Trees of the Sikkim Himalaya

Sikkim is a picturesque state of India which covers an area of 7,096 square kilometres. The vegetation ranges from the subtropical in the foothills to the alpine in the snowclad great Himalayan ranges. Between these two extremes, there are many intergrading habitats and vegetational types, where trees are a dominant component. Trees are interwoven with the history, culture, religion and philosophy and in fact all facets of the life of the hill people. Therefore, an account of trees of Sikkim is most welcome. In all, there are about 400 species of trees in the Darjeeling-Sikkim hills, but only 80 species have been described here. This book contains some of the best as also the least known tree species. The descriptions are written in an easy style; and each species carries a botanical and a family name together with the common Lepcha, Bhutia and Nepali names.