Wicked Plants: The Weed That Killed Lincoln's Mother & Other Botanical Atrocities -- Amy Stewart, Hardcover

A tree that sheds poison daggers; a glistening red seed that stops the heart; a shrub that causes paralysis; a vine that strangles; and a leaf that triggered a war. In Wicked Plants, Stewart takes on over two hundred of Mother Nature's most appalling creations. It's an A to Z of plants that kill, maim, intoxicate, and otherwise offend. You'll learn which plants to avoid (like exploding shrubs), which plants make themselves exceedingly unwelcome (like the vine that ate the South), and which ones have been killing for centuries (like the weed that killed Abraham Lincoln's mother).

Menacing botanical illustrations and splendidly ghastly drawings create a fascinating portrait of the evildoers that may be lurking in your own backyard. Drawing on history, medicine, science, and legend, this compendium of bloodcurdling botany will entertain, alarm, and enlighten even the most intrepid gardeners and nature lovers.


Author: Briony Morrow-Cribbs, Amy Stewart
Publisher: Algonquin Books
Published: 05/01/2009
Pages: 256
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.70lbs
Size: 7.25h x 5.70w x 0.80d
ISBN: 9781565126831

Review Citation(s):
Booklist 04/15/2009 pg. 10
Scientific American 08/01/2009 pg. 78