Illustrations on the Flora of the Palni Hills, South India

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This volume of 950 plates is the first of the 4-parts Flora of the Palni Hills due to be completed in 1997 as the montane counterpart of the authorâ€™s Flora of the Tamilnadu Carnatic that covered a representative sector of the Tamilnadu plains and the southern hill ranges of the Eastern Ghats falling within Tamilnadu. That plant illustrations are the usersâ€™ top priority became clearer as the publication of the previous series progressed, where a total of 1,716 species were illustrated. The present series adds another 914 species. These along with another 250 plates to be published along with the 3-part text in 1997, will be the most complete coverage of the peninsular Indian Flora east of the Western Ghats. A special feature is the high percentage of alien plants that have become a permanent feature of the Indian hill stations. These plants were little known, or worse, known under wrong names. The authorâ€™s Exotic Flora of Kodaikanal (1969) was an early attempt to remedy this situation. This has now been further carried forward taking care to name all the plants correctly with overseas collaboration, and providing detailed illustrations.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR K.M. Matthew

K.M. Matthew, S.J., F.L.S. is the Director both of The Rapinat Herbarium, Tiruchirapalli (Research base), and of The Anglade Institute of Natural History, Shembaganur, Kodaikanal (Environmental base). Apart from University teaching and research, the lionâ€™s share of his efforts went into the 10-part Flora of the Indian Peninsula east of the Western Ghats, 1976-96, involving over 1,000 field days and 50,000 new collections. The Excursion Flora in English (1991, 1995) and Tamil (1993) was a â€˜lab to landâ€™ effort to make the fruits of research reach ordinary people, a door delivery of knowledge. A 3-day, round-the-year, gratis environmental awareness generation programme from The Anglade Institute of Natural History, Shembaganur, Kodaikanl, that has handled over 35,000 trainees since 1984 (students and villagers) has been our best environmental contribution todate. Shola is the bi-annual newsletter that has been appearing regularly since 1988. Environmental research, especially on conservation of rare and endangered plants on which much original information has been collected during field work in recent years, should receive more attention on completion off the Flora volumes in 1997.