Book Description

Remediation and Management of Degraded Lands presents the program of the first International Conference on the Remediation and Management of Degraded Lands. This collection reviews the extent of resource debasement and offers solutions for their restoration. The 14-part first section deals with mine management and rehabilitation. Topics include the devastating results of open-cut mining, open-pit mining, lignite surface mining and acid mining. Despite such ruin, the articles reveal the possibilities for reclamation. Part two devotes nine chapters to the management of derelict lands. Reforestation, soil fertility prognosis, and the uses of nitrogen are just a few of the covered subjects. This portion of the book pays special attention to the successful results of remediation in China and Hong Kong. The final division addresses soil contamination and reclamation. There are eleven chapters on subjects that include the single and interactive effects of aluminum, the effectiveness of EDTA/HCI and the value of pig-on-litter compost as a tool for edible crop growth. These and other innovative techniques make Remediation and Management of Degraded Lands a valuable addition to any environmental library. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

should be required text
for any environmental studies program. Ideas put to the test on an island with very little outside resources. Excellent discussion material. Unique insight into the revolution.

First-rate scientific and social examination of Cuba's agric
Cuba's social and economic systems have been in crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The prime concern of the country is how to feed its citizens so that every member has an adequate and nutritious diet. Rosset and Benjamin's scientific delegation to Cuba examined the history leading up to the current crisis, and the social, political and economic factors which maintain the food shortage up to this day. They then launch on an encyclopedic survey of the agricultural and social reform programs launched by Cuba's government to remedy the crisis. The country has adopted a Low Input, Sustainable Agriculture (LISA) style of food production in order to cope with drastically reduced inputs of chemicals, fertilizer, fuel, and capital since the USSR collapsed. Research programs abound, with several hundred research and development facilities in a country little larger than Vancouver Island, B.C. They are studying and implementing programs in non-chemical control of insects, weeds, and disease; soil remediation and fertility; labour distribution; post-harvest physiology and storage; and the distributions of production and population centers. The Greening of the Revolution combines the expertise of a 20 member delegation who spent a week in 1992 travelling the country. It reads like a comprehensive Annual Review article, with insightful analysis throughout, but not for the faint-of-heart looking for a light read. The 1992 date is now 7 years past, it would be of great interest to have a second edition of the book published in a repeat of the 1992 surveys. The book could also use some close editing; although logically laid out and of strong scientific style, there were reduncies and inconsistencies sprinkled throughout the text. In all, though, an excellent and compelling analysis of a country in transition. ... Read more

Book Description

The third book in this four-volume series, Rice is a single-source reference covering all aspects of rice, including its origins and history, the plants and genetics, production data and practices, and commercial practices. Chapters are written by leading international experts in the field. ... Read more

Book Description

Basic soil testing book that emphasizes the basic principles of soil mechnics using spreadsheet data processing. The book includes soil laboratoryexperiments, and discussion of the theoretical concepts needed to interpretthe experimental results. ... Read more

Book Description

An illustrated, step–by–step guide to creating a new plant or flower, encouraging gardeners of all abilities to experiment with the endless possibilities of crossbreeding. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Great bathroom reading
If you ever wanted to grow your own treez or mushrooms, this is the book for you. Put it in the bathroom and read it when you have some time - worked for me!

all in all, a worthwhile book
I only want to touch a little bit on what this fine book has to say about growing mushrooms, which is surprisingly little; out of 21 chapters, only one is about growing shrooms, the rest are for growing weed. The cultivation techniques are simple and effective, but taken nearly verbatim from...., which in turn was an adaptation of the techniques by Oss and Oeric in the Magic Mushroom Grower's Guide, I believe. Buy this book if growing shrooms is an afterthought to lessening your chances of being caught growing marijuana, for that is where the author earns your money. Mr. Bunch is obviously knowledgeable about growing high-quality, clandestine weed, and is also very fun to read, but unfortunately he is little more than a novice mycologist. I highly recommend this book to anyone intending to cultivate marijuana, but for those intending to grow psilocybe mushrooms, I must refer you to the Magic Mushroom Grower's Guide and the Mushroom Cultivator, by Stamets and Chilton.

