Review by Booklist Review
Tourists who cross the length and breadth of California's topographically diverse countryside can't fail to notice its wide variety of trees, from the giant sequoias of the north to the coconut palms and Joshua trees of the south. As Stony Brook University professor and former Californian Farmer points out in this oversize landscape history of our third-largest state, many of these trees are nonnative flora, like eucalyptus and citrus trees, cultivated after the U.S. conquest of Mexico and concurrent discovery of gold in 1848. Those seminal events in California's history not only lured a flood of settlers but also inspired its new citizens to transform once-brown hills and valleys into Eden-like sanctuaries of orange groves and fig trees. In his comprehensive inquiry, Farmer charts the highs and lows of this horticultural revolution, including the ecological devastation that prompted environmentalists to protect the Yosemite Valley. More than just a dry botanical study, Farmer's work blends superlatively nuanced prose with plentiful eye-opening anecdotes to produce a unique history of little-known but significant aspects of the Golden State.--Hays, Carl Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In this meticulously researched tome, Farmer (On Zion's Mount) explores California's history and politics through the lens of four of the state's most notable trees: redwood, eucalyptus, orange, and palm. "California's genius may be green, but its underlying beauty is brown," notes the author. "By transforming the treescape, Californians did more than make dreams reality. They altered ecosystems." To his point, surprisingly, most of the trees associated with the Golden State didn't originate there. Eucalyptus was imported from Australia and orange trees came from Spain (they often needed to be heated with oil pots during cold snaps). Most California palms are not native to the state, with the exception of the fan palm, although they do thrive in Southern California's coastal areas. Yet despite being arboreal immigrants, each became a symbol of a different part of the state: redwoods are associated with Northern California, oranges with Southern California, palms with Hollywood, and eucalyptus throughout. (For those interested in learning more, Farmer includes a detailed list of suggestions for further reading.) The book offers a thorough look at the natural aspects of this massive, diverse state, and while extremely detailed, Farmer's engaging prose holds readers attention. (Nov.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Kirkus Book Review
How did the Golden State become green? Early explorers in California, seeking a mythical island "adjacent to Earthly Paradise," found a landscape starkly different from today's: a savannah and chaparral, with grassy hills, dry and brown much of the year. Few areas had abundant trees. Redwoods and sequoias clustered in the north, a few species of pine and oak grew at the central coast, and the Joshua tree made its home in the desert. As Farmer (History/Stony Brook Univ.; On Zion's Mount: Mormons, Indians, and the American Landscape, 2008, etc.) reveals in this illuminating, panoramic history, the state's native trees soon had much company. In the 18th century, Spanish Franciscans imported fruit and nut trees, which they planted around their missions. After the gold rush in 1849, many newcomers from the East "missed the shade, the green, and the chatter of songbirds." Others saw trees as economic opportunity. Farmer focuses on four species affected by human intervention: the endemic coast redwood, heedlessly cut down by lumber companies; citrus trees, which created "a landscape of social inequality, racial injustice, and environmental pollution"; palms, a symbol of glamor to southern Californians; and the Tasmanian blue gum, a species of fast-growing Australian eucalyptus, imported to "provide fuel, improve the weather, boost farm productivity, defeat malaria, preserve watersheds, and thwart a looming timber famine." As early as the 1880s, planters deemed eucalyptus a disaster: Wind toppled them easily, they proved to be a "venomous feeder" of soil nutrients, and they grew so fast that other plants could not thrive. Moreover, their wood contained so much water that it was useless for lumber. Farmer makes clear that greed was not the sole cause of bad decisions. Naturalists seeking spiritual enlightenment, environmentalists beset with "botanical xenophobia" and the government were just as likely to proceed without considering complex and fragile ecological consequences. Knowledgeable, wise and compelling, Farmer's book uncovers the subtle and surprising webs connecting the social, cultural and natural worlds of California, and the planet.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
