In Botanical Time: The Extraordinary Lifespans of the World's Oldest Living Plants

by Christopher Woods

The fascinating botanical and cultural uses of twenty-five of the world’s longest-lived plants, including seagrass, aspens, and the five sacred trees of Japan.

In Botanical Time is an exploration of the fascinating botanical and cultural uses of twenty-five of the world’s longest-lived plants. The book will focus on how and why these plants have adapted and evolved and what we can learn from them today in our ever more extreme conditions.

In Botanical Time will also focus on the science behind how and why organisms have evolved to live that long at all, the sustainability benefits of being able to do so, and, from these investigations, larger lessons about the rapidity with which humans have caused and are still causing species to adapt to be able to survive in increasingly human-invaded habitats and conditions. The book will also draw meaningful parallels to the ways humans have long recognized these plant species’ worth, looking to them as symbols of strength or endurance, that will resonate with a general popular science and gardening readership.

Genres: Nonfiction

240 pages, Hardcover

Published February 17, 2026

About the author

Librarian Note: There are multiple authors by this name in the Goodreads database.

See also: Sci-fi/fantasy author Christopher Woods

Reviews

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a lovely book, full of pictures of the plants being discussed (or, in the case of some of the closely guarded individuals, other plants of the same species). It sent me down multiple rabbit holes on Wikipedia to look up some of the tangentially mentioned topics (nightingale floors, New Zealand volcanoes, etc.) and made me tear up more than once.

[Don · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a great concept for a book, and it is filled with many interesting stories and anecdotes. Unfortunately, there are no references, so all assertions of plant longevity must be taken on faith.