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Wolfgang Stuppy

Rob Kesseler

Seeds: Time Capsules of Life Hardcover – October 23, 2012

by Wolfgang Stuppy (Author), Rob Kesseler (Photographer), Prince Charles HRH the Prince of Wales (Preface)

4.6 79 ratings

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In this lavish collection, artist Rob Kesseler and seed morphologist Wolfgang Stuppy of the Millennium Seed Bank at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, present a natural history of seeds, illustrated with close-up photographs and scanning electron micrographs. The images afford an unprecedented view into a most astonishing microcosm, where even the tiniest examples are exquisitely beautiful and sophisticated—in fact Kesseler’s work has been called “mystifying,” “astounding,” and “awe-inspiring” by scientists and critics around the world. Seeds constitutes an essential source book not only for those fascinated by the natural world, but also for artists, designers, and anyone interested in the development of biological structures. This brand-new edition features a preface by HRH the Prince of Wales, himself an avid conservationist. With its studied narrative and beautiful photographic eye, this keepsake volume is a stunning tribute to the beauty and marvel of seeds.

Seeds are the most complex organs plants ever produce. A major keystone in the evolution of land plants, the first seeds appeared some 360 million years ago. Since then they have developed into highly sophisticated propagules that have enabled plants to dominate the Earth’s surface and conquer almost every possible habitat from the Antarctic to the hottest deserts. The diversity of shapes and sizes encountered in seeds is nearly endless and ranges from the impressive Seychelles nut at twenty kilos to the dustlike seeds of the orchids. No matter how small, packed into every seed is the complete genetic information needed to give rise to a new plant, whether it is a tiny herb or a giant rainforest tree. True time capsules of life, seeds may travel thousands of miles and, if necessary, wait for hundreds of years before germinating.

Print length

264 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Earth Aware Editions
Publication date

October 23, 2012
Dimensions

8.75 x 1 x 8 inches
ISBN-10

1608871118
ISBN-13

978-1608871117
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Wolfgang Stuppy is the seed morphologist at the Millennium Seed Bank Project, an international initiative dedicated to seed conservation managed by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. He holds a doctorate in comparative seed morphology and anatomy and lives in London.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Earth Aware Editions; 3rd ed. edition (October 23, 2012)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 264 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1608871118
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1608871117
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.52 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.75 x 1 x 8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #320,685 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #29 in Garden Pictorials
- #200 in Plant & Animal Photography
- #280 in Gardening Encyclopedias

Customer Reviews:
4.6 79 ratings

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4.6 out of 5

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Top reviews from the United States

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Lincoln County MT

SEEDS: lets me share with others my passion with seeds.

Reviewed in the United States on March 11, 2012

Verified Purchase

I am biased as all get out. Even though electron microscope work tends towards more art than the nitty gritty ID plates we scientists are so often seeking this book as well as the Pollen companion helps show my friends & family why I'm so passionate about seeds. Especially the microscopic sized itsy ones. It's a lovely book to lay out on your coffee table or on your guest room night stand. It sooths your senses now and again when you need a break away from the grind of actual seed work. Awe these bizzare colors and beautiful images magnified hundreds if not thousands of times yet crisp and focused. Such a delight and treat now and again...sitting outside on a calm day relaxing with a glass of ice tea. I'm so glad I have this book and the Pollen one too. I find the price listed here today a bit over the top. And no I don't want to re-sell my copy back to Amazon or at all for that matter. I got my copy for under 30.00 just two years ago and though a used copy it was like brand new. Not a book to use to ID but one to inspire.....relax and enjoy and yes even relish when you are a seed person.

16 people found this helpful

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KC

Fascinating visual story of seeds

Reviewed in the United States on March 15, 2015

Verified Purchase

This beautifully illustrated and very well written book will keep you coming back to marvel over the amazing seed. As a biology major 40 years ago I endured the required botany course. This book lured me in with the spectacular photosmicrographs and the simply written text taught me more about the plant world in one weekend than a whole semester.....but this not an academic book per se. My only criticism is that the font was too small and that reading white on a black background or atop an illustrated background made the reading way more difficult than it had to be. In my opinion this book should have been published in in a larger traditional " coffee table" size. The extra cost would have been worth it and there would have been room for more reasonably sized font and all text could have been dark on white or light colored background without sacrificing the way the colored seeds pop against the dark background. Maybe in the second edition ??

2 people found this helpful

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PHILIP VI

Wonderful photographs and scanning electron micrographs depicting intelligent design

Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2013

Verified Purchase

This book contains photographs showing stunning examples of the intricate design, variety and symmetry in seeds along with a wonderful introduction to how seeds work. The scanning electron micrographs are amazing. Explainations throughout are from an evolutionary point of view; however, the hand of the Creator is so obvious in these photographs of tiny capsules of life that it would take a leap of faith to believe that they came about by time and chance.

Unfortunately, the print font is small, especially for photo captions, and is often on a black background which is difficult to read without bright light. Nevertheless, the pictures alone make this book a treasure for any person with an interest in looking deep into the beauty of life displayed in seeds.

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Metta Muse

Beautiful to look at but font size makes it difficult to read

Reviewed in the United States on August 14, 2016

Verified Purchase

Gorgeous photos, truly inspiring. We have nature and great microscope technology and photographers to thank. Lovely arrangement of the images on the page. BUT!!!! Terribly difficult to read because the graphic designer used extremely small, light-colored type on black background with too much leading between the lines. The designer was trying to be "artistic" and original but did not make the text easy to read. Same problem with "The Bizarre and Incredible World of Plants" by Stuppy, Kessler, and Harley. Maybe reduce the number of words and enlarge the font size.

One person found this helpful

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flower girl

Beautiful, but with unfortunate editing and design issues

Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2013

Verified Purchase

There's no denying that this is a beautiful book--the seeds are strange and wonderful and the photography is peerless. It is also chock-full of information, which is why I acquired it. The level of detail (including careful explanations of exceptions and anomalies) is impressive.

I cannot give the book a rave review, however, because of the editing and the layout. I strongly suspect that an editor waded into this mass of information and injected a subhead every few paragraphs--the content/tone of these subheads is usually somewhat helpful (e.g. "Homage to the gymnosperms--at least they look good on paper" and "Creeps and jerks") but at odds with the precise scientific information that follows. Consequently the book is jarring to read (and I would venture to guess that the author of the body text was not always pleased).

The book is also jarring to read because of the design. The type is VERY small (maybe 5 or 6 points?); even with reading glasses, I find myself peering at the words. They are made even harder to read by the design. On one page the tiny words are in white or orange type (!) on a black page, then as you continue and turn the page, there is an abrupt shift to black type on a white page, or a purple page. Distracting at best. Oy vey.

Overall a marvelous achievement, but not very well-served by the production. WITH THE EXCEPTION of the photo quality: the photos are truly sharp and glorious.

49 people found this helpful

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AJK

Beautiful, small book

Reviewed in the United States on January 13, 2013

Verified Purchase

Seeds is a very nicely done book, for the price. The photography is excellent, and the printing does it justice. The colors are vibrant and rich, especially against the black backgrounds. The paper is a medium-weight semi-gloss.

The book is surprisingly small though. At 9" x 8", there just isn't a lot of it to hold onto, and each photograph is relatively small. It would have been nice to see the beautiful seeds blown up to at least 12" x 10".

However, at under $25, this is very nice little book on a unique subject matter that anyone who enjoys gardening or plants in general will definitely enjoy.

2 people found this helpful

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Jane C.

Beware!

Reviewed in the United States on March 12, 2015

Verified Purchase

Beware! This is a "compact edition" -- meaning shrunk! The original editions were approximately 1 x 12 x 11; this is 1 x 9 x 8.5. The photographs are still amazingly beautiful, but you may need a magnifying glass to read the print!

18 people found this helpful

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Kindle Customer

I was a bit disappointed in that it seems to focus on highly unusual ...

Reviewed in the United States on March 29, 2018

Verified Purchase

I was a bit disappointed in that it seems to focus on highly unusual seeds. Type is very small and book format is small. I have the Pollen book, and was anticipating that size format, which this is not. It's like a small coffee table book, yet the layout is like a full size book, in a small size format. Shrunk down book. Otherwise is good. Nice condition. Good price for what it is, and glad I didn't pay more.

One person found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

cheerio

a wonderful reference book

Reviewed in Canada on February 21, 2023

Verified Purchase

If you are a creative person, this is so inspiring, whether you make vessels from fibre or ceramics,.So many colors and textures and the pictures are extroadinary

Sean Paris-Thompson

Great images, text is very legible.

Reviewed in Canada on August 18, 2019

Verified Purchase

Really exceptional photos! I find them to be inspiring!
I've read comments about the text being small, but I don't think they are warranted. The text is quite legible and readable and is comparable to newspaper sized font.

Lauren

Inspiring

Reviewed in Canada on May 23, 2014

Verified Purchase

Beautifully photographed and educational. This book is going to be a great reference tool for creative projects. I especially loved the section of photographs that featured seeds that dispersed via the wind.

Amazon Customer

Five Stars

Reviewed in Canada on May 4, 2017

Verified Purchase

It's exactly what I ordered and beautiful!