Botanical illustration serves Science - and there are professional standards
around how SCIENTIFIC botanical illustrations should be developed and constructed and drawn
 to serve an international botanical community. ​

The best instruction books about scientific botanical illustration are written by
those who have worked as professional botanical illustrators with botanists.
The authors of ALL these books have a professional scientific botanical illustration practice - or have had in the past
​SCIENTIFIC BOTANICAL ILLUSTRATION

Drawing for scientific publications (eg Curtis's Botanical Magazine) is something that professional botanical illustrators do all the time. The majority of their work is
  • either in black and white using pen and ink
  • or (increasingly) digital software which allows precise rendering.
AUTHORS

Brief details are provided of the background of authors.

Those working as professional botanical illustrators - such as Bobbi Angell, Işik Güner, Keith West, Christobel King and Valerie Oxley - are best placed to advise on the requirements for illustrating for scientific botanical publications.
ON THIS PAGE BELOW you will find summaries / brief reviews of the following books
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
  • Botanical Illustration from Life: ​A Visual Guide to Observing, Drawing and Painting Plants by Işık Güner - a very comprehensive and authoritative guide to the basic techniques used by botanical illustrators in producing botanical illustrations combined with top quality design and production values. I think it will become the new handbook for contemporary botanical illustrators in the 21st century
  • How to Draw Plants: The Techniques of Botanical Illustration by Keith West - an old but comprehensive and authoritative handbook ​
RECOMMENDED
  • Botanical Illustration by Valerie Oxley - An excellent manual for anybody who wants to learn more about botanical illustration with a strong botanical perspective.
PLUS
  • The Kew Book of Botanical Illustration by Christabel King - the first book about botanical illustration ever published by Kew - by Christobel King - which includes a section on how to draw for Curtis's Botanical Magazine
​DRAWING IN BLACK AND WHITE
  • Illustrating in Black and White by Gretel W. Dalby-Quenet
  • Biological Illustration: A guide of drawing for reproduction by Claire Dalby and DH Dalby - a concise and useful guide to drawing in black and white for reproduction
  • GUIDEBOOK: Graphite and its Possibilities applied to Scientific Illustration by Rogerio Lupo,
GENERAL SCIENTIFIC / NATURAL HISTORY  ILLUSTRATION
  • The Guild Handbook of Scientific Illustration (2nd Edition) - the book considered to be the scientific illustration bible
  • Natural History Illustration in Pen and Ink by Sarah Morrish - excellent for all those wanting to develop pen and ink skills for illustration. Plus includes a 25 page chapter on botanical subject matter.

​The book dedicated to using digital sources for botanical illustration has yet to be written!
Botanical Illustration from Life: ​A Visual Guide to Observing, Drawing and Painting Plants
by Işık Güner
​HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: 
​This extremely impressive book - published in 2019 - provides a very comprehensive and authoritative guide to the basic techniques used by botanical illustrators in producing botanical illustrations combined with top quality design and production values. Written by a professional scientific botanical illustrator, this is a NEW Reference Handbook for all aspiring botanical illustrators - particularly those wanting to work with botanical gardens and contribute to floras.

RHS Gold Medal winning botanical illustrator and tutor Işık Güner shares her approach to:
  • observing and recording plants in the wild
  • researching plants
  • creating artistic compositions which record the plant accurately.
Learn how to:
  • draw plants accurately by observing basic botanical shapes and structures
  • examine colour and textures in detail
  • develop your skills of observation and perception to: see shapes; judge angles; draw in proportion;
  • how to represent form through tonal value; use light and shade to make your drawing life-like; use watercolour washes and mix colours.​ 
I LOVE the content sections - which are just so obvious but nobody has done before. Refreshing!
  • Start - understand the role and history of botanical illustration and different approaches
  • Observe - an emphasis on the essential aspects of observation and practice when working with live specimens plus how to collect and preserve
  • Draw - covering the absolute basics of how to draw as a botanical illustrator, including how to hold a pencil, do a measured drawing, incorporate perspective and aerial perspective and produce complex drawings. Plus composition!
  • Paint - a very detailed but accessible explanation of how to paint botanical subjects
  • Explore - why you need to understand botany; understanding different types of plants - plus roots, stems, buds, leaves, flowers
  • Master - finding your style with practice and finding inspiration

The book also fabulous images of a botanical illustrator at work.​
The photography by Ekin Ozbicer of Işık working in both the field and the studio are outstanding.
​About the author
Işık Güner (GM 2014, BISCOT GM 2011) - Işık's painting of Gunnera Tinctoria won an RHS Gold Medal and the RHS Best Painting in Show in Spring 2014.

