Language: German
Early flowering plants - a survey of the indigenous species.
In March and April we humans are still afflicted with coldness and so are most plants, hence, their main growth period does not begin until May. However, a special group of plants blossoms already very early in the year. Their flowering period begins with the first warm days in spring and ends in May. Many of these so-called early flowering plants conclude their complete annual cycle within these few weeks before the foliation of the trees - a special phenomenon of our Central European woods.
Why do these plants blossom at such an inhospitable time before the main growth period? How do they cope with these adverse conditions? These questions are answered in the first part of the book. In the second part the most important Central European species of early flowering plants are depicted in word and picture. Further chapters illuminate their role in the medieval doctrine of signature and in plant symbolism. Information about nature conservation of the indigenous early flowering plants completes the book.
Ruether`s book sharpens the eye for our nature in the immediate vicinity and stimulates to make own observations. The reader is encouraged to deal with the phenomena and plant species one can discover on a promenade in spring.