Product Description

Nicholas Harberd's narrative of the changing seasons has as its focus one tiny thale-cress plant in an East Anglian churchyard. He describes both what can be seen with the naked eye and the hidden molecular mechanisms that underlie it. He also tells the story of the last ten years of discovery in his own laboratory, as the team works to understand the genetic control of the growth of thale-cress. Part field notebook, part sketchbook, part diary, "Seed to Seed" is a dazzling evocation of the beauty of the natural world and an exhilarating explanation of the secret workings of plants.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #194660 in Books
• Published on: 2007-04-16
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

Review
'Natural History in its purest form. A botanical masterpiece in miniature' David Bellamy 'A bravura performance ... It is a privilege to watch a subtle and daring mind at work ... and to glimpse, from so many angles, a scientist at work in the world' Jenny Uglow, Sunday Times 'Tracing the lifespan of a weed, both in the wild and in a laboratory, makes enthralling reading. Harberd, intensely aware of nature's changing seasonal patterns, blends day-by-day observance with scientific exactness to sharpen our awareness of nature's purposes and beauty. Brilliantly written' Penelope Hobhouse 'It's another world. Another language. But Harberd has the gift of connecting us with it ... What Harberd's book gives us clueless amateurs is a huge sense of awe at the extraordinary and brilliant machinery that regulates plant growth' Anna Pavord, Independent

David Bellamy
`Natural History in its purest form. A botanical masterpiece in
miniature'

Penelope Hobhouse
`Tracing the lifespan of a weed, both in the wild and in a
laboratory, makes enthralling reading ... Brilliantly written'

Customer Reviews

"It's about seeing"
Completing a research project and polishing off a journal paper left Nicholas Harberd at loose ends. While casting about for a new project, he struck out on a new course. It is good for us that he did. His quest led him to reflect on Nature's mysterious ways in terms that turned him away from his laboratory work to seek fresh insights. Many years of study of the thale-cress, a humble-looking but informative little plant, had provided much detailed information. Harberd, finding a thale-cress atop a grave in a church cemetery, began considering the plant in a fresh view. He developed a broader vision by studying it in Nature instead of his laboratory.

As the notes progress, Harberd describes the processes involved in the plant's growth and development. He explains how the leaves bud, then expand, each new leaf set 137 degrees away from its neighbour. The angle is a mystery, but many plants make rosettes of leaves, each with their own separation formula. The core of plant is the meristem, and there are two of these in each plant - one for roots and one for the shoot. There are genetic triggers launching the growth process. Harberd explains how these work and, as far as is known, how they interact. The plant, all plants apparently, start with a set of proteins, the DELLAs, that actually inhibit the growth process. He develops the scene with other genes and their proteins that "restrict restraint" allowing the plant to flourish - if the conditions are right.

This book is a reflection of his thoughts, dreams, research problems and other facets of his life and work. Harberd describes the conditions of each day of his note-taking, the weather, the other plants, the soil conditions. The notes are expressive of his reaction to the environment around him, the meanderings of his thoughts as they jump from the pressure of his work to the progress of the little thale-cress. There are setbacks, of course. A slug finds the cress. So does a rabbit, which nearly terminates his study. His reactions in each case are mixed - should he relocate the slug elsewhere? What to do about the rabbit? What happens if caretakers clean up the grave site? Underlying it all are the questions about the next project and what kind of contributions might his group now undertake? What new views of Nature and plant life might result from their work?

Non-scientists don't understand researchers or what they do, claiming scientists lack feeling, notes Harberd. Yet, "wonder is what drives us" says this scientist. The feeling of wonder at how things work is the basis of all research. Nature isn't driven by divine mandate, yet Harberd insists that all research results in a sense of awe. As the notes progress over the days and months, the words "wonder", "exciting" and even "breathtaking" appear with increasing frequency. He rediscovers that himself during an Autumn review of his jottings.

It's impossible not to be caught up in his enthusiasm as he depicts the experiments he and his team perform in developing new ideas or confirming older ones. One experiment, half a century old, proposed an idea for one plant type. Harberd and his group refined the test and tried it on the thale-cress. It confirmed the earlier findings and expanded on it. This kind of work demonstrates the uniformity of cellular processes across many plant species, from scrawny cress to towering redwood. "Wondrous", indeed! [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

Seed to sleep...
Nice book etc, etc, but it is rather like reading a someones diary. I found I couldn't finish it, just too much about day to day activity unfortunately. If you like reading about the daily grind of an academic working on Arabidopsis may be you'll enjoy it.