Grasses cover approximately one-quarter of the
planet's land surface; four species - wheat, rice, maize
and sugar - provide 60 per cent of human calorie intake.
Almost all of us at some point play on, relax on, plant,
tend or harvest grasses for our own pleasure or
sustenance, yet for all that their importance to us is
not commonly understood. It is predicted that by 2050
the world's population will be approximately 9 billion,
and 90 per cent of the planet's land area will be
affected by human activities. To feed ourselves we will
be more dependent on grasses than ever before. Grasses
explains the history of our relationship with these
humble yet vital plants from the end of the last Ice Age
to the present day. Perhaps more than any other plant,
grasses show the effects of human influence: farmed on a
massive scale, they are the ultimate staple crop. In
turn we are also influenced by grasses, often fighting
to preserve our 'green space' and public parks. Stephen
Harris describes this relationship against the
background of our heightened awareness of climate
change: in the future we will have to balance our needs
of grass as food, grass as living space and potentially
even grass as fuel. Mixing biology, sociology and
cultural history, Grasses provides us with arguably the
fullest exploration yet of what grasses mean and have
meant: their profound importance to our survival but
also to our pleasure, our diets and our minds. Featuring
numerous botanical images as well as many fine examples
from art and popular culture, Grasses is a must-have for
gardeners, food lovers and environmentalists
alike. |
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