This book is filled with fascinating facts, recipes and stories about common plants found growing wild in northern California. Every vacant lot, park, open space and empty field contains some of the characters in this book.Get ready to meet a variety of common weeds with uncommon stories. There will be sinister plants with deadly reputations, and friendly vegetables disguised as weeds. Over fifty detailed drawings will help you to recognize some of the plant personalities. And this is important, because after reading you will want to get off that couch and meet these plants.These weeds grow all around, from Sacramento to San Francisco, Monterey to San Jose. we are surrounded by a silent plant community. Learn what it has to say to you between the covers of this book.

00 This highly informative volume describes California's native, naturalized, and cultivated plant species which can be poisonous and describes how to recognize them, where they are found, and what symptoms they produce. This highly informative volume describes California's native, naturalized, and cultivated plant species which can be poisonous and describes how to recognize them, where they are found, and what symptoms they produce.

Both American Indians and the pioneers knew and used many different plant species-for food, fibers, medicine, tools, and other purposes. This unique book is a guide to identifying more than 220 such plants. But it goes much further-it also tells the reader how to prepare, cook, and otherwise use them. Some of the dishes for which recipes are given have won culinary prizes. All have been tested not only by the author but also by her students and by journalists-who have been uniformity surprised and impressed. The plants are organized by habitat communities. Description, photos, drawings, and distribution information are given. Where poisonous look-alikes exist, they too are illustrated. Much fascinating information about Indian uses of native and introduced species is included. The author emphasizes conservation considerations; the aim of the book is to educate the reader about intriguing uses of the plants, and to tell how to gather and use the most palatable and abundant species without damaging the environment.

If people knew how many poisonous plants are commonly found in homes and gardens, they'd be shocked. Plants as common as monkshood, castorbean, and oleander are not just dangerous, they're deadly. The North American Guide to Common Poisonous Plants and Mushrooms is a comprehensive, easy-to-use handbook. The book is split into four main categories: mushrooms, wild plants, ornamental and crop plants, and houseplants. Each plant entry includes a clear photograph to aid the task of identification, a description of the plant, notes on where they commonly occur, and a description of their toxic properties. Plants are listed by common name to assist the non-specialist.

This book describes or mentions the great bulk of the edible plants found in the western United States west of the Great Plains and in southwestern Canada and northwestern Mexico. Carefully illustrated, it helps you identify many hundreds of edible plants that may give you helpful food on a camping trip or someday save your life.

Both American Indians and the pioneers knew and used many different plant species-for food, fibers, medicine, tools, and other purposes. This unique book is a guide to identifying more than 220 such plants. But it goes much further-it also tells the reader how to prepare, cook, and otherwise use them. Some of the dishes for which recipes are given have won culinary prizes. All have been tested not only by the author but also by her students and by journalists-who have been uniformity surprised and impressed. The plants are organized by habitat communities. Description, photos, drawings, and distribution information are given. Where poisonous look-alikes exist, they too are illustrated. Much fascinating information about Indian uses of native and introduced species is included. The author emphasizes conservation considerations; the aim of the book is to educate the reader about intriguing uses of the plants, and to tell how to gather and use the most palatable and abundant species without damaging the environment.