Fungi seem mysterious, they're not animals and they're not plants. Some aren't even visible to the human eye. Yet, they're constantly at work breaking down dead organisms. Our world would be cluttered without them. This beneficial book sheds much-needed light on the fungi kingdom, explaining what a fungus is as well as some the weirdest adaptations that have made it a successful survivor in the natural world. Graphic organizers summarize essential points, while vivid photographs display how bright and beautiful these organisms can be.
In Mycorrhizal Planet, Michael Phillips offers new insights into the invisible world beneath our feet, explaining the crucial, symbiotic role that fungi play in everything from healthy plants to healthy soils to a healthy planet.--COVER.
Attention all mushroom lovers! Step into the world of fungi and learn all about these strange and fascinating life-forms. Illustrator Katie Scott returns to the Welcome to the Museum series with exquisite, detailed images of some of the most fascinating living organisms on this planet—fungi. Exploring every sort of fungi, from the kinds we see on supermarket shelves to those like penicillium that have shaped human history, this collection is the definitive introduction to what fungi are and just how vital they are to the world's ecosystem.
“A Way to Garden prods us toward that ineffable place where we feel we belong; it’s a guide to living both in and out of the garden.” —The New York Times Book Review For Margaret Roach, gardening is more than a hobby, it’s a calling. Her unique approach, which she calls “horticultural how-to and woo-woo,” is a blend of vital information you need to memorize and intuitive steps you must simply feel and surrender to. In A Way to Garden, Roach imparts decades of garden wisdom on seasonal gardening, ornamental plants, vegetable gardening, design, gardening for wildlife, organic practices, and much more. She also challenges gardeners to think beyond their garden borders and to consider the ways gardening can enrich the world. Brimming with beautiful photographs of Roach’s own garden, A Way to Garden is practical, inspiring, and a must-have for every passionate gardener.
Black & white print. Concepts of Biology is designed for the typical introductory biology course for nonmajors, covering standard scope and sequence requirements. The text includes interesting applications and conveys the major themes of biology, with content that is meaningful and easy to understand. The book is designed to demonstrate biology concepts and to promote scientific literacy.
The Beginner's Guide to Mushrooms is your ultimate guide to mycology. Whether you've never picked a mushroom before in your life or you've been cultivating mushrooms at home for ages, the expert advice in this comprehensive mushroom manual will transform your practice. Never before have mushrooms generated so much interest, for their health benefits and medicinal properties, as well as a new understanding of their crucial role in a healthy environment and ability to regenerate damaged ones. If you are a newcomer, mycology, or the study of mushrooms and other fungi, can seem daunting. While other field guides are geared toward experts with advanced knowledge or regional in scope and aimed at only a few easy-to-recognize mushrooms, The Beginner’s Guide to Mushrooms by veteran mycologists Britt A. Bunyard and Tavis Lynch is a complete reference and guidebook to get you started identifying, cultivating, cooking, and preserving mushrooms. The Beginner's Guide to Mushrooms opens with important basics about wild mushrooming and how to use the book. Information about what fungi are and their role in the environment and around the home is provided in brief and very understandable terms. Basic wild mushroom anatomy is discussed along with how to identify mushrooms and various characteristics to look for—of great importance if you are interested in learning how to recognize edible wild species…as well as dangerous look-alikes. The guide then covers: All the major groups of wild mushrooms, pointing out habitat, region, and notable characteristics—large photographs with easy-to-view characteristics facilitate correct identification. Mushroom cultivation—with easy-to-follow illustrated instructions, learn how to grow mushrooms at home, including how to collect wild specimens and domesticate them. Culinary uses and how to preserve wild mushrooms to be enjoyed in the kitchen all year round. Begin your wonderful exploration of wild mushrooms with this accessible yet thorough beginner's guide.
