Around the World in 80 Trees

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We pay respect by giving voice to social justice, acknowledging our shared history and valuing the cultures of First Nations. Stiff materials make the best soundboards because they can transmit vibration efficiently from molecule to molecule; in a more elastic material, energy is squandered as the sound waves travel through it.

Guardian Australia acknowledges the traditional owners and custodians of Country throughout Australia and their connections to land, waters and community. Nimble goats have learned to avoid the thorns and leathery leaves of the argan to gorge on its sweet-smelling fruit. The strawberry tree is native to the western Mediterranean and the southwest of Ireland – but not Britain. Including a stunning central gatefold that opens out to reveal all 80 trees and how they relate to each other, this book is a visual celebration of the huge variety of trees found across the world, from those you know to those you almost certainly don't. View image in fullscreen ‘The Creator exasperatedly flung the baobab upside down with its roots in the air’ … baobab trees near Rufisque, Senegal.Focus spreads will explore subjects such as the life cycle of trees, how they communicate with each other, why trees are vital to the Earth's health, and their importance to us. Perfect for fans of Peter Wohlleben's The Hidden Life of Trees, this new book will certainly whet the appetite of any tree lover to take an around-the-world trip, or simply visit your local botanic garden. Its weird appearance is explained by one folk tale as due to the tree having ideas above its station: “The Creator exasperatedly flung the baobab upside down with its roots in the air. In Around the World in 80 Trees, Jonathan Drori uses plant science and natural history to illuminate how trees play a role in every part of human life, from the romantic to the regrettable, together with captivating illustrations by Lucille Clerc.

An iconic fruit in all the cultures of the region and a staple food containing up to two-thirds sugar, the date has altered the course of history by enabling large numbers of people to live in deserts. Travelling eastwards from his London home, he chooses 80 trees from the 60,000 or so species on the planet. An arboreal odyssey" - NATURE"One of the most quietly beautiful books of the year" - DAILY MAILEvening Standard Books of the Year 2018The Times Gardening Books of the Year 2018Discover the secretive world of trees in Jonathan Drori's number one bestseller.Bestselling author and environmentalist Jonathan Drori follows in the footsteps of Phileas Fogg as he tells the stories of 80 magnificent trees from all over the globe.

He starts with the London Plane, “a tree of pomp and circumstance”, first planted in Berkeley Square, Mayfair, in 1789. Whether by accident or design, Neolithic sailors are thought to have brought the species with them from the Iberian Peninsula some time between 10000 and 3000 BC. The edible date originated somewhere between northeast Africa and Mesopotamia and may have been cultivated in the Middle East for six millennia. Nature writing at its best, skilfully weaving science with fascinating folklore and the sheer wonder of trees.Stops on the trip include the lime trees of Berlin's Unter den Linden boulevard, which intoxicate amorous Germans and hungry bees alike, the swankiest streets in nineteenth-century London, which were paved with Australian eucalyptus wood, and the redwood forests of California, where the secret to the trees' soaring heights can be found in the properties of the tiniest drops of water. Jonathan Drori's deep-seated love of nature is contagious in this tree-by-tree journey across countries and continents. He is on the board of Cambridge University Botanic Garden, and is a Fellow of the Linnean Society, the Zoological Society of London and the Royal Geographical Society. As the book takes the reader on a journey around the world, it reveals trees that give us food and medicine, trees with ancient legends, record-breaking trees and more. From India’s sacred banyan tree to the fragrant cedar of Lebanon, they offer us sanctuary and inspiration – as well as raw materials for everything from aspirin to maple syrup.

Jonathan Drori CBE is a Trustee of The Eden Project and Cambridge Science Centre, an Ambassador for the WWF, and was for nine years a Trustee of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and The Woodland Trust. Proust played on this in À la recherche du temps perdu, in which the narrator dips a madeleine cake into lime-blossom tea, triggering a chain of involuntary memories. Lucille Clerc is a French illustrator and graphic designer based in London, who works with a diverse range of international clients including cultural institutions, textile designers, musicians and architects. Each of these strange and true tales - populated by self-mummifying monks, tree-climbing goats and ever-so-slightly radioactive nuts - is illustrated by Lucille Clerc, taking the reader on a journey that is as informative as it is beautiful. Jonathan Drori is a Trustee of The Woodland Trust and The Eden Project, an Ambassador for the WWF and was for nine years a Trustee of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.The Blastophaga wasps that pollinate the common edible fig are female, stingless and just a couple of millimetres long.