Plantes de Montagne

A general identification guide, accessible for beginners but useful also for more demanding botanists. The guide covers 1,890 species of the French massifs from the lower mountains to alpine level, including the mountains of the Vosges, the Jura, the Alps, the Massif Central and the Pyrénées

Designed to be practical and fun, this guide also offers identification keys that will facilitate the recognition of related species by its users. The book presents many species that are little treated in the literature. All the species treated are present in France, including many local forms.

The book takes a modern approach to botany based on high resolution photography and provides helpful guidance for difficult groups with keys, look alike species and photos illustrating important botanical details.

In the mountains, ecological conditions can change very quickly due to altitude or exposure. This variation in environments explains the layering of vegetation, and promotes the expression of great botanical diversity and adaptations to the sometimes extreme conditions of altitude environments. The brevity of the summer season implies flowering concentrated over a short period and explains why high altitude environments are transformed into a veritable garden in summer.

As soon as the snow melts, the plants of the mountains offer a unique spectacle by their abundance, the brilliance of their flowering and their diversity. The authors, botanists and photographers present the flora of the French massifs in a very comprehensive way , emphasizing local and regional specificities.