Bücher der Reihe Cambridge Library Collection - Botany and Horticulture

An author of popular works on natural history, Charles Alexander Johns (1811-74) gained recognition for his books on British plants, trees, birds and countryside walks. First published in 1851, his best-known work is this two-volume guide to British flowering plants, especially noteworthy for its meticulously drawn illustrations.

Sir James Edward Smith (1759-1828) was highly regarded throughout Europe as a botanist, and in 1788 founded the Linnean Society. This two-volume memoir and selection of letters was edited by his wife and published in 1832. Volume 1 includes letters from Sir Joseph Banks and Samuel Goodenough, Smith's fellow-botanist.

The botanists Harvey and Sonder originally published three volumes of this work between 1860 and 1865. Reprinted in 1894, the catalogue was completed between 1896 and 1933, chiefly under the supervision of William Thiselton-Dyer. Reissued in ten parts, this significant reference work covers over 11,500 plant species in South Africa.

The horticulturist William Aiton (1731-93) became Joseph Banks's superintendent at Kew in 1783, consolidating the status of the gardens. In compiling this three-volume botanical catalogue, published in 1789, Aiton was assisted with the identification and scientific description of some 5,600 species by the botanists Daniel Solander and Jonas Dryander.

John Evelyn (1620-1706), diarist, gardener and founder member of the Royal Society, is best known for his Diary, the great journal of his times. Sylva, first published in 1664, was the first English-language treatise on forestry. This 1908 two-volume reissue is of the fourth edition published in the year of Evelyn's death.

Marianne North (1830-90), the Victorian botanist and painter, led a remarkable life, travelling independently to exotic locations to paint flora in their natural surroundings. This two-volume collection of her memoirs, edited by her sister and published in 1892, records her tropical journeys and the fascinating stories behind her art.

Sir Charles Bunbury (1809-86) was a distinguished botanist and geologist. He corresponded copiously with Lyell, Horner, Darwin and Hooker among others. This nine-volume edition of his letters and diaries was published privately by his wife Frances Horner and her sister Katherine Lyell between 1890 and 1893.

This world-famous series was begun by Sir William Jackson Hooker (1785-1865) in 1837, and the ten volumes reissued here were produced under his authorship until 1854. Each volume contains 100 line drawings of plants, accompanied by a full Latin description, with notes in English on habitat and significant features.

Best known for designing the Crystal Palace, Paxton was head gardener at Chatsworth by the age of twenty-three. These volumes, published between 1850 and 1853, reflect not only the Victorians' interest in gardening, but also the extraordinary lengths to which they would go in search of the unusual.

William Robinson (1838-1935) published numerous books on different aspects of gardening. This 1870 work attacks contemporary fashions in public parks and private gardens, which involved showy masses of colour in summer bedding, and calls for a return to the native hardy species found in traditional English gardens.

First published in 1884, this volume of the Survey of Western Palestine is an illustrated record of the flora and fauna of the region, compiled by the naturalist H. B. Tristram (1822-1906). More than 3,000 species are listed, the most important accompanied by detailed descriptions of their appearance and environment.

This anonymous work was probably compiled by the publishing entrepreneur Samuel Orchart Beeton (1831-77). Published in 1871, it provides a fascinating insight into the plants available to the Victorian gardener, the techniques for cultivating flowers, fruit and vegetables, and the then current trends in design and display.

This 1841 work by the American landscape designer and writer Andrew Downing, reissued here in its 1849 fourth edition, was the first such book published in the United States. It aims to provide the prosperous east-coast dweller with a guide to beautifying his surroundings with trees, water and architectural elements.

A. G. Tansley (1871-1955) was a distinguished plant ecologist, and widely considered to be the father of British ecology. This book, edited by Tansley and first published in 1911, is the result of the first systematic survey of vegetation in the British Isles. It contain maps, photographs and figures.

This 1795 work describes the geography, climate and soils of Lancashire, and its land holdings and land use, noting the manufacturing as well as the agricultural areas. It provides a detailed examination of the livestock, agrarian and horticultural products of the county, and is a fascinating resource for social and agricultural historians.

The distinguished British naturalist Thomas Andrew Knight (1759-1838) devoted himself to the emerging science of horticulture, and his interest in plant physiology and structure is evident in this collection of papers, published in 1841. Today Knight is particularly associated with his many and successful experiments in fruit-tree breeding.

George Bentham (1800-84) was one of Britain's most influential botanists whose seven-volume work detailing the plant life of Australia was published over the course of fifteen years. Volume 1, published in 1863, introduces the project and describes 39 orders of the dicotyledon class of flora.

Richard Pulteney (1730-1801) was a botanist and physician, influential in promoting the Linnaean system of classification in England. This 1790 two-volume examination of the development of botanical studies in Britain is still of great interest to botanists and garden historians.

This work, first published in 1883, has been described as 'the most widely read and influential gardening book ever written'. Aimed at both amateurs and experienced gardeners, it sets out clearly the different types of plant suitable for each type of situation, and how to grow them.

William Robinson (1838-1935) published numerous books on different aspects of gardening. This 1871 work encouraged the use of subtropical and hardy plants in English garden design, rather than exotic hothouse species. Robinson was one of the most influential writers on late Victorian gardening style.

Sir Joseph Hooker (1817-1911) was one of the greatest British botanists and explorers of the nineteenth century. His journey to Northern India, the Himalayas, Nepal and Tibet was undertaken between 1847 and 1851 to collect some 7,000 specimens for the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew.

First published in 1923, this biography of Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus (1707-78) is an English translation and adaptation from a Swedish work published twenty years previously. Its editor and translator, a British botanist and general secretary of the Linnean Society, contributes his own additional material in the appendices.

Published in 1875, this is the first English translation of the Textbook of Botany (1874) by German botanist Julius Sachs (1832-97). The most influential botanical text of its day, it also became the standard textbook for many years. It features hundreds of instructive illustrations and a full index.

In this work, first published in 1802, and followed by many subsequent editions, the famous horticulturalist William Forsyth (c. 1737-1804) gives an exhaustive guide to the cultivation of fruit trees, including nuts and soft fruit, and advises on pests and diseases.

This second edition of the first English-language biography of Linnaeus was originally published in 1805. It contains information on Linnaeus' life as well as details of both his major and unpublished works. This book is a rich source of information on a central figure in the history of botany.

John Lindley (1799-1865) was an English horticulturalist and taxonomist who wrote many influential works, both scientific and popular, about plants. His aim in this book, published in 1840, was to explain to the 'intelligent gardener, and the scientific amateur' the main principles of horticulture and plant physiology.

James Shirley Hibberd (1825-90) was a journalist and writer on gardening, whose popular works had great influence on middle-class taste. This 1869 book on ferns was particularly successful; Hibberd also wrote on floral arrangements, water gardens, ferneries and greenhouses in Rustic Adornments (1856), also available in this series.

This version of the two editions of the Catalogus of John Gerard (1545-1612) was arranged by Benjamin Daydon Jackson, president of the Linnean Society, and first published in 1876. It provides a detailed insight into both Gerard's work, and the methods of one of the foremost Victorian taxonomists.

In this informative study of Britain's rich horticultural history, first published in 1829, George W. Johnson (1802-66), a chemist, political economist and practising gardener, traces the history of gardening in England, relating the art and craft of gardening to classical writers as well as modern scientists.

Botanist Leonard Cockayne (1855-1934) undertook a commission from a German publisher for this volume, spending nearly a decade on fieldwork before the first edition was published in 1921. In this 1928 edition, Cockayne updates the work, adding to his comprehensive account of New Zealand's plants and botanical history.