A Reunion of Trees: The Discovery of Exotic Plants and Their Introduction into North American and European Landscapes

by Stephen A. Spongberg, Stephen A. Spongberg

Stephen Spongberg's vividly written and lavishly illustrated "travel story" of trees and shrubs tells of intrepid explorers who journeyed to the far corners of the globe and brought back to Europe and North America a wealth of exotic plant species.

Genres: Nature

270 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1990

Reviews

[Andreas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting and well-written history lesson, however I was often torn between just enjoying the read, but also thinking about all the damage these people caused, and the outdated views glorified in the book. On the good side we have the description and documentation of thousands of new species of plants, and the cultivation of many rare species in botanic gardens. On the bad side we have the preventable spread of many invasive species and introduced plant pathogens, and the straight up poaching of tens of thousands of plants in some cases. Considering all this damage, I almost laughed out loud when the authors (quite arrogantly in my opinion) described the new import and export regulations for plant material that were set in effect in the early 20th century, as "troublesome" and annoying.
And finally, I am really happy that there is now a growing movement of using native plants for landscaping instead of simply planting things that "look good" without considering the natural history context, as if the plants were just furniture for our visual pleasure.

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very readable account about the explorer/ botanists who introduced exotic trees from North American to Europe and from the rest of the world specifically to the northeastern parts of the United States. The book is ancetdotal telling all the adventures these explorers had during their botanizing adventures. I recommend this one.

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Useful & well written overview of how exotic plants were introduced into North America and Europe--by whom, when, under what circumstances.

[JD Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's been a long journey with this book. I spent two months reading the text. I then got the idea of posting illustrations of each plant which the author described, every last plant that the author provided the Latin name for. That would take another four years or so. The sad story I learned while I was reading the book and commenting on social media, was that some of these discoveries are now some of the worst pasts nationwide.

The book is as much about the founding and continuance of the Arnold Arboretum as with the general story of exotic plants coming to American home gardens. I found that learning the names of plant explorers and their discoveries added to my love of a well-tended garden.

There is a detailed bibliography for the scholars among us. The book will be quite accessible to the educated layman. I recommend it to those who want to learn of the history of how many of our most common garden plants came to be.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Spongberg's work focuses primarily on the importation of trees and other ligneous/woody plants (shrubs, bushes, etc.) into North America and Europe. The second half of the book discusses European and North American plant hunters' explorations in East Asia, especially Japan. The book is focalized through Harvard's Arnold Arboretum, an important importer of exotic plants since its founding in 1872.