The idea of the book is excellent, but 50 plants in just 234 pages means sometimes skimpy coverage: the reader who wants more than just a brief outline of an individual topic is advised to look elsewhere.
If what is wanted is a brief overview, the book serves the purpose, although one may argue about some of Laws' choices.
Have hemp (Cannabis sativa) and tulips really changed the course of history?
A little marijuana smoking hasn't exactly upset world order, and tulip mania in the 17th century was concentrated in the Netherlands.
Although Laws asserts that the bulbs formed the basis of that country's flower industry, that assertion is a little shaky given the Italian influence on Dutch garden practices before tulips came on the scene.
There is no argument about the role food crops such as rice, wheat, potatoes and yams have had in feeding the world, while the development of apples, onions and cabbages from wild species has been almost as important, as has the introduction of flavourings (spices and vanilla) and the effect on trading and colonisation.
The book is cleverly illustrated with old drawings and photographs, plus panels of interesting sidelights.
What is intensely frustrating is the failure to explain exactly how each plant changed history's course. Some are easy to work out, such as how Ireland's potato famine led to mass migration, but others, such as pineapple, remain a mystery.
Perhaps the book would have been better titled Fifty Significant Plants in the World Scheme of Things. Not catchy but a little more accurate.
- Gillian Vine is a Dunedin writer with a special interest in horticulture.
