Bibliograph

What have plants ever done for us?, Western civilization in fifty plants, Stephen Harris

Type

Label

What have plants ever done for us?, Western civilization in fifty plants, Stephen Harris

Language

eng

Bibliography note

Includes bibliographical references and index

Illustrations

illustrations

Index

index present

Literary Form

non fiction

Main title

What have plants ever done for us?

Nature of contents

bibliography

Oclc number

911019738

Responsibility statement

Stephen Harris

Sub title

Western civilization in fifty plants

Summary

When did the British Government become the world's largest drugs pusher? What tree is frequently used to treat cancer? Which everyday condiment is the most widely traded spice on the planet? Plants are an indispensable part of our everyday life. From the coffee bush and grass for cattle which give us milk for our cappuccinos to the rubber tree which produces tyres for our cars, our lives are inextricably linked to the world of plants. Taking us on a chronological journey, Stephen Harris identifies fifty plants that have been key to the development of the Western world, discussing trade, politics, medicine, travel and chemistry along the way. Plants have provided paper and ink, chemicals that could kill or cure, vital sustenance and stimulants. Some, such as barley, have been staples from earliest times; others, such as oil palm, are newcomers to Western industry. Moreover, with time, uses change: beets, which have been used variously as a treatment for leprosy, source of sugar and animal feed, are now showing potential as biofuels. What may the future hold for mandrake or woad? We remain dependent on plants for our food, our fuel and our medicines. Their effects on our lives, as the stories in this wide-ranging and engaging book demonstrate, continue to be profound, and often unpredictable

Table Of Contents

Introduction -- The plants. Barley ; Mandrake ; Beets ; Opium poppy ; Brassicas ; Cannabis ; Bread wheat ; Broad bean ; Alliums ; Pea ; Olive ; Grape ; Papyrus ; Yew ; Rose ; Pines ; Reeds ; Oak ; Apple ; Pepper ; Carrot ; Woad ; Citrus ; Nutmeg ; White mulberry ; Tobacco ; Tulip ; Chilli ; Quinine ; Cocao ; Potato ; Tomato ; Coffee ; Maize ; Pineapple ; Smooth meadow grass ; Lycopods ; Cotton ; Sugar cane ; Coconut ; Rice ; Tea ; Ragwort ; Banana ; Rubber ; Sunflower ; Oil palm ; Soya ; Cornockle ; Thale cress

Classification