Trees: Their Natural History

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Trees are familiar, and often beautiful, components of many landscapes, vital to the healthy functioning of the global ecosystem and unparalleled in the range of materials that they provide for human use. Yet how much do we really understand about how they work? This textbook provides a comprehensive introduction to the natural history of trees, presenting information on all aspects of tree biology and ecology in an easy to read and concise text. Fascinating insights into the workings of these everyday plants are uncovered throughout the book, with questions such as how trees are designed, how they grow and reproduce, and why they eventually die tackled in an illuminating way. Written for a non-technical audience, the book is none the less rigorous in its treatment and will provide a valuable source of reference for beginning students as well as those with a less formal interest in this fascinating group of plants. Contents: An overview - Leaves: the food producers - Trunk and branches: more than a connecting drainpipe - Roots: the hidden tree - Towards the next generation: flowers, fruits and seeds - The growing tree - The shape of trees - The next generation: new trees from old - Health, damage and death: living in a hostile world.