Cycads of the world

by David L. Jones

"Cycads superficially resemble palms and are often misidentified as such. However, cycads are actually a unique assemblage of primitive plants that have been around for at least 250 million years. Because of their great antiquity they have been described as living fossils and the coelacanths of the plant world."--BOOK JACKET. "Cycads were an important source of food for the dinosaurs and, despite their toxicity, they have been prepared for food and valued by many cultures. Today they may be regarded as relicts, still widely distributed but diminished in diversity and persisting only in small disjunct communities. They have become highly sought after for gardens, both private and public, and their present status as endangered plants has engendered an upsurge of interest in their conservation."--BOOK JACKET. "With Cycads of the World David Jones has achieved that difficult task of writing a scientifically accurate text which is easy both to read and to understand. The book covers all 185