“Mushrooms are having a moment. [A] natural sequel for the many readers who enjoyed Merlin Sheldrake’s Entangled Life.”—Library Journal “Bierend writes with sensual verve and specificity, enthusiasm, and humor. . . . [He] introduces us to the staggering variety of mushrooms, their mystery, their funk, and the way they captivate our imaginations.”—The Boston Globe “Nothing is impossible if you bring mushrooms into your life, and reading this book is a great way to begin your journey.”—Tradd Cotter, author of Organic Mushroom Farming and Mycoremediation From ecology to fermentation, in pop culture and in medicine—mushrooms are everywhere. With an explorer’s eye, author Doug Bierend guides readers through the weird, wonderful world of fungi and the amazing mycological movement. In Search of Mycotopia introduces us to an incredible, essential, and oft-overlooked kingdom of life—fungi—and all the potential it holds for our future, through the work and research being done by an unforgettable community of mushroom-mad citizen scientists and microbe devotees. This entertaining and mind-expanding book will captivate readers who are curious about the hidden worlds and networks that make up our planet. Bierend uncovers a vanguard of mycologists: growers, independent researchers, ecologists, entrepreneurs, and amateur enthusiasts exploring and advocating for fungi’s capacity to improve and heal. From decontaminating landscapes and waterways to achieving food security, In Search of Mycotopia demonstrates how humans can work with fungi to better live with nature—and with one another. “Comprehensive and enthusiastic. . . . This fascinating, informative look into a unique subculture and the fungi at its center is a real treat.”—Publishers Weekly “If you enjoyed Merlin Sheldrake’s Entangled Life . . . I highly recommend this book. . . . In the vein of Louis Theroux, Bierend journeys deep in the wonderfully strange subculture of the mushroom-mad.”—Idler magazine "Engaging and entertaining. . . .Bierend proves his skill as a science journalist through interviews and experiences shared with mushroom experts and citizen scientists."—Choice
'An overview of the history of cocoa, the factors affecting its production and consumption as well as how the trade is conducted, various risks mitigated, and by whom. ...The International Cocoa Trade is a work designed to inform all on the subject of cocoa and an essential guide for those involved in its trade.'Dr J. Vingerhoets, Executive Director, ICCOCocoa is a valuable commodity, and the cocoa trade involves many different parties from growers and exporters through dealers and factories to those trading futures and options and the banks they deal with. The International Cocoa Trade provides an authoritative and comprehensive review of the cocoa trade at the beginning of the twenty-first century, and the main factors that drive and affect that business.The opening chapter of the third edition examines the history and origins of the international cocoa trade, and its recent developments. The agronomics of cocoa production are discussed in chapter two whilst chapter three deals with the environmental and practical factors affecting cocoa production. Chapters four, five and six cover issues around the export and trading of physical cocoa, including the actuals market, the physical contracts used and the futures and options markets. In chapter seven, the international consumption and stocks of cocoa are reviewed with chapter eight discussing the issue of quality assessment of cocoa beans for international trade. Finally, chapter nine focuses on the end product, examining the processing of cocoa beans and the manufacture of chocolate. Updated appendices provide copies of some of the most important documents used in the cocoa trade, including contracts, sale rules and world production statistics.This comprehensively updated third edition of The International Cocoa Trade ensures its continued status as the standard reference for all those involved in the production consumption and international trading of cocoa. - Provides an authoritative and comprehensive review of the cocoa trade at the beginning of the twenty-first century, and the main factors that drive and affect that business - Examines the history and origins of the international cocoa trade, and its recent developments featuring a discussion of environmental and practical factors affecting cocoa production - Explores issues concerning the export and trading of physical cocoa, including the actuals market, the physical contracts used and the futures and options markets
Fungi seem mysterious, they're not animals and they're not plants. Some aren't even visible to the human eye. Yet, they're constantly at work breaking down dead organisms. Our world would be cluttered without them. This beneficial book sheds much-needed light on the fungi kingdom, explaining what a fungus is as well as some the weirdest adaptations that have made it a successful survivor in the natural world. Graphic organizers summarize essential points, while vivid photographs display how bright and beautiful these organisms can be.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A “brilliant [and] entrancing” (The Guardian) journey into the hidden lives of fungi—the great connectors of the living world—and their astonishing and intimate roles in human life, with the power to heal our bodies, expand our minds, and help us address our most urgent environmental problems. “Grand and dizzying in how thoroughly it recalibrates our understanding of the natural world.”—Ed Yong, author of An Immense World ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR—Time, BBC Science Focus, The Daily Mail, Geographical, The Times, The Telegraph, New Statesman, London Evening Standard, Science Friday When we think of fungi, we likely think of mushrooms. But mushrooms are only fruiting bodies, analogous to apples on a tree. Most fungi live out of sight, yet make up a massively diverse kingdom of organisms that supports and sustains nearly all living systems. Fungi provide a key to understanding the planet on which we live, and the ways we think, feel, and behave. In the first edition of this mind-bending book, Sheldrake introduced us to this mysterious but massively diverse kingdom of life. This exquisitely designed volume, abridged from the original, features more than one hundred full-color images that bring the spectacular variety, strangeness, and beauty of fungi to life as never before. Fungi throw our concepts of individuality and even intelligence into question. They are metabolic masters, earth makers, and key players in most of life’s processes. They can change our minds, heal our bodies, and even help us remediate environmental disaster. By examining fungi on their own terms, Sheldrake reveals how these extraordinary organisms—and our relationships with them—are changing our understanding of how life works. Winner of the Wainwright Prize, the Royal Society Science Book Prize, and the Guild of Food Writers Award • Shortlisted for the British Book Award • Longlisted for the Rathbones Folio Prize
