Customer Reviews

The Dictionary of Forestry

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

For most of my life, I have had a deep interest in the subject of forestry, and while time and circumstances have dictated that attending a school of forestry was not possible, I have still maintained my interest by purchasing and reading materials about forestry. It holds a very big interest with me and having "The Dictionary of Forestry" in my library was an absolute must. John A. Helms, the editor, has put together a fantastic reference book for anyone who is a student, or anyone who has an abiding interest in this field. This reference has helped me when reading other books about forest and related topics, such as "Young Men and Fire." When I come to a term such as "smokejumper", I go to the reference in the this dictionary and get helpful information. In this case, when I looked up "smokejumper", I was referenced to "helijumper", where an apt description was told. There are many other terms that have been helpful, such as fire tools (the pulaski), or "fire behavior" where I find such terms as "blowup", or "backfire" which Dodge used in "Young Men and Fire" (actually it was termed an escape fire). Also, such defintiions about fire suppression, such as "mop-up" and "direct attack." While I may never get to attend a forestry school, I have this great reference dictionary to satiate my appetite for a great interest of mine - forestry. I appreciate the many people who put this book together and I want you to know that I consider it as essential in my library.

I am a recent graduate from college holding a diploma in forestry. I found this book to be essential in my studies and highly recommend to both students and any persons interested in the study of forestry. It contains all the essential termonology used for forestry with detailed information on their meaning. It is an all accounts a must have book.

My review title about sums it up. Any term you're likely to look up - from 'abiotic' to 'zygote' - could be explored at chapter- or book-length, but this book gives you just the amount of information you want in order to move forward in whatever you happen to be reading. It defines potentially controversial entries, like "old growth" and "diameter-limit cut," in a straightfoward and purely descriptive manner.

My only beef is the price. It's simply too expensive, by some $20, for a rather slender volume.