Cactus Explorers Journal - The Cactus Explorers Club

The Cactus Explorer ISSN 2048-0482 Number 4 May 2012
thE lovE of Books
News of Recent Publications. A Reminder of Old Favourites.
Many cactophiles enjoy reading about their plants, particularly in the winter when our
collections are less demanding. This feature aims to provide you with inspiration.
101 Cactus del Perú
Peru is surely one of the most important
countries when considering the cactus flora of
the world. It has a remarkable diversity of
biogeographic zones ranging from the very
dry coastal strip to tropical rain forest. Many of
these zones support cacti. Some species are
small and hard to find but others are dramatic
trees.
Dr. Carlos Ostolaza is very well known to
enthusiasts around the world for his work
with cacti in Peru over many years. He has
been a pioneer in the education of the Peruvian
people about the importance of their floral
heritage and the need to conserve it. In 1987 he
founded QUEPO, the Peruvian Cactus and
Succulent Society and still edits their annual
journal.
This impressive book has been printed and
published in Peru and, being written in
Spanish, should further promote interest
within the country. As in many countries, the
cacti in Peru face pressures on their survival
from infrastructure developments such as
dams, roads and mines, as well as the
expansion of agriculture. The long-term
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conservation of cacti depends to a great extent
on the value placed on them by the local
people. It is to be hoped that books like this
will help spread understanding of the plants
and the need for their conservation.
The volume is hardbound, 240 x 273mm
landscape, 256 pages. There are 546 colour
photographs, all reproduced at a good size.
The non-technical text is written in Spanish.
The 101 species described are about 40% of
the cacti found in Peru and have been well
chosen to represent the diversity of the family.
Many of the featured species are popular in
cultivation and are usually illustrated in
culture and also in habitat. A brief description
is given for each taxon together with an
indication of its known distribution.
Some potential readers might be put off by
the Spanish text but the pictures alone make it
a valuable reference and the text is quite easy
to follow even if you understand only a little of
the language.
You can watch the launch of the book on
youtube.
Carlos tells me that Mildred Margot Canales
Azabache has copies of the book in Spain
available for sale at 60€. You can contact her by
email.
GC
Looking for a second hand book?
You can search the stock of book dealers
around the world by using one of the
specialist web sites for example:
http://www.addall.com/Used
http://www.bookfinder.com
http://www.abebooks.com