Excellent
This is a brilliant very informative book ,it is set out in such a way that it is very easy to read and follow the techniques used.It explains how to grow marijuana and mushrooms and other more interesting information very well with everything you need to know.This is definately the best book i have read on how to grow mushrooms ever guarenteed, as all of the other books i have read on this subject have been to confusing to follow or not informative enough and therefore this is the only book on that subject alone with the marajuana growing also as good.

This is the funniest underground book I've ever read!
Many other pros in the marijuana horticulture writing field have described in detail the simplistics of growing, but Robert Bunch does so in a off-the-cuff fashion like I've never seen before.

The psychedelic-splashed book starts with a dedication that sent me to the floor in fits, "I would like to dedicate this book to Drug Czar Barry McCaffrey, Attorney General Janet Reno, Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala, our lying President Willie Clinton, the DEA and all of the other pieces of sh*t hypocrites out there I might have missed. When one of your family members suffers needlessly because of the ludicrous laws you create and enforce, you will then know the pain that caused me to write this book."

It only gets better from this point. He finishes the tribute to all prohibitionists, "May your ignorance and intolerance be rewarded tenfold."

Borrow, buy, or steal this book! It's a funny look at a really serious topic.

Invisible Gardens is both scholarly and pugilistic!
"Marijuana prohibition has ruined countless productive lives, clogged our justice system, overcrowded prisons and wasted countless taxpayer dollars. The purpose of this book is to foil the efforts of the authorities by using my method of gardening," writes Robert Bunch.

And what a method it is. Whether or not you use the author's tips for keeping marijuana and mushrooms covert, this book is extremely entertaining. With wit and humor, Bunch relates where to put your stash in the backyard, treetops, house, auto, or airport, how to grow a mushroom garden, and even how to adopt a puppy and train him to be your drug-sniffing co-conspirator. The final chapter is a cookbook-Tres Trip Dip, Soup a la Psilocybin, and so on. Packed with anecdotes and hundreds of inventive tips, this oversized volume is the perfect gift for any friend who is sick and tired of the drug war.

Eye Magazine October/November 1998 ... Read more

Book Description

Wild or non-cultivated plants are crucial to the lives of a large portion of the world's population, providing low-cost building materials, fuel, food supplements, medicines, tools and sources of income. Despite their importance, their vulnerability to harvesting and other social impacts is not well understood. This is the first practical guide to be published on how to manage wild plant species sustainably.

This practical manual on the value and management of wild plant resources sets out the approaches and field methods involved in participatory work between conservationists and researchers and the primary resource users. Supported by extensive illustrations, it explains how local people can learn to assess the pressures on plant resources and what steps to take to ensure their continued availability.

This guide will be invaluable for all those involved in resource management decisions regarding plant species and diversity, in particular those studying or working in conservation, rural development and park management.

Published in association with WWF International and UNESCO ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Join the Plant Army!
I'll admit that when I first picked up this book at the bookstore I was miffed. I had been researching the concept of Guerilla Gardening for an article I was writing for a national gardening magazine; only my definition of the movement was something quite different than this book. I always figured people who anonymously plant herbs, flowers and veggies in vacant lots, abandoned bus stops and crack alleys were urban Johnny Appleseeds hoping to leave something beautiful in an otherwise desolate and depressing area. But author Barbara Pallenberg redefines Guerilla Gardening as a method of obtaining otherwise pricey plants for free. Because I also happen to be a cheapskate, or as I usually like to call myself a frugal gardener, this book still appeals to me; that is once I got beyond the book's title! This is a fun read and I can't get over how useful the info is about how to propogate just about every plant you can thing of. Thanks to the tips and humorous advice in this book my plant plunder pal Sharon and I have managed to already nab a part of a prickly pear cactus that fell inches away from where I'll be taking horticulture classes!

Martha Stuart does roadside collection?
This is a very strange book: It's primarily a field guide to "acquiring" plants through methods other than purchase (cuttings dividings, seeds, etc.), followed by home/garden accent tips for using the various odds and ends that you drag home. By odds & ends, I mean everything from cast-off cement to old shoes, and when I say "acquire," I do mean everything from "mooch" to, um, "Liberate."

The book has a great deal of quick & dirty suggestions for expanding your garden. Some of the information is both interesting and useful, but much of it consists of anectdotes of actions that I consider not very ethical. I can't say I've never done any of the things described, but I have to admit, seeing it laid out as a systematic strategy makes me somewhat uncomfortable. Granted, the author does recommend a degree of restraint while serreptitiously clipping your neighbor's prize-winning roses, and she does introduce the subject of endangered species & off-limits public land...

