Angraecoid Orchids Species from the African Region

About this book

These so-called 'jewels of Africa' with their sparkling flowers, distinctive growth habit and floriferous nature are much prized and this account, the first to include the angraecoid orchids of both Africa and Madagascar, is long awaited. It brings together, in a single volume, descriptions of all 690 species in this intriguing group of orchids and will be the essential reference for all angraecoid orchid enthusiasts for years to come. Stewart, Herman and Campbell have all spent time in various parts of eastern and southern Africa and precise ecological information relating to habitat, altitude preferences and flowering season of individual plants will be particularly helpful to growers. The diagnostic features of each genus are illustrated and over half the species are accompanied by exquisite photographs taken in both wild habitats and in cultivation.

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Biography

Joyce Stewart is an eminent orchid specialist whose work evinces rigorous attention to detail coupled with a sense of exploration. Her latest book reflects her sojourns to Madagascar, Mauritius, and the Reunion and Comoro Islands in pursuit of a rare group of orchids. As a botanist, she ventures beyond description to offer detailed insight into distribution, flowering seasons, ecology and conservation. Throughout her career, she has sustained a special interest in African species of orchid, informed by twenty-two years of residence on the continent. The author has received numerous accolades including Gold Medals from the South African Orchid Council (1982), the American Orchid Society (1993) and the Royal Horticultural Society (1993 and 1997). In 2003, she was named Member of the Order of the British Empire for services to horticultural science and botanical education. Currently living in Dorset, England, she lectures all over the world and is President of the British Orchid Council and Chairman of the International Orchid Commission. She has published over 100 scientific and popular articles on orchids as well as numerous books such as Orchids (Timber Press 2000), Orchids of Kenya (Timber Press 1996), and The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary Manual of Orchids (co-edited with Mark Griffiths, Timber Press 1995). Johan Hermans has been growing and studying orchids for over twenty years. His photographs of orchids and other wildlife have been published widely, and he has written and lectured on various orchid-related subjects such as the genus Dracula, Pleurothallidinae, and the orchids of Madagascar. He is also credited with describing several new orchid species. An Honorary Research Associate of The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, he has received five Gold Medals at the World Orchid Conferences and garnered nearly 100 awards from the Royal Horticultural Society Orchid Committee. Bob Campbell is a photographer and cinematographer who has documented various landmark African projects over the last half century. After covering paleontologist Richard Leakey's African expeditions throughout the 1960s, he began a long-term involvement with Dian Fossey's Gorilla Research Project and later joined forces with Universal Studios to film the feature movie "Gorillas in the Mist." In 2000, he published a book on this experience titled The Taming of the Gorillas (Minerva Press Ltd). He has contributed photographs of orchids to Joyce Stewart's previous books including Orchids of Tropical Africa (W.H. Allen 1970) and The Orchids of Kenya (Timber Press 1996).