By Jane Perrone ### UNEARTHING THE SECRETS TO HELP YOUR HOUSEPLANTS THRIVE * How 25 houseplants went from the wilds to our windowsills * Care guides for each species explaining how to make them feel at home * Practical care advice from a houseplant expert Have you ever wondered why the leaves of the Swiss cheese plant have holes? How aloe vera came to be harnessed as a medicinal powerhouse? Or why – despite your best efforts – you can’t keep your Venus flytrap alive? You are not alone: houseplant expert Jane Perrone has asked herself those very questions, and in _Legends of the Leaf_ she digs deep beneath the surface to reveal the answers. By exploring how they grow in the wild, and the ways they are understood and used by the people who live among them, we can learn almost everything we need to know about our cherished houseplants. Along the way, she unearths their hidden histories and the journeys they’ve taken to become prized possessions in our homes: from the Kentia palms which st