Book excerpt: This is the definitive study of John Tradescant the elder and his son, two remarkable men who traveled to new or little-known lands in search of botanical treasures--John the elder to Russia, the Near East, and North Africa, and John the younger to the new colony of Virginia. They worked for a series of eminent patrons including Robert Cecil, the Duke of Buckingham, and Charles I, for whom they supervised the creation of some of the great gardens of the period. Identifying the varieties of plants which were first grown by the Tradescants or introduced to the country by one of them, this study also features extensive appendices reproducing the complete texts of the Tradescants' lists of plants as well as the Musaeum Tradescantianum, the younger Tradescants' catalog of the museum collection. Each plant is identified with its modern botanical name, making this an essential work for all those interested in the history of gardening and British plants.