the names and meanings of trees, telling their legends and lore, she reminds us of just how innately bound we are to these protectors of our planet. Since the human race began, we have depended on them for food, shade, shelter and fuel, not to mention furniture, musical instruments, medicine utensils and more.

Wells has a remarkable ability to dig up the curious and the captivating: At one time, a worm found in a hazelnut prognosticated ill fortune. Rowan trees were planted in churchyards to prevent the dead from rising from their graves. Greek arrows were soaked in deadly yew, and Shakespeare’s witches in Macbeth used “Gall of goat and slips of Yew” to make their lethal brew. One bristlecone pine, at about 4,700 years old, is thought to be the oldest living plant on earth. All this and more can be found in the beautifully illustrated pages (themselves born of birch bark!) of 100 Trees.
 

Contents

INTRODUCTION
1
ACACIA
9
ALDER
13
ALMOND
16
APPLE
19
APRICOT
23
ASH
25
ASPEN
29
LARCH
184
LEMON AND LIME
188
LINDEN
191
LOCUST
195
MAHOGANY
198
MANGO
201
MANGROVE
204
MAPLE
208

AVOCADO
32
BALD CYPRESS
35
BAMBOO
38
BANANA
42
BAOBAB
46
BEECH
49
BIRCH
52
BOX
56
BREADFRUIT
60
CACAO
63
CATALPA
67
CEDAR
70
CHERRY
73
CHESTNUT
76
CHINA FIR
80
CINCHONA
82
CINNAMON
87
CLOVE
91
COCONUT
94
COFFEE
98
CORK
103
COTTONWOOD
106
CYPRESS
109
DATE
114
EBONY
119
ELDER
121
ELM
124
EUCALYPTUS
127
FIG
131
FIR
134
FRANKINCENSE
138
FRANKLIN TREE
142
GINKGO
145
GOLDEN RAIN
148
HANDKERCHIEF TREE
151
HAWTHORN
154
HAZEL
157
HEMLOCK
161
HOLLY
164
HORNBEAM
168
HORSE CHESTNUT
171
JAPANESE CEDAR
175
JOSHUA TREE
178
JUNIPER
181
MONKEYPUZZLE
212
MULBERRY
215
MYRRH
219
NEEM
222
NUTMEG
224
OAK
228
OLIVE
233
ORANGE
237
OSAGE ORANGE
241
PAPAW
244
PAULOWNIA
247
PEACH
250
PEAR
253
PERSIMMON
257
PINE
260
POMEGRANATE
265
POPLAR
269
QUINCE
273
REDBUD
276
REDWOOD
278
ROWAN
282
RUBBER
285
SAGUARO
288
SANDALWOOD
291
SASSAFRAS
294
SPRUCE
297
STEWARTIA
300
STRAWBERRY TREE
303
SUMAC
306
SWEETGUM
309
SYCAMORE
312
TAMARISK
316
TEA
319
TREE OF HEAVEN
323
TULIP TREE
326
TUPELO
330
WALNUT
332
WELWITSCHIA
336
WILLOW
339
WOLLEMI PINE AND OTHERS
343
YEW
346
FURTHER READING
351
INDEX
353
Copyright

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About the author (2010)

Diana Wells is the author of 100 Birds and How They Got Their Names and 100 Flowers and How They Got Their Names, has written for Friends Journal, and is contributing editor of the journal Greenprints. Born in Jerusalem, she has lived in England and Italy and holds an honors degree in history from Oxford University. She now lives with her husband on a farm in Pennsylvania.

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