They share our planet

Press, Volume CXVI, Issue 34107, 20 March 1976, Page 9

They share our planet

Plant and Planet. By Anthony Huxley. Allen Lane. 428 pp. N.Z. price $14.45. (Reviewed by Hugh Wilson) This is more than just a popularisation of botanical science for the lay reader, indeed, the book assumes in its readers at least an interest in and a rather close familiarity with plants. The author’s stated intention is to stimulate our interest in the world of plants, and to open our minds to some of the more extraordinary aspects of this life-group — a group which shares the planet with us but is so different from us and our fellow animals.

Huxley (he is a son of Julian Huxley) has an infectious enthusiasm; the reader is 'ikely to be caught up in his fresh and open-eyed wonder. Gardeners, amateur naturalists and wildflower lovers should find themselves looking at plants in new ways; professional botanists will also find the book worth reading. It is true that botanical readers will sometimes be annoyed by omissions and by not-quite-accurate statements, even occasionally t>y errors such as the assertion that both algal and fungal components of lichens can live independently. New Zealanders will be surprised to read of the Olympic National Park in north-west America "where is the world’s only temperate rain-forest.” Nor did I find the writing generally

very polished or inspired — it is sometimes rather laboured, even clumsy. Nevertheless a fascination and wonder at something that is all around us and which can be seen plainly and appreciated simply by using our eyes the right way, is vibrant all through this book. Anthony Huxley draws on a very wide knowledge so that the few errors are small flaws on a large canvas. This is definitely not a book of lavish illustrations but the black and white pictures between chapters, mostly fine old steel engravings, are appropriate. It has become fashionable to ask way-out questions about plants such as “Do they feel pain? Do they respond to kindness?” Huxley has a chapter on the subject and deals with it openly and sensibly. The impressive thing, though, is that the other chapters, on many other everyday aspects of a plant’s life, are just as mind-boggling and extraordinary. The final chapters, dealing with man’s use, manipulation and misuse of the plant world, and also speculating on possible things to come, are excellent, authoritative and thought-provoking. “Plant and Planet” is a fresh and fascinating look at the world of plants. It should startle us into refusing to take any of this world for granted.

I Hugh Wilson is a botanist. He has just completed a botanical survey for the Mount Cook National Park Board.l