Chicago Botanic Garden

Education — Lenhardt Library

Current Books & Book Reviews

PHOTO: bookcover

David Streeter, C. Hart-Davies, A. Hardcastle, F. Cole, and L. Harper.
Collins Flower Guide: The Most Complete Guide to the Flowers
of Britain and Europe.
London: HarperCollins, 2009.
cloth, 704 pp., ISBN 978–0–0071–0621–9, $50.00.

This comprehensive field guide to the flora of Ireland, Britain, Channel Isles, and northwestern Europe briefly describes more than 1,900 species — including horsetails, club mosses, ferns, conifers, as well as flowering plants. Arranged by family with a helpful key to separate species, the text covers both native and introduced species growing wild; they are identified by both common and botanical names and illustrated in colorful drawings. The text includes a glossary, references, and other useful information for the naturalist. Although the book is formatted in a handy, compact size, it is somewhat weighty for the average backpacker.

— Marilyn K. Alaimo, garden writer and volunteer, Chicago Botanic Garden.