Introduction to Plant Population Biology

by Jonathan Silvertown, Deborah Charlesworth

This completely revised, fourth edition of Introduction to Plant Population Biology continues the approach taken by its highly successful predecessors. Ecological and genetic principles are introduced and theory is made accessible by clear, accurate exposition with plentiful examples. Models and theoretical arguments are developed gradually, requiring a minimum of mathematics. The book emphasizes the particular characteristics of plants that affect their population biology, and evolutionary questions that are particularly relevant for plants. Wherever appropriate, it is shown how ecology and genetics interact, presenting a rounded picture of the population biology of plants. Topics covered include variation and its inheritance, genetic markers including molecular markers, plant breeding systems, ecological genetics, intraspecific interactions, population dynamics, regional dynamics and metapopulations, competition and coexistence, and the evolution of breeding systems and life history. An extensive bibliography provides access to the recent literature that will be invaluable to students and academics alike.

Genres: Nonfiction

368 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1982

About the author

Jonathan was born and raised in London and his schoolboy nature watching was done while taking furtive short-cuts on cross-country runs across Hampstead Heath. He made much faster progress when running back from Hampstead’s bookshops in time to beat the end of lunch hour bell. His first scientific paper was submitted with an epigraph by Walter de la Mare which the editor removed with a snide comment, and ever since Jonathan has done his best to hide the poetry in his scientific prose. In Orchard Invisible the poet emerges barefaced in the very first line with the words: “Seeds have a mirrored life, the original in nature and another reflected in literature and the imagination.”