Celebrated plantsman Roy Lancaster's birth on December 5, 1937 was the
start of something big for plants and horticulture. His chance find of a
Mexican tobacco plant in a local allotment brought him fame as a
schoolboy and sowed the seeds of his future career. This book is the
story of his adventures as he sees tropical plants for the first time in
the jungles of Malaya, meets Roberto Burle Marx at his garden near Rio
de Janeiro, and hunts for pitcher plants in North America. Well-known
for his encyclopedic botanical knowledge and for introducing many
popular garden plants, Roy is also a consummate storyteller and wise
philosopher. His acute sense of life's comic moments, spirited sense of
adventure, and respect for the natural world make this a remarkable
read.