Customer Reviews

The Trees of San Francisco

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You don't have to be an arborist to enjoy this gem! Anyone who has ever walked or driven through San Francisco and marveled at the variety of beautiful trees that line the streets will enjoy this book. Each tree described by Mike Sullivan is accompanied by a beautiful color photograph, an exact location to check out a specimen, the history of the tree itself, and any interesting nuggets associated with that tree and the history of San Francisco (like the story of Mary Ellen Pleasant, the mother of Civil Rights in SF, who planted 6 blue gums on Octavia & Bush that are still standing tall--check out the beautiful memorial plaque below the trees).

You can grab the book and take advantage of the wonderful walking tours included for several of the SF neighborhoods, or go out on a random search of your own to see how many you can identify. My 3-year old can spot a "lemon bottlebrush" even quicker than me now.

One last note on the quality of the book. From the cover, to the internal design, the paper selection, the binding, the use of color--this is just a beautiful, beautiful book--that will stand the test of time as you flip through it over and over again.

I happened onto a copy of this book, assuming the subject might be a bit too specific for my level of interest in trees. What a blast the book turns out to be! It adds a whole new element (and in fact, depth) to appreciating the specialness that is all around in San Francisco.

Engaging read; beautifully done book.

This book is an absolute delight for lovers of San Francisco, whether you are particularly fascinated by trees or no. The book is packed with interesting information about San Francisco's trees, and about the city itself. The suggested walking tours rank among the best walks I've taken in this city, and that's saying something. On my first walk with this book, for example, I learned that the word carat is derived from the ancient word quirat, which refers to the carob tree. The seeds of this tree are remarkably uniform in weight and were used by the ancients as a measure of weight. The walk in my own neighborhood, where I've lived for several years, pointed out several remarkable sights that I'd never noticed before. If you live in San Francisco or plan to visit soon, then buy this book. It will enhance your experience of San Francsico immeasurably.

Mike Sullivan first visited San Francisco in 1983 and was captivated by its trees: his Trees Of San Francisco provides a culmination of his interests, from natural history and tree history to walking tours. Chapters come packed with color photos and are organized by tree variety, include many unique to San Francisco, and provide both growing notes and historical background. An excellent, unparalleled focus on San Francisco's tree history.

This is the perfect book if you live in the Bay Area, know nothing about the trees on the street, but are interested in learning. Mike Sullivan takes what's interesting about San Francisco's trees, and makes it accessible for the average reader. The side-bar stories are also interesting - stories about San Francisco's flock of wild parrots and the trees that they enjoy, and the "Secret Garden" in the haight-ashbury that is private and overgrown, but has some of San Francisco's most interesting trees. The book is very well written, and it's beautifully put together. I also loved the non-tree related trivia and neighborhood "color" that Sullivan introduces throughout. It's clear that he loves San Francisco as much as trees!

"Mike Sullivan loves his adopted city of San Francisco, and he loves trees. In The Trees of San Francisco he has combined his passions, offering a striking and handy compendium of botanical information, historical tidbits, cultivation hints, and more.

"Sullivan's introduction details the history of trees in the city, a fairly recent phenomenon. The text then piques the reader's interest with discussions of 71 city trees. Each tree is illustrated with a photograph--with its common and scientific names prominently displayed--and its specific location within San Francisco, along with other sites; frequently a close-up shot of the tree is included. Sprinkled throughout are 13 sidelights relating to trees; among the topics are the city's wild parrots and the trees they love; an overview of the objectives of the Friends of the Urban Forest; and discussions about the link between Australia's trees and those in the city, such as the eucalyptus.

"The second part of the book gets the reader up and about, walking the city to see its trees. Full-page color maps accompany the seven detailed tours, outlining the routes; interesting factoids are interspersed throughout the directions. A two-page color map of San Francisco then highlights 25 selected neighborhoods ideal for viewing trees, leading into a checklist of the neighborhoods and their trees.

"160 pages with more than 90 full-color photographs. Smythe-sewn paperbound book with dust jacket. Size: 6 x 9". ISBN: 0-7649-2758-2."--© Pomegranate

This is a well-assembled manual for homeowners in San Francisco who wish to plant street trees. For them it is indispensable. The walks described in the second half of the book might be of high interest to tourists of ambulatory instincts. The best of SF is its neighborhoods and its domestic architecture. The trees of the city might seem small and crowded to a visitor from Minneapolis, for instance, but the variety is huge and there are magnificent specimens here and there.

I first heard about this book from the author and I'd been looking at trees in San Francisco for a while wondering what these trees are--so I thought this book would solve the mystery. It doesn't. The picture of each tree is so small you can't see the shape of individual leaves, nor the bark, nor any fruit there might be. And I need those details (and more) to be able to tell some of these trees apart. I thought I'd finally be able to put a name to some of these trees I see around town that I love because they look so distinct but this book doesn't provide that much information to do this. Maybe if you are already fairly familiar with the various types of trees in San Francisco, or have studied treeology or something this book might be useful. I can tell a Bottle Brush from a palm tree from a maple tree from eucalyptus but when I'm standing in front of an unfamiliar tree and want to know what it is, this book is not helpful--and that's what I want in a tree book, to be able to see a picture of what the seeds usually look like (maybe explain when that tree usually seeds too), what the flower looks like, what the bark looks like, what the branching of the limbs look like, all the things that differentiate one tree from another. I'm not sure why this book was even published.