George F. Peterken's Books

Natural Woodland

Ecology and Conservation in Northern Temperate Regions

By: George F. Peterken

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Natural Woodland

Ecology and Conservation in Northern Temperate Regions

By: George F. Peterken

A fascinating account of woodland natural history for all those concerned with woodland management and ecology.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

542

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0521367921

ISBN 13

9780521367929

Woodland Conservation and Management

By: George Peterken

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Woodland Conservation and Management

By: George Peterken

Professor John Harper, in his recent Population Biology of Plants (1977), made a comment and asked a question which effectively states the theme of this book. Noting that 'one of the consequences of the development of the theory of vegetational climax has been to guide the observer's mind forwards', i. e. that 'vegetation is interpreted as a stage on the way to something' , he commented that 'it might be more healthy and scientifically more sound to look more often backwards and search for the explanation of the present in the past, to explain systems in relation to their history rather than their goal'. He went on to contrast the 'disaster theory' of plant succession, which holds that communities are a response to the effects of past disasters, with the 'climax theory', that they are stages in the approach to a climax state, and then asked 'do we account most completely for the characteristics of a population by a knowledge of its history or of its destiny?' Had this question been put to R. S. Adamson, E. J. Salisbury, A. G. Tansley or A. S. Watt, who are amongst the giants of the first forty years of woodland ecology in Britain, their answer would surely have been that understanding lies in a knowledge of destiny. Whilst not unaware of the historical facts of British woodlands, they were preoccupied with ideas of natural succession and climax, and tended to interpret their observations in these terms.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

511

Publisher

Springer Science & Business Media

Published Date

ISBN 10

9400948549

ISBN 13

9789400948549

Woodland Development

A Long-term Study of Lady Park Wood

By: George Peterken,Edward Mountford

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Woodland Development

A Long-term Study of Lady Park Wood

By: George Peterken,Edward Mountford

In 1944 Lady Park Wood (45 hectares of woodland in Gloucestershire and Monmouthshire, UK) was set aside indefinitely by the Forestry Commission so that ecologists could study how woodland develops naturally. Since then, in a unique long-term study, individual trees and shrubs have been recorded at intervals, accumulating a detailed record of more than 20,000 individual beech, sessile oak, ash, wych elm, small-leaved lime, large-leaved lime, birch, hazel, yew and other species. In the seven decades since the study started, the wood has changed; trees grew, died and regenerated, and drought, disease and other events shaped its destiny. Each tree and shrub species reacted in its own way to changes in the wood as a whole and to changes in the fortunes of its neighbours. Meanwhile, the wild fauna, flora and fungi also responded, leaving the wood richer in some groups but poorer in others. In this landmark book, beautifully illustrated throughout, George Peterken and Edward Mountford, summarise the ongoing results of the Lady Park Wood study, highlighting its unique place in nature conservation and its significance to ecology in general. It also builds on experience at Lady Park Wood and elsewhere to discuss in particular: the role and maintenance of long-term ecological studies; the concept and form of natural woodland; the role of minimum-intervention policies in woodland nature conservation; near-to-nature forestry; and the desirability and practicalities of re-wilding woodlands.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

304

Publisher

CABI

Published Date

ISBN 10

1780648650

ISBN 13

9781780648651

Book's by George F. Peterken

Natural Woodland

Natural Woodland

Woodland Conservation and Management

Woodland Conservation and Management

Woodland Development

Woodland Development

Username

Password

Username

Password

Password again

Birthday

Email