From the icy poles to the evergreen rainforests, life has found a way to flourish in nearly every environment on Earth. This book explores the startling discoveries of new life forms in extreme environments, such as the strange worlds of the ocean depths. Whilst marvelling the world around us, it also confronts the human impact on the environment. The mounting evidence for global warming is explored and challenges us to work towards a more sustainable...

What happens when your trees and shrubs fail to flourish? Welcome to the world of plant diagnostics. Ms. Myers shows you how to diagnose common growth problems with popular types of plants - just like an expert gardener. Along the way, you'll learn how to spot symptoms for everything from blight and dieback to chlorosis and invasive pests.

Move from outer elements of sustainability—such as solar energy, ecocities, and organic agriculture—to inner dimensions of sustainability: spirituality, holistic health, and well-being. Learn what faith-based organizations have to say about sustainability, investigate meditation, and delve deeper into the Slow Food Movement..

Now, focus on how to maintain the health of your plantings in spring and summer. First, explore the science behind water's impact on new plantings and ways to water more effectively. Then, get insider tips on mulching techniques that can protect trunks and stems. Finally, learn how to properly transplant trees or shrubs that have outgrown their space.

Learn how to implement a recovery plan to bring your landscape back to health from various threats. Is the problem actually worth treating? What kinds of insect traps should you use (and avoid)? How can adjusting the surrounding environment help? And why are black walnut trees often such a big problem?

Conclude this series with a look at some fun (and challenging) ways to enhance the ornamental appeal and space efficiency of trees and shrubs. Learn pruning methods that help create tunnels or help plantings grow flat against walls or fences; tips for shearing plants into interesting shapes; and growing trees and shrubs in containers, or from cuttings and seeds.

Explore some of the many ways you can extend your garden through fall and take advantage of the cool air and warm soil. You'll learn how to add bulbs for a splash of spring beauty, prune and protect your plants from a potentially harsh winter, install a lovely cool-season garden, harvest and store herbs, and learn from your experience to plan for an even better garden in the spring.

Integrate everything you’ve learned in this course with a high-level review. Look closely at permaculture and its ethics; consider the customs of the Tlingit, a self-sustaining people indigenous to the Pacific Northwest; and discover biomimicry, an emerging discipline that uses nature as a model for technological design..

What does it mean to live sustainably? How can we better live within the biophysical limits of the planet without engaging in self-denial? Begin to answer these questions here as you consider how your choices of home, food, transportation, energy, and more promote a sustainable lifestyle..

If we make our landscapes beautiful and functional, many of our needs can be met where we live. That’s the idea behind sustainable landscapes, the benefits of which you’ll explore here, from the surprising abundance of edible plants and household materials that can be produced, to the valuable services they can perform..