Wildflowers of the Fairest Cape [Paperback]

A lovely collection of photographs. -- John E. Bryan, Gardening Newsletter, December 2000

One visit to South Africa or one look at this book and you will gasp at the beauty...Well done! -- Barney Lipscomb, SIDA, Botanical Research Institute, Vol. 19(2): 430, 2000

This is an excellent book for anyone with an interest in wildflower origins. -- Marjorie Walsh, Heather Notes, January 2000

Wildflowers of the Fairest Cape is a very special book. -- Heather Clippings, August 2001

Wildflowers of the Fairest Cape is giving a new look into the exquisite Western Cape of South Africa. -- Heather News, Newsletter of the North American Heather Society

"The fairest cape" was Sir Francis Drakes description of the Cape of Good Hope as he sailed around South Africa in 1580; the Cape Floral Kingdom, the smallest of the worlds six such regions, is one of the botanically richest areas of the earth. This guide by two eminent botanists details 652 of the most common or conspicuous wildflowers to be found there. About one-third of the species and more than four-fifths of the genera are presently in cultivation, so it is useful not only as a guide to the region but also as a source of information on many plants that are grown in gardensor should be. This book is a Red Roof Design Publication

Arranged by groups of related families, the handbook offers keys down to species level. Descriptions of families and genera in addition to the species fill this highly readable text. All plants are carefully photographed in their natural habitat to show off their important botanical features and help with identification. Also included are introductory sections on climate, geology, and vegetation. Wildflowers of the Fairest Cape is at once a scientifically accurate guide and a beautiful presentation of the Cape Floral Kingdom.

Peter Goldblatt is the B.A. Krukoff Curator of African Botany at the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis. Throughout his botanical career he has concentrated his attention on the Iridaceae and has shown particular interest in its African members.

John C. Manning is a botanist at the Compton Herbarium of the National Botanical Institute in Cape Town, South Africa. He has collaborated extensively with Goldblatt on studies of Iridaceae and has provided the line drawings for scientific publications and for books, such as this one and Gladiolus in Tropical Africa.