Grow by Riz Reyes illustrated by Sara Boccaccini Meadows

"Each chapter of this book celebrates the heroic efforts of a few plants heroes that have sustained our communities and shaped many cultures around the world. ... Hopefully children will uncover their own botanical heroes through reading this book ... "

Mint; Lettuce; Mushrooms; Daffodils; Pineapples; Tomatoes; Apples; Kale; Carrots; Aloe Vera; Tea Plants; Maple; Bamboo; Pumpkins; Orchids.

Though the book is non-fiction, Reyes lets a kind of horticultural narrative play out as we journey through its pages.  We learn about the different plants in history – when and where they originated and how they were used – as well as the various families that each plant belongs to, describing some of the other related plants in each group.  Most importantly of all, we learn how to plant and grow each one – what time of year to plant, how to care for them and how to help them flourish. Reading Time

Here are a few of my discoveries from this book:

• Mint is named after a nymph from Greek mythology - Minthe
• Lettuce is a member of the Asteraceae family - others are chrysanthemum, dandelion, and sunflower.
• Daffodils are used as a symbol for many cancer organisations because they are a sign of hope.
• Pineapples are pollinated in the wild by bats and hummingbirds.
• Botanists consider that the tomato is a berry because it has seeds and pulp and comes from the ovary of a single flower.
• Apple cores were dropped by traders along the Silk Road and so the seeds grew into apple trees.
• Kale is related to kohlrabi, broccoli, and cauliflower.
• Kublai Khan bought carrots to China in the thirteenth century. You need to know I, your blogger at Momotimetoread, does not like carrot cake!
• Maple syrup is made from tree sap and the maple tree is from the same family as the lychdee, horse chestnut, and Indian soapberry.
• All pumpkins are squashes but not all squashes are pumpkins.
• The Phalaenopsis orchid is also known as the moth orchid because a naturalist mistook the flowers for moths in 1750.

Riz Reyes is a hortoculturalist and that knowledge and passion shines through in this book.  Sara Boccaccini Meadows (perfect name to illustrate a book about plants) also has a book about the stars but sadly here in Australia Glow is way too expensive for a school library. It would make a beautiful gift though, as would Grow, for a special child or on a special occasion: