Product Description

Originally published in 1988 as the first truly comprehensive review of one of the largest and most popular plant families, Aroids: Plants of the Arum Family was enthusiastically welcomed by botanists and horticulturists alike for its attention to scientific detail and delightful writing style. Now in this completely updated second edition, we learn of discoveries made in the last decade as the family has grown from about 2500 species to nearer 3200. The latest taxonomic and nomenclature revisions are noted in the checklist of genera, and all the original drawings are included plus twice as many color photos. A new guide to the cultivation of ornamental aroids completes this well-rounded introduction to a remarkable family.

Aroids are best known for their dramatic foliage and unique floral structure, but because they grow in dissimilar environmental conditions from tropical rain forest to semi-desert, wetlands, and mountain regions, they are not readily recognized as a group. Among their number are jack-in-the-pulpit, calla lily, and skunk cabbage; many well-known tropical houseplants such as philodendron, caladium, and swiss cheese plant; exotics such as the voodoo lily and corpse flower; and a staple root crop, taro. What unites and distinguishes this complex family is its inflorescence consisting of tiny flowers on a thick spike (spadix) surrounded by a hood-like leaf (spathe).

In this compelling natural history, Deni Bown emphasizes the habitats and ecology of aroids, their anatomy and reproduction, their medicinal and folk uses, and their potential as food crops. All the aroids have devised cunning schemes to attract pollinators and survive adverse conditions, from the extraordinary mouse plant, which emits a mushroom-like smell and mimics the underside of a fungus to lure fungus gnats, to the “ordinary” jack-in-the-pulpit, which changes sex from year to year depending on environmental conditions. Other bizarre features of the aroid lifecycle are described in depth as the author covers representative species in the aroid genera.

While many aroids are grown as indoor plants for their visual impact and others are among the most popular ornamentals for aquaria, still others are coveted garden plants. For all that grow them or wish to grow them, this readable and inspiring guide provides a complete picture of their numerous attractive qualities and cultivation requirements.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #495152 in Books
• Published on: 2000-09-01
• Format: Illustrated
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 468 pages

Review
"...the stories told by Deni Brown will bring either a knowing smile to your face or a smirk of amusement. " -- Hawaiian Horticulture

"I started out reading this book with an interest in aroids. I finished so excited...I started looking ...for an aroid society to join here in Hawaii." -- Hawaiian Horticulture

"If you have any interest in this large plant family at all, Deni Bown's book is a must-have for your library." -- Hawaiian Horticulture

"It makes for some fascinating reading." -- Choice

"This book is extremely well written...It’s a fascinating book, and you’ll be a better gardener for having read it." -- Clear Englebert, Feng Shui 2000

"A scholarly review of this amazing family ... Puts into context the origins and habits of aroids and their cultivation."—Stephen Pategas, Ornamental Outlook, April 2005 (Stephen Pategas Ornamental Outlook )

"A tantalizing and wide ranging read on the natural history of aroids ... Evocative, stimulating and accessible even on the most scientific aspects of her work. Captures the essence of this extraordinarily weird and wonderful family in a mouth-watering way."—Fergus Garrett, Gardens Illustrated, October 2001 (Fergus Garrett Gardens Illustrated )

"It makes for some fascinating reading."—Choice, January 2001 (Choice )

A scholarly review of this amazing family ... Puts into context the origins and habits of aroids and their cultivation.Stephen Pategas, Ornamental Outlook, April 2005 (Ornamental Outlook )

A tantalizing and wide ranging read on the natural history of aroids ... Evocative, stimulating and accessible even on the most scientific aspects of her work. Captures the essence of this extraordinarily weird and wonderful family in a mouth-watering way.Fergus Garrett, Gardens Illustrated, October 2001 (Gardens Illustrated )

A tantalizing and wide ranging read on the natural history of aroids. -- Fergus Garrett, Gardens Illustrated, October 2001

A well produced high quality book with masses of useful information. -- The World of The Rhodedendron Newsletter, Winter 2000

If you have any interest in this large plant family at all, Bown's book is a must-have for your library. -- Hawaiian Horticulture, November 2000

It makes for some fascinating reading.Choice, January 2001 (Choice )

This book is extremely well written ... It’s a fascinating book, and you’ll be a better gardener for having read it -- Clear Englebert, Feng Shui 2000

While she certainly doesn’t stint on scientific information, Bown has given us an eminently readable book. -- Susan Knorr, Garden Views, September 2000

From the Publisher
In this compelling natural history, Deni Bown emphasizes the habitats and ecology of aroids, their anatomy and reproduction, their medicinal and folk uses, and their potential as food crops. All the aroids have devised cunning schemes to attract pollinators and survive adverse conditions, from the extraordinary mouse plant, which emits a mushroom-like smell and mimics the underside of a fungus to lure fungus gnats, to the “ordinary” jack-in-the-pulpit, which changes sex from year to year depending on environmental conditions. Other bizarre features of the aroid lifecycle are described in depth as the author covers representative species in the aroid genera.

From the Author
From an interview with Deni Bown:

Timber Press: What has been the most interesting development to aroids since the first edition of your book, which was published in 1988?

Deni Bown: From the botanical standpoint, there have been three major developments. Firstly, a huge increase in the number of species in the family, from around 2500 when I wrote the first edition, to nearer 3200 today and still growing. This increase is largely due to regions of South East Asia, such as Vietnam and Laos, becoming accessible to botanists after being no-go areas for so many years. Tropical rain forests in Central and South America continue to offer up new species before breakfast too, but there have even been new species found on our doorstep, including in well-trodden areas of the Mediterranean. The second, and perhaps more dramatic development, are the taxonomic changes in the family that in time will filter through to anyone involved with gardening or horticulture. For example, the genus Acorus, which was always an odd-ball among aroids, has exited at last -- hived off into its own family -- and the duckweeds (Lemnaceae) have entered the fold. The result of this inclusion is that the aroid family is now probably the most extreme plant family on the planet, with Amorphophallus titanum at one end of the spectrum (its inflorescence, at 6 - 8 feet tall, is the largest in Araceae and arguably the largest unbranched inflorescence in the world), and the miniscule Wolffia (so minute that an entire plant is smaller than a pinhead) at the other end. The final interesting development is the huge increase in interest in the family since (and partly because of) the first edition of Aroids: Plants of the Arum Family, with more botanists specializing in the group and more people growing them.

Customer Reviews

Fascinating guide to one of the most unusual plant species
Very interesting look at one of the most unusual plant species on this planet! Brown gives us information on habitat, medicinal value, mythology concerning aroids and much more. This book is a must have for aroid enthusiasts!

A plant family that may be more ingenious than the orchids
I've long been a fan of the Orchidaceae, but I didn't know that the Aroids are possibly an even more advanced branch of the Monocotlydons. This book exposes some shocking facts. Some species routinely metabolize lipids to generate temperatures over 100 F around their inflorescence while surrounding temps are near freezing. Other species manufacture aromatic compounds rarely encountered outside of the ANIMAL kingdom. There are aroids we can eat, and others that smell so horrible they inspire nightmares. Some species' reproductive contrivances are almost too imaginative for the plant kingdom.

Deni Bown has provided an invaluable service: she's compiled nearly everything Aroid known to science into one, comprehensive yet accessible book.

Light on cultivation
A great book for descriptions and background information on many unique and beautiful aroids. The information, photos and illustrations are first-rate. That said, the information on cultivation of aroids was rather light and generic (there isn't even any information on the difference between growing jewel alocasias vs. the larger tropical alocasias--this is important as you will rot and scorch your jewel alocaisias if you attempt to grow them like their larger, moisture and sun-loving relatives).