What a Plant Knows: A Field Guide to the Senses of Your Garden - and Beyond

by Daniel Chamovitz

A captivating journey into the inner lives of plants - from the colours they see to the schedules they keep

How does a Venus flytrap know when to snap shut? Can an orchid get jet lag? Does a tomato plant feel pain when you pluck a fruit from its vines? And does your favourite fern care whether you play Bach or the Beatles? Combining cutting-edge research with lively storytelling, biologist Daniel Chamovitz explores how plants experience our shared Earth - through sight, smell, touch, hearing, memory, and even awareness. Whether you are a green thumb, a science buff, a vegetarian, or simply a nature lover, this rare inside look at the life of plants will surprise and delight.

• ISBN10: 178074062X
• ISBN13: 9781780740621
• Publish Date: 1 May 2012
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Oneworld Publications
• Format: eBook
• Pages: 224
• Language: English

Reviews

[MurderByDeath]

If you're a gardener with a scientific bent, or a fan of science with a botanic bent, this is a great book.   Chamovitz breaks down the current science of botany and makes it interesting and comprehensible to the average armchair enthusiast by using our own senses as a basis for what a plant...knows.  Do plants 'see'?  Do plants 'feel'?  So plants have a sense of 'smell'?  The answers might surprise a few people.  The author is very clear that these comparisons are very loose and plants are not, of course, thinking or sentient.  But as a starting point for understanding how plants do thrive and survive, our senses make for an excellent starting point.   This is a fast read; I was able to complete it in one day, and there was nothing dense about the writing or the research.  Chamovitz provides suggestions for links in the footnotes, a very thorough Notes section and an excellent index.  There wasn't a wealth of practical knowledge (although I do now know how to force short-day plants to bloom at will), but all of it was interesting and I learned a lot.   Highly recommended for the greenies.  ;-)