She has worked as a professional botanical illustrator on various international botanical projects around the world.
  • Plants from the Woods and Forests of Chile
  • Project Nepal
  • Transylvania Florilegium
Currently working as the Art Editor for an Illustrated Flora of Turkey in Turkish (Patron: President of Turkish Republic).

​She also teaches botanical illustration - as follows:
​SPANISH
Publisher: Editorial Parramon, Barcelona
Language: Spanish
ENGLISH
Publisher: Search Press in UK
Language: English 
​Publication date: 30 September 2019
Format: Paperback
208 pages | 400 Illustrations
Size: 22.9 x 29.2 cm

​RATED 4.7 out of 5 stars by 253 global ratings on Amazon

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How to Draw Plants: The Techniques of Botanical Illustration 
by Keith West
​HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
This is now a very old book (and the pic below is my very old hardback version). ​However it is authoritative and packed with information and also remains a comprehensive and authoritative handbook for how to draw plants and flowers. 
"To the best of my knowledge there has never until now been a thorough book supplying the answers to all those technical questions that I am still constantly being asked by people wishing to take up botanical illustration."
-Wilfrid Blunt (in the preface dated 1983)
In its time, this book was one of the best introductory guides books available for aspiring botanical illustrators who wanted to learn about botanical illustration - although some beginners complain that it is too technical!

This book simply packed full of content.  It's fashionable in publishing now to emphasise images over text. This book is from an era when proper instruction about techniques involved words - and LOTS of them!
Paperback: 152 pages
Publisher: Timber Press, Incorporated 
​Original Publication 1983
Publication date (UK): 1996

There are two versions. It was
  • originally published in hardback in 1983 
  • republished as a paperback in 1996.

​
RATED 4.5 out of 5 stars by 61 global ratings on Amazon.
​I suspect it would get even better ratings if more people were able to get hold of a copy!

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MORE BOOKS BY KEITH WEST 
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
This book was written c. 30 years ago by a practising botanical illustrator.  
​Keith West (who lived in Wales prior to hi death in 2021). He was
  • the Botanical Artist for the Botany Division of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research in New Zealand
  • Art Lecturer for the University of Canterbury, Christchurch
  • He was also commissioned to do work for both the Missouri Botanical Garden and the British Museum. ​

Botanical Illustration Books by Bobbi Angell

GO TO: Botanical Illustration Books by Bobbi Angell

The books were published 30 years apart in 1986 and 2016. I've got a used copy of her first book (that's my copy above!) and ordered a brand new copy of her new book. Both are valuable items on my botanical art bookshelves.
Besides her technical scientific illustrations for the New York Botanical Garden and a wide variety of scholarly publications, Bobbi Angell has co-authored two publications which assist the botanical illustrator who is aiming to improve both knowledge and skills.

They are:
  • HIGHLY RECOMMENDED Botanical Illustration: Preparation for Publication  (New York Botanical Garden 1986) by Noel H. Holmgren and Bobbi Angell
  • A Botanist's Vocabulary: 1300 Terms Explained and Illustrated (2016) by Susan K. Pell and Bobbi Angell
Long out of print, but still highly regarded for advice for producing and publishing scientific illustrations
Bobbi Angell's website
CAUTION! You may have to look long and hard for a reasonably priced copy of the one on the left.
I bought my copy for £16 back in 2016 - but the price on Amazon UK now exceeds £250. ​
Botanical Illustration
by Valerie Oxley
​RECOMMENDED:
​An excellent manual for anybody who wants to learn more about botanical illustration with a strong botanical perspective.
READ Detailed Book Review
​- click button below
AUTHOR: Valerie Oxley developed the first Diploma in Botanical Illustration with colleagues at the University of Sheffield, where plant drawing is still taught alongside the related botany.
A manual for those who like their botanical illustration with a strong botanical and practical slant. It includes
  • an introduction to basic botany;
  • preparation of plant material for drawing;
  • use of different media for botanical illustration (pencil, watercolour, coloured pencil and pen and ink).
Also included are
  • suggested topics for further study;
  • how to correct mistakes and
  • finishing touches.

This book is also well illustrated in terms of both the range and the quality of reproduction​. It includes over two hundred colour illustrations by over fifty artists on 192 pages
Paperback: 192 pages
Publisher: The Crowood Press Ltd
First Edition edition: 18 Sept. 2008

​Also available on Kindle.

RATED 4.3 out of 5 stars by 46 global ratings on Amazon
Such a pity - and a lesson in how an irresponsible publisher can trash an author.
Ratings were MUCH higher until a reprint (by a licensed US publisher?) generated bad pagination / binding which generated some 1 star reviews in USA!! Nothing whatsoever to do with content...

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Botanical Illustration from Amazon UK
Botanical Illustration from Amazon.com
The Kew Book of Botