Life in a gall: The biology and ecology of insects that live in plant galls.
CSIRO Publishing 2012. 70 pages.

The Biggest Estate on Earth comes at a time when fire management in Victoria appears to have become ruled by a science of idiocy. Burning of the land is currently focused on reaching senseless area targets with little regard to effects on our ecology or even on reducing further fires. With all our science, technology and civilized ways, it seems that overall we are still a long way from appropriately managing and understanding the country we live in.

There is a proverb that says “The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The second best time is now”. This quotation doesn’t come from Australia's Remarkable Trees, but it is very apt as it demonstrates the link between Australia’s history and its trees.

The Roots of Civilisation

This is a ripper of a book!

Written by John Newton, a Sydney-based journalist and author, this is a pot-pourri of (as the subtitle of the book suggests) plants that changed the world.

The Roots of Civilisation runs the gamut of food plants, fibres, plants used in dyes, medicinal, poisonous, ‘psychoactive’ plants and even aphrodisiacs. It provides a deliciously entertaining guide of how these plants, along with the influence of mankind, have changed the world forever. It is a story of discovery, ingenuity, survival and greed.