Mosses and liverworts - Ron Porley

A long-awaited addition to the botany titles in the highly-regarded Collins New Naturalist series, now in its 60th year.

Mosses and liverworts -known as bryophytes -are a group of about 24,000 fairly low-growing plants which have no roots to speak of. Nor do they have flowers, but breed instead by spores. Both are commonly found in damp places, like ditches and beside streams.

This authoritative guide explains their ecological importance, how they can act as environmental indicators and their general biology. With full-colour illustrations throughout, it covers:

- distribution patterns and dispersal mechanisms
- their relation with climate
- historical uses for mosses
- habitats and emmunities

This is a branch of botany which has always relied heavily on amateur involvement, and the authors explain what amateurs can do today to increase our knowledge about these essential plants.