The specific materials on asexual propagation in this book are clear and explicit, and require very little in the way of expensive chemicals and gadgets. The instructions are a good bit less fussy than you will find in most garden books, which I consider a plus. It is taken as a given that some of your acquisitions will not make it, but, given that there's virtually no capital outlay, you'll still come out on top. Most of it is general, but there is a section in the middle treating specific varieties of plants. It's a fairly random sampling, and the rest of the book is an ecclectic mix of tips for using found items as decorative effects, and recipes for oddments you collect along the way. Bear in mind that if you're growing your garden from rooted twigs, some patience is required.

Bottom line: I liked the concept much more than the actual book. The "military theme" was disappointing. (Like Brittany Spears in camoflage suspenders: more "cute" than convincing.) If you can set aside any moral qualms, it's fairly humorous, and it does have some valuable pointers. Especially if you want a garden but don't want to go broke planting it out.

The Genius of Gardening in America-Barbara Pallenberg
The author, Barbara Pallenberg , isextremely talented and weaves her intellectual and family "root system"into an enchantingly delightful wayof ecologically building a castle ofbeauty around your home for the economical price of : "free". What's"not to like" about this book ! Buy itfor a Mother , sister , friend , brother, and one for yourself ! All theother gardening books pale in comparison to this new edition. AnEcological Delight ! Hope to see itand Barbara on many daytime televisionshows. Buy it now !

Creative Landscaping 101
Guerrilla Gardening is everything you have always wanted to know about gardening but were afriad to ask. Breezy and entertaining, this is THE HANDBOOK for adventure and innovation. Want a cutting from Clude Monet's Giverny? Graft a rose from the White House garden? Create an ice-plant meadow from plants by your local telephone easement? To create a free garden from Chelsea to Camelot, Barbara Pallenberg with show and tell all the secrets. Don't let Pallenbergs knock'em dead cover-girl good looks camouflage all the capable information found within these pages. It's really fun. ... Read more

Book Description

Sub-Saharan Africa's persistent food insecurity and vulnerability to famine reflects failures of understanding as much as failures of interventions.Food Security in Sub-Saharan Africa aims to contribute towards an improved understanding for more effective food security policy. This book brings together eleven substantial chapters on critical food security issues, and draws on a variety of disciplinary perspectives, from agricultural economics to nutrition. Most contributions reflect an evolution of thinking during the 1990s. Food insecurity is no longer seen simply as a problem of agriculture and a failure of food production at the national level, but instead as a failure of livelihoods to guarantee access to sufficient food at household level. This conceptual shift and related arguments are presented in a clear and accessible way for the non-specialist reader, and are illustrated with empirical data and case studies from across the sub-continent. The authors are all food security experts with long experience of research and advisory work in Africa. ... Read more

Book Description

Designed for both novice and experienced superintendents, this field-manual will help you understand and implement successful integrated pest management techniques. Each chapter begins with a solid introduction, followed by step-by-step lists to aid in the field application of IPM principles to real world situations. Over 150 photographs—32 in color—along with informative tables and drawings illustrate the key points. Actual examples and success stories are presented by superintendents from across the country to help you plan or improve your IPM program. ... Read more

Book Description

Grasslands take up approximately one-quarter of the world's vegetative cover. Turfgrasses protect the land from erosion, stabilize the soil, moderate the temperature and provide low cost safe surfacing for many sporting and leisure activities. Amenity grasslands - and turf in particular - do more than form a significant part of the global landscape. They make up the basis of a multimillion dollar industry. International Turf Management Handbook covers the establishment, maintenance, and management of natural turfgrass surfaces. This handbook is arranged in four sections. The first section details the identification and selection of turfgrasses, how they grow, and their maintenance. The second section focuses on the management and administration of the turfgrass business. The third section addresses current standards and their use to effectively manage different surfaces such as bowling, croquet and golf greens, grass tennis courts, cricket tables, football and athletic fields, racetracks, and golf fairways. The final section discusses important environmental issues in turf management, including water resources, pesticides and fertilizers. Developed in association with more than 20 leading turf management authorities, the International Turf Management Handbook details the how the natural turfgrass surface functions. It explores strategies that blend biodiveristy and sustainability with the business of maintaining turf. It is essential reading for agriculture, horticulture, and natural resource professionals, and land managers. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Pruning has always seemed like a chore, but after reading Pruning Basics it actually sounds like fun. And not just fun, but an accomplishment. Instead of holding your breath and hacking off dead-looking branches, Pruning Basics teaches you how to prune in style by using the right tools and doing it at the right time of year. "Few gardening techniques have been cloaked in as much mystique as pruning," says author David Squire, "yet basically it is a simple and logical process."

Pruning is done not only to keep your garden or yard looking lovely, but also to eradicate dead and dusty growth and to encourage new shoots. How often and much to prune depends on the variety of plant, shrub, or tree. The book has chapters on shrubs, roses, climbing plants, trees, hedges and topiaries, fruit trees, and soft fruit. Each chapter gives explicit details on the technique for trimming that type of plant and how far down to trim. Many drawings and full-color photos accompany the instructions. At the end of each chapter is a listing of suggested plants, including their Latin names and descriptions. Roses, though a scrub, get their own chapter becauseSquire wants to do away with the myth that roses are difficult to cultivate. Established bushes are best pruned in the spring and very sharp secauters are necessary. The chapter on topiaries is informative as well as entertaining. "There is a certain romance about topiary," Squire says, but warns, "never be too ambitious to begin with: an identifiable sphere, cone, or small bird is better than a deformed kangaroo." Besides instructing how to prune, Squire suggests the best tools to use for each job and how to keep them in tip-top shape. A great guide for any gardener, Pruning Basics will inspire you to keep your garden clean and beautiful. --Dana Van Nest ... Read more

Book Description

Nearly 700 species of plants may become extinct by the year 2000. Faced with this overwhelming prospect, plant conservationists must take advantage of every technique available.This unique work summarizes our current knowledge of the genetics and population biology of rare plants, and integrates it with practical conservation recommendations.It features discussions on the distribution and significance of genetic variation, management and evaluation of rare plant germplasm, and conservation strategies for genetic diversity.Case studies focusing on specific problems offer important insights for today's challenges in rare plant conservation. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Much-Needed Photographs of Rapidly Disappearing Plants
A must-have for every library in south Texas. This well-organized book fills a large gap in reference material about vegetation which remains undisturbed on less than 95% of south Texas' landmass. Placement of photos and construction of keys make this an excellent introductory text for students of botany. It's the first volume I can recommend to junior-high and high school teachers as a "user-friendly" approach to keying south Texas herbs. Lots of south Texas plants remain unmentioned here, however. Let us not assume that they are nonnative or without "use to livestock and wildlife." ... Read more

Book Description

Lord Northbourne (1896–1982) was a man of exceptional vision, who already in the 1940s diagnosed in detail the sickness of modern society as stemming from the severance of its organic links with the wholeness of life. A leading figure in the early organic farming movement, his writings profoundly affected such other pioneers as Sir Albert Howard, Rolf Gardiner, Ehrenfried Pfeiffer, and H. J. Massingham. His path led him on to a profound study of comparative religion, traditional metaphysics, and the science of symbols, which he employed in incisive observations on the character of modern society. His later writings exercised considerable influence on his younger contemporaries E. F. Schumacher and Thomas Merton, and in many ways anticipate the essays of Wendell Berry. The republication of this milestone ecological text will be followed by three volumes of Northbourne’s later metaphysical and cultural writings. ... Read more

Book Description

The popular first edition of this text on risk analysis and management in agriculture has been almost wholly revised. The second edition includes much new material. It includes a revised chapter on incorporating decision makers' preferences into the analysis of risky choices that recognizes and gives consideration to some recently published challenges to the legitimacy of the expected utility hypothesis. While it is argued that the theory is still the best way to handle risk aversion, at least in prescriptive analyses, more attention is given to the practical problems of utility function elicitation. It is shown how estimates of (or ranges of) degree of risk aversion might best be obtained and consistently applied.The new edition has a much more thorough treatment of stochastic stimulation, including some novel yet simple methods for dealing with stochastic dependency between uncertain quantities. The treatment of policy aspects of risk in agriculture has been revised and extended to account for such important current issues as new approaches to crop insurance, the management of serious animal and crop diseases and food safety issues. As with the first edition, the book contains a blend of theory with simple illustrative examples to enable readers to see how the principles being discussed can be made operational using modern software. ... Read more