IAS Aroid Quasi Forum

About Aroid-L
 This is a continuously updated archive of the Aroid-L mailing list in a forum format - not an actual Forum. If you want to post, you will still need to register for the Aroid-L mailing list and send your postings by e-mail for moderation in the normal way.

  Aroid Literature
From: edleigh7 at optusnet.com.au (edleigh) on 2007.11.07 at 08:40:32(16674)
G'day, I am fairly new to Aroid l, I have been reading posts and trying to take it all in to be honest. I haven't been into aroids for that long, but I am quite passionate about them. I've got the "bug" so to speak.
I was wondering if anyone could recommend a good all round book on aroids so I don't have to annoy people like Steve L for identification etc all the time. I don't trust a lot of the information on non scientific sites on the internet. Any advice would be appreciated.

Regards,

Ed & Leigh

+More
From: Steve at ExoticRainforest.com (ExoticRainforest) on 2007.11.10 at 17:59:04(16678)
Hey Ed! Don't worry about annoying me! I just take the photos and annoy everyone else on the list by asking them. That's how we all learn. There are some honest-to-goodness experts on this forum, in my opinion: world class. Me, I'm still very much a student. Besides, I have learned quite a bit by trying to help you track down some of your plants. But if you post them here you'll get those answers a lot quicker!

Steve Lucas

+More
From: aroidgrower at verizon.net (John Ludwig) on 2007.11.10 at 19:07:23(16682)
Aroids: Plants of the Arum Family
by Deni Brown second edition is an excellent book for general
information about the Araceae family of plants.

I have found that this book is available at a very reasonable price at
timber press or barnes and noble.

When it comes to information about specific species and genera I have
found the advice of those who are smarter and more knowledgeable than
myself to be invaluable, especially those who subscribe to this list!

+More
From: tricia_frank at hotmail.com (Patricia Frank) on 2007.11.10 at 21:44:33(16685)
Date: Sat, 10 Nov 2007 14:07:23 -0500From: aroidgrower at verizon.netTo: aroid-l at gizmoworks.comSubject: Re: [Aroid-l] Aroid LiteratureThis book can also be ordered on our web-site at www.aroid.org.
TriciaAroids: Plants of the Arum Family
by Deni Brown second edition is an excellent book for general information about the Araceae family of plants.

I have found that this book is available at a very reasonable price at timber press or barnes and noble.

When it comes to information about specific species and genera I have found the advice of those who are smarter and more knowledgeable than myself to be invaluable, especially those who subscribe to this list!

+More
From: botanist at malesiana.com (Peter Boyce) on 2007.11.11 at 00:09:51(16687)
Ed & Leigh, welcome to the site and to aroids!

An excellent general intro to the family is Bown, Aroids, Plants of the Arum Family (ISBN 0 88192 485 7), Publ. 2000 by Timber Press

At the level of genus the current ref. is The Genera opf Araceae by Mayo, Bogner & Boyce (ISBN 1 900347 22 90). Publ. 1997 by The Trustees, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew although at 10 years old it is beginning to show it's age a tad in so much as there have been and will continue to be changes at generic level.

The main problem besetting aroids is that there is no single ref. to all the species - not really surprising given that the two biggest genera (Philodendron and iAnthurium) together probably contain 1800+ spp, of which perpahs as much as 50% are undescribed! Here in Sarawak our two largest genera (Schismatoglottis & Homalomena) probably account for 200 spp. with fewer than 80 described.

You are quite right to be sceptical of many aroid names on the web but as you get futher into this 9and I warn you, once you ar 'in'aroids there is no escape...) you'll begin torealize that certain people and sites are very trustworthy. So, for example, Tom Craot for Anthurium and Philodendron and central/south American aroids in general, Eduardo Gon?alves for Spathicarps and Brazil in general, Julious for the Lasioids and anything to do with edibility (and indeed recipes), Wilbert and Alan Galloway for anything tuberous, and so on.

Very best

Peter

+More
Note: this is a very old post, so no reply function is available.