The product of ten years of travel, research, and photography, Portraits of Himalayan flowers a are jewel of a book that is as inspiring as it is informative. The 108 glorious color photographs of Himalayan plants correspond to the 108 beads of the Tibetan Buddhist rosary. The text that accompanies these photographs is a remarkable blend of technical information of value to botanists and garden and fascinating accounts of the challenges of survival in the Himalayas, for plants and travelers both.
Toshio Yoshida trekked throughout the Himalayas during his research and gives a vivid description of the monsoonal climate that dominates the region and his fieldwork. While the drier seasons might be more hospitable to travelers, the monsoon season provides the window of opportunity for plants to nourish themselves and reproduce. The author provides a special focus on the ingenious and often shockingly beautiful adaptations that plants have evolved to survive in this extreme climate-from dense coverings of hairs to paper-thin "tents" to conserve heat. Perhaps most fascinating are the mechanisms that flowers employ to achieve pollination in the midst of the monsoon. Often, the stories of how Toshio Yoshida had to wait days or weeks for a break in the deluge to take his perfect photographs are as compelling as his field notes.
To increase their value to students of plants, the photographs are given in taxonomic order. In addition, a helpful history of Himalayan plant exploration and discovery is provided by Dr. Hideaki Ohba from the University of Tokyo. A detailed map of the regions trekked is included.
