Seeing Trees: Discover The Extraordinary Secrets Of Everyday Trees (Seeing Series) Download Free (EPUB, PDF)
Have you ever looked at a tree? That may sound like a silly question, but there is so much more to notice about a tree than first meets the eye. Seeing Trees celebrates seldom seen but easily observable tree traits and invites you to watch trees with the same care and sensitivity that birdwatchers watch birds. Many people, for example, are surprised to learn that oaks and maples have flowers, much less flowers that are astonishingly beautiful when viewed up close. Focusing on widely grown trees, this captivating book describes the rewards of careful and regular tree viewing, outlines strategies for improving your observations, and describes some of the most visually interesting tree structures, including leaves, flowers, buds, leaf scars, twigs, and bark. In-depth profiles of ten familiar species—including such beloved trees as white oak, southern magnolia, white pine, and tulip poplar—show you how to recognize and understand many of their most compelling (but usually overlooked) physical features.
Series: Seeing Series
Hardcover: 245 pages
Publisher: Timber Press (August 16, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1604692197
ISBN-13: 978-1604692198
Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 0.9 x 10.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (57 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #42,097 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #22 in Books > Science & Math > Biological Sciences > Plants > Trees #30 in Books > Arts & Photography > Photography & Video > Nature & Wildlife > Plants & Animals #171 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Gardening & Landscape Design
This is a must have book for anyone interested in learning more about the common trees that populate your streets and yard. It shows close up and in stunning detail photos of the leaves, flowers, bark, and reproductive parts. The photography was done using a microscope and multiple shots of the same tree parts that are then stitched together to create a closeup that is seldom seen.I photograph trees for the Botanical Garden where the author used to work. As a volunteer I am helping to create a Tree Tour that will soon be released for public education. I read this book with awe and confirmation on things I have photographed on many of the trees covered in the book but was not sure I got my facts right even after a full search. I also learned so much more than I could find on-line from the detail writing and photographs.I would recommend this book to parents with children of all ages, even young children as they can be the most observant and very cleaver in what they see. As the adult read the book and then find the trees in your neighborhood. Have your children go through this process with you by collecting samples of the tree parts and leaning why they look the way they do or how they function. Even children under 4 will enjoy collecting and pressing leaves throughout the season and discovering the hard to find flowers of many deciduous trees. For older children that are curious about how trees reproduce and are of an age to start teaching them "the facts of life" this is a gentle way to take them through the process allowing them to appreciate the beauty and complexity of reproduction.As a botanist I appreciate that she kept the language nontechnical as many people are turned off by the use of Latin and complicated ways botanist call tree parts. It is so much easier to get someone excited about "seeing trees" and learning to respect their most important place in our environment without feeling put off by botanical terms and descriptions.You will return to this book often I assure you. Having photographed many of the trees in the book I understand that you simply cannot find all the interesting things trees have to show us in one season or even one year. I have returned over and over again over the last few years to find new facts about the trees I am following for the garden and I love being surprised in a good year when the full cycle of reproduction is clear and present and I realize...gosh how could I have missed that!
Looking through this book amazed me about how little I had observed about some of my favorite trees. I am looking forward to the winter time when I can use the pictures of the buds to practice my winter identification of trees and of course to next spring to capture the blooms when they first emerge. Nancy is right when you mentions you will see trees with different eyes after reading this book.
Trees are all around us. We see trees everywhere, whether we live in the city or the country, but do we really look at them and appreciate them? Or have they become commonplace, a part of the scenery? Seeing Trees takes a close up look at many trees we pass by everyday.As a bird watcher I am familiar with a lot of trees as both a home for the birds and as their food source. I spend a lot of time seeing the trees up close through my binoculars or camera lens as I'm following the birds. I have gone on nature trail tree walks and observed the trees and their structure, but this book goes a step further and delves into the fascinating detail of the smallest individual parts of the tree.Seeing Trees is not just descriptions of trees, it is also a fantastic display of photography. Using special software, photographer Robert Llewellyn has produced gorgeous close up images of various parts of the tree. The images were produced by stitching together multiple photos taken at different focal points to create incredibly sharp and detailed photos.The book is divided into two main parts, the first third discusses the different traits of trees such as leaves, flowers, fruit, buds, bark and twigs and the remainder is an intimate look at ten featured trees (American Beech, Ginkgo, Red Maple, Southern Magnolia, Tulip Poplar, White Oak, White Pine, American Sycamore, Black Walnut and Eastern Red Cedar), all common in North America. Interesting facts are presented in an easy to understand, conversational format. Spread throughout the text are the beautiful, detailed photos that I can't say enough wonderful things about.The more you look at a tree the more you will see. Two of the ten featured trees are ones I have in my own yard. My Eastern Red Cedar is a magnet for birds. Every year a bird will build a nest in it and in the autumn Robins and Cedar Waxwings flock to it to eat the berries it produces. Those berries are like fast food for birds! I thought I knew a lot about my tree but I learned that it is a female tree, males don't produce berries, they only produce pollen. Other trees like my Black Walnut are both male and female. And those walnuts that rain down on me every autumn, they are edible if you want to go through the trouble of getting to them through the fruit. I'll leave mine for the squirrels.This is a gorgeous book, a great reference and a beautiful addition to the nature lover's bookshelf.
This is one of those books I just couldn't put down! Written so well, and such a wealth of information, things I just wouldn't have dreamed about trees. The photography is stunning, and gives macro views of details that I haven't seen anywhere else. Truly a "keeper", and a book I will be re-reading, and will keep close at hand especially next spring when Mother Nature starts waking trees again.
The book has two parts: an overview of what to look for in the elements of a tree, and a detailed study of ten trees common to Central Virginia. It is illustrated throughout with uncommonly beautiful photography.The writing is bloggy. The author's intention is to introduce the reader to tree-appreciation through describing her own experiences, so she talks a lot about herself - what she read on someone's blog, what she imagines other people are thinking about her, and "I wonder whether...". What she does know is extremely interesting, and she goes into great detail. I'd like to see her do a more comprehensive, orderly study of trees.
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