Rosie reviews The Essential Tree Selection Guide

Rosie’s review of The Essential Tree Selection Guide: For Climate Resilience, Carbon Storage, Species Diversity and Other Ecosystem Benefits by Henrik Sjöman & Arit Anderson appears in the Spring 2026 issue of Scottish Forestry. Here are a few excerpts.

On the book itself:

“This is a very big book, with plenty of space for large text and beautiful pictures, so it has the air of a coffee table book… The A-Z tree directory takes up over half the book, and is a fabulous resource for gardeners, as it not only describes all the typical city and garden trees, but also gives the growth habits of many named varieties.”

On the case for planting a wider range of trees in our towns and cities:

“To break with the tendency to use the same trees over and over, we need to use exotic trees in our cities… They also give us the language needed to argue for more and different trees that will provide more resilient inner cities, where currently half the trees are from just three or four species — a narrowness that makes them vulnerable to disease and new climatic conditions.”

And, in her own voice as a forager:

“From my point of view as a forager, too little importance is given to the potential food value of trees. Perhaps Henrik Sjöman fears visitors picking magnolia flowers in Gothenburg Botanical Garden… to stuff with cream cheese and deep fry — but where, at least, is our beloved hazel?”

Her verdict: an excellent reference for architects, town planners and anyone with a garden — “with so many beautiful trees to choose from, there will never be enough space!”