Book description
This book accompanies the landmark television series Kingdom of Plants
3D: With David Attenborough.
In the last 500 million years, plants have undertaken an epic journey
that has not only spanned the ages but has altered the very make-up of
the planet. It was a journey that began in a dark and barren world, and
has culminated in a planet that is draped in rich colours, and
overflowing with a diversity of mystifying orchids, exploding seed pods
and snapping carnivorous plants.
But plants are far more than just beautiful and bizarre. Through the
chapters of this book we uncover how plants first began to live on land,
how they have become linked with a multitude of animal and fungi
partners, and how ultimately they have shaped both landscapes and cultures.
With an introduction by Professor Stephen Hopper, Director of the Royal
Botanic Gardens at Kew, as well as contributions from leading botanists
and horticulturists, this book unpicks the strands of our planet's
network of botanical life. Through its pages we reveal the extraordinary
ways in which plants have come to live and thrive in all habitats, and
we discover how they can provide us with answers to many of the problems
that face humanity in our modern age.
For more information, please visit:
www. kingdomofplants. com 'In a text that couples strong narrative
with the latest scientific insights, Will Benson has produced an
engrossing account of the evolution of plant life and its importance to
our planet's past, present and future. He takes us on a beautifully
illustrated, three-billion-year journey […]. The companion to Sir David
Attenborough's new TV series on plants demands to be read.'
BBC Wildlife Will Benson is a science researcher who has worked
alongside leading academics in the production of television
documentaries for major broadcasters around the world, including most
recently the landmark series Kingdom of Plants 3D: With David
Attenborough. An early interest in plants led him to work as a
horticulturist, after which he went on to study for a BSc in Zoology at
the University of Southampton. Will has led and participated in a number
of biological research expeditions, working both independently and with
NGOs in Nicaragua, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.
