The conservation of terrestrial orchids

Orchids include some of the rarest and most
beautiful plants in nature, but their existence in
Lombardy is intimately intertwined with
agriculture and traditional ways of life throughout
the richly diverse geographic landscape of the
region. This book charts the spread of orchids
alongside traditional agricultural methods and,
following the tumultuous changes in human
society since industrialisation, the efforts of
Lombardy’s parks and individuals to conserve them
in the modern world. We see how the survival of
these plants actually depends on being rare, and on
the plants and other organisms they are surrounded
by. Written for members of the public and students
of conservation, this book investigates the modern
techniques used to conserve these most striking
and intriguing of flowers.