Product Description

In this book Stearn gives the meaning and origin of some 6000 botanical names, selecting those most likely to be encountered by gardeners and horticulturists. No other single source provides so much etymological information for the gardener, the result of years of scholarship and original research by the distinguished author. Also listed are 3000 of the most widely accepted vernacular names, cross-indexed to their correct scientific names, an invaluable reference for gardeners, writers, and historians. Plant classification and binomial nomenclature are explained, and there are notes on the structure and pronunciation of botanical Latin. No other single source provides so much etymological information for the gardener.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #504282 in Books
• Published on: 2002-10-28
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 373 pages

From Library Journal
This volume updates and expands the 1972 Gardener's Dictionary of Plant Names by the same author, which in turn updated A.W. Smith's Gardener's Book of Plant Names (1963). You may want to keep the earlier volumes for their pronunciation guides, but definitely buy the new volume for its inclusion of 6000 botanical names, with definitions and derivations, plus 3000 common names, cross-referenced to their botanical names. This is indisputably the best dictionary of plant names available and is essential for botanical and horticultural libraries. Public libraries on a tight budget that already own Allen Coombes's Dictionary of Plant Names (Timber Pr., 1985) would be safe to pass; others may want to add it for its excellent chapter explaining how plants are named and why plant names change.
- Laura Lipton, Miller Horticulture Lib., Seattle
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
"Provides an enormous range of truly fascinating etymological information." Southeastern Naturalist, July 2003

"Impressive." American Herb Association Quarterly Newsletter, 2003

About the Author
William T. Stearn (1911–2001) was one of Britain's most eminent botanists. During a career based first at the Royal Horticultural Society, then at the Natural History Museum, Stearn wrote some 470 books, articles, and monographs, ranging from detailed studies of plant genera, through histories and biographies, to books on botanical taxonomy, many of which have become standard works of reference. He served as librarian of the Royal Horticultural Society's Lindley Library, senior principal scientific officer in the Department of Botany, British Museum (Natural History), and visiting professor in the Department of Botany and Agricultural Botany, University of Reading. In 2000 he was awarded the Asa Gray Award, the highest award of the American Society of Plant Taxonomists. Awards for William Stearn Asa Gray Award, American Society of Plant Taxonomists Royal Horticultural Society Victoria Medal of Honour Royal Horticultural Society Gold Veitch Memorial Medal