Tropical Permaculture Plants: Illustrated Guide to Useful, Edible, Medicinal, and Sacred Species Paperback – September 9, 2025

Tropical Permaculture Plants is a visual, hands-on companion to edible, medicinal, and sacred species of the tropics. Each plant is presented on a clean one-page spread with quick identification tips, key uses, growing conditions, and how to place it in a resilient system. The book includes the author’s Permaculture Star Rating to highlight high-value species at a glance, plus practical notes on guilds, mulch, water management, and safe harvesting. Field photos and observations from El Zopilote on Ometepe Island, Nicaragua, and from Bahia, Brazil, bring the pages to life and keep the advice grounded in real gardens and farms.Whether you are starting a food forest, upgrading a backyard, or traveling with a curious eye, this guide helps you recognize useful plants, avoid common mistakes, and design for abundance. The tone is compact and honest, with just enough detail to act today and space for your own deeper research tomorrow. A small section on fungi rounds out the toolkit.Cristiano Bianchi is a permaculture designer, grower, and traveler. He co-founded El Zopilote, a permaculture farm and hostel on Ometepe Island, and runs projects in tropical mycology and essential oils. Read more