About the Book

  This tiny, humid island at the tip of the Malay Peninsula was once a forest-covered Garden of Eden. The majority of the 2,500 different species of native plants were forest trees and shrubs, woody climbers and other perennials. Even today over 1,000 native species can still be found, many restricted to the few surviving forest areas. Although their range may be limited, their variety is not –just the Nature Reserve alone, contain over 500 species of forest trees – almost as many tree species as found in the whole of Europe! Ironically, most people do not see these trees, as the species often grown in gardens and on roadsides are the more colourful ones from abroad.

  The “Species” section of this book categorise the plants by type – herb, shrub, tree, fruit, vegetable – and by habitat – seashore, mangrove, forest, etc. Each species is illustrated in colour and the extended caption contains a wealth of information about the plants, its origin and its used. In addition, there is a double-page feature on the Botanic Gardens, with a map showing where some of the species may be found.

About the Author

Author and photographer for the book, Ivan Polunin has travelled extensively throughout Southeast Asia, and started serious photography and cinematography in the 1950s.  Since then, his work has appeared in many publications, including the National Geographic magazine and Time-Life series. In addition, he has filmed single-handed a dozen documentaries for the BBS

     He lives with his Singaporean family on one of the last green hillsides in Singapore and spends his time tending his garden.