Wild Plant Culture by Jared Rosenbaum

Review of Wild Plant Culture

I give this book 9 out of 10 acorns.  I really enjoyed this book.  It spoke to me as a human who consistently strives to better connect with the land and will forever look towards regenerative solutions.  I love how it points out that humans are key species, and it is our responsibility to act as such.  So many times I have heard that a world without humans is more natural, that humans are a disease on this earth.  While I abhor our negative impact on nature and the land, I believe that we are a part of the natural landscape, and it is our behaviors and choices that have disconnected us and continue to harm the natural world.  The innovations that we are capable of could be used responsibly and in line with a healthy natural ecosystem.  The author seems to also share some of this view, and so I connected to the book rather quickly.  

The reason this book is 9/10 and not 10/10 is that I think some of the tones of the book could turn off certain readers that would otherwise enjoy or benefit from the book.  I hope that the author's views and opinions are taken for what they are and it doesn't taint the rest of the book.  It is a great resource and I wholly appreciate that it brings solutions to the problems that it points out.  The descriptions of the plants are concise but thorough and while it is not a field book, I could see its use as a reference for basic information.  It is well laid out, and each section is thoughtfully planned.  The order in which the information is laid out was easy to follow and at times the information seemed to build upon itself.  The end of the book includes an extensive end notes section, which I have been using for further reading.  I also really enjoyed the colorful pictures at the end.   Ultimately, I am very glad to have read it.  Even living in the western united states, I found this book to be useful and informative.