New from the

University of North Carolina Press

“This beautiful book calls clearly to each of us, asking us to understand the native botanical treasures in the distinct geography of the American South. So many wrenching, poignant, important stories that I had not known fill this calm, sensible book, whose pages are bound together with vines, in whose pages wildflowers are pressed. Think of this book as an expedition to plants and stories you can scarcely believe exist. You will be changed by it.”

— JANISSE RAY, author of Ecology of a Cracker Childhood and Wild Spectacle: Seeking Wonders in a World Beyond Humans

“Georgann Eubanks has chronicled the myriad ways that the culture and the land of the southeastern United States have sustained its people, and now she delivers an urgent and eloquent evocation requiring us to return the favor. This book is not just a celebration of a precious place but a call to action to save it. Read it. Now.”

— RONNI LUNDY, author of Victuals: An Appalachian Journey, with Recipes

The American South is famous for its astonishingly rich biodiversity. In this book, Georgann Eubanks takes a wondrous trek from Alabama through Georgia, Florida South Carolina, North Carolina, and Tennessee to search out native plants that are endangered and wavering on the edge of erasure. Even as she reveals the intricate beauty and biology of the South’s plant life, she also shows how local development and global climate change are threatening many species, some of which have been graduated to the federal list of endangered species.

Why should we care, Eubanks asks, about North Carolina’s Yadkin River goldenrod, found only in one place on earth? Or the Alabama canebrake pitcher plant, a carnivorous marvel being decimated by criminal poaching and a booming black market? These plants, she argues, are important not only to the natural environment but also to southern identity, and she finds her inspiration in talking with the heroes — the botanists, advocates, and conservationists young and old — on a quest to save these green gifts of the South for future generations. These passionate plant lovers caution all of us not to take for granted the sensitive ecosystems that contribute to the region’s long-standing appeal, beauty, and character.

Saving the Wild South

WildSouth.net

"I had one student tell me he had never touched a tree."

--La'Tanya Scott, environmental educator, Cahaba River Society, Birmingham, AL