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Name: The Incredible Journey of Plants
Rating: 4.5 (109 reviews)
Author: Stefano Mancuso

Stefano Mancuso

A fascinating account of natural history

4.5 (109 ratings)

20 mins

Brief summary

'The Incredible Journey of Plants' by Stefano Mancuso takes readers on a fascinating journey through the world of plants, showcasing their incredible adaptability and intelligence. It challenges common assumptions about plants and sheds light on their complex and sophisticated behaviors.

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Plants & Trees

Table of Contents

The Incredible Journey of Plants
Summary of 6 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 6

What’s in it for me? A whole new crop of fascinating plant facts.

From the mighty oaks dotting your local park to the fragrant flowers growing on your kitchen windowsill, plants are all around us. But, without legs, wings, or fins, how did our green friends get to where they’re growing now?

It’s a long story and one that these blinks will cover. In them, you’ll find a fascinating account of natural history that shows how the herbs, trees, and grasses that make up our gardens and side salads have made their way around the globe over the millennia.

You’ll learn how evolution, human migration, and pure coincidence tangled and entwined to spread certain species far and wide – from coconuts to spruce trees and avocados. You will digress into biology, genetics, and economics, and find out that our photosynthesizing friends are never quite as rooted as they seem.

In these blinks, you’ll also learn

how plants conquered the world’s newest island;
why Oxford Ragwort isn’t from Oxford at all; and
where to find the world’s loneliest tree.

Plants and vegetables have evolved to survive in almost every environment.

November 1963. Sixty miles south of Iceland, the earth is rumbling. Deep at the bottom of the Atlantic, a volcano erupts. The mounting magma reaches the surface, and suddenly, Iceland has a new island. It’s named Surtsey, and it’s completely barren – but not for long.

Within weeks, there is life. Pale green sprouts of Cakile, an arctic flower genus, emerge from the soil. These pioneering plants arrive on the island thanks to their specialized seeds, which have evolved to float on ocean currents.

Cakile isn’t the only vegetation, either. Black sedge starts growing, too. Its seeds are carried in the stomachs of migrating sea birds. Soon, the entire island is lush with green life. It just goes to show how plants are able to colonize even the remotest patches of the globe.

The key message here is: Plants and vegetables have evolved to survive in almost every environment.

“Plants and vegetables" is shorthand for all photosynthesizing organisms that belong to the kingdom Plantae. You might not know it, but these are some of the most successful species on Earth. Plants can be found thriving in almost every ecological niche on the planet – from the highest mountains to the deepest oceans and the driest deserts.

This is partly thanks to the incredible range of adaptations found within the group. Millions of years of evolution have equipped each species with just the right abilities to survive in their given environment, no matter how harsh. The Cakile, for example, is a halophyte, which means it’s particularly robust and has developed to thrive on saltwater.

Plants can even survive the ravages of radiation. Consider the Zone of Alienation, the vast swath of Europe evacuated in the wake of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster of 1986. While the initial catastrophe killed almost everything in the area, plant life has since returned and even flourished. Scientists attribute this remarkable comeback to phytoremediation, a special process some plants use to absorb dangerous particles called radionuclides.

An equally impressive act of survival is seen in Japan’s Hibakujumoku. This is a term given to the trees that withstood the nuclear detonations in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. One of these Hibakujumoku is a weeping willow that still grows just 1,200 feet from where the bomb landed in Hiroshima. The roots of this tree were so robust that they lived to produce a new trunk even after the bomb blasted the entire area with temperatures of more than 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

Plants will invade any new habitat they can.

Imagine sitting down to a classic Italian meal. What dishes are on the table? Maybe some pasta smothered in a rich ragu or a piping hot margarita pizza. Surely, nothing could be more authentically Italian.

But that feast is actually more foreign than it appears. The basil on the pizza isn’t native to Italy. It originally grew only in central India – that is, until Alexander the Great brought it back to what’s now Italy sometime in the 350s BCE. The tomato arrived even later. Explorer Hernan Cortes imported it from the Americas in 1540.

Coconut species demonstrate the amazing adaptability of plants.

In the early 1900s, August Engelhardt discovered the key to eternal life. At least, he thought he did. The eccentric German nudist believed a diet consisting solely of coconuts would grant him perfect health. To test his theory, he moved to the South Pacific, where he set up a colony dedicated to this vision.

Unfortunately for Engelhardt and the dozens of disciples who followed his teachings, the hard-shelled tropical delicacy didn’t deliver immortality. Those who attempted the all-coconut diet soon died of malnutrition.

A plant’s seeds can survive and grow after centuries of waiting.

It’s the turn of the twentieth century. Auguste Renoir, the famed Impressionist painter, is spending his last years in Provence, France. Here, he passes his days lolling in the shade and painting the local olive trees. Today, Renoir is long gone, but the very trees he painted are still alive and thriving.

That’s impressive. But these olive trees are just babies compared to Old Tjikko, a Norway spruce growing in Sweden. This tree began its life more than 9,000 years ago when humans were just discovering agriculture. And Tjikko itself is just a baby compared to Pando, a colony of genetically identical poplar trees in Utah. This organism can trace its roots back some 80,000 years.

Solitary trees are evidence of the Anthropocene.

Picture a vast and barren desert. A dry, sun-soaked panorama with nothing but sand as far as the horizon. Now, imagine that among the dunes stands a single, solitary tree. This is the Tree of Ténéré, once known as the loneliest tree in the world.

For centuries, the Tree of Ténéré eked out an existence in an isolated corner of the Sahara, the only plant for hundreds of miles. Its unusual isolation lent it a poetic presence, and it served as a landmark for lonesome camel caravans crossing the area.

The lives of plants and animals are intimately connected.

The Amazon is one of the most biodiverse habitats on the planet. But all that life means fierce competition for space and resources. So, when it’s time for plants to propagate their next generation, they must spread their seeds as far away as possible. This pressure results in some astounding strategies.

Consider the Hura crepitans, sometimes called a dynamite tree. It takes matters into its own hands. This unusual organism has evolved specialized fruit that burst when ripe. These biological bombs launch the tree’s seeds at more than 200 feet per second. The seeds sometimes land more than 120 feet away!

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What is The Incredible Journey of Plants about?

The Incredible Journey of Plants (2020) tells the fascinating story of how plants came to inhabit every corner of the globe. Pairing natural history with the latest insights from the life sciences, this biological biography shows how plants are much more dynamic than they seem.

The Incredible Journey of Plants Review

The Incredible Journey of Plants (2020) takes readers on a fascinating exploration of the secret lives of plants and why they matter. Here's why this book is definitely worth reading:

With intriguing anecdotes and scientific research, it reveals the extraordinary abilities and intelligence of plants, challenging our perception of the natural world.
It uncovers the hidden interconnectedness of plants and their profound impact on the planet, offering a new perspective on our relationship with nature.
By demystifying complex concepts and making them easily understandable, the book captivates readers and makes the natural world more accessible and exciting.

Best quote from The Incredible Journey of Plants

Seeds are survival capsules that transport vegetable life in time and space.

—Stefano Mancuso

Who should read The Incredible Journey of Plants?

Plant-lovers eager to learn more about their gardens
Herbivores curious about the history of their food
Anyone interested in deeper insights into the natural world

About the Author

Stefano Mancuso is a professor of botany at the University of Florence and the world’s leading expert in plant neurobiology. He has published more than 250 scientific papers and popular titles such as Brilliant Green: The Surprising History and Science of Plant Intelligence and The Revolutionary Genius of Plants: A New Understanding of Plant Intelligence and Behavior.

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