Making the most of indigenous trees

Making the most of Indigenous Trees is undoubtedly the most significant, useful and practical book ever to be published on this subject in South Africa. This third and revised edition contains 22 more tree species. The 163 tree species are alphabetically arranged according to the botanical name, illustrated with more than 850 photographs in full colour and discussed in detail. The following information is provided: An introduction section on tree propagation by seed, cuttings and truncheons. A detailed species description, diagnostic features, natural distribution and habitat. The ecological role and utilisation by mammals, birds and insects. Economic value and use by people, including use in gardens and on the farm, as a source of food for humans and animals, fibre and medicine. Properties of the wood and its utilisation by people. Specific guidelines on propagation and cultivation of each species. A map indicating the distribution of each species. More than 850 carefully selected colour photographs complement and illustrate the text. A table on the utilisation of indigenous trees by wildlife, references for further reading and an index to the common and botanical names are included. This valuable guide to indigenous trees should be within reach of every gardener, farmer, naturalist, nurseryman, forester and conservationist – in fact, anyone with a love and appreciation of trees.

Fanie Venter holds a M.Sc. and Ph.D. in plant systematics. He is the author of numerous scientific and popular publications and co-authored several books on human geography, ethno botany and tree flora. He is currently a botanical and environmental consultant in the Western Pacific and Australia. Julye-Ann Venter has had a keen interest in plants and their cultivation from an early age. She is a qualified horticulturist. Currently she and husband Fanie live in tropical North Queensland, Australia, where she has started up a nursery specialising in the growing and hybridising of Clivia.