Green cargoes

By Anne Dorrance

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• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0007E3C5Y
• Release Date: January 1945
• Publisher: Doubleday, Doran
• Length: 187 Pages

Customer Reviews

Economic features of plant life

This book is unparalleled in its thorough coverage of the impact that plants have made on our economy and even played in the creation and execution of wars. You may find books that have chapters that rival this book, but none of these books comes close to the comprehension and interest that Anne Dorrance puts into this book. Marco Polo came back from his journeys to the east with tales of where cinnamon came from. The book covers the ways in which nations hid their botanical secrets or knowledge of where plants grew, maintaining their monopolies. The wars other nations fought to gain these secrets and break the monopolies. Many plants were used as money, including peppercorns. The origin of the Wardian case (terrarium) is also discussed. We read how plants were moved all over the world to similar climates. And how the problems in shipping and growing were overcome. Every page is an eye-opener. You will never look at plants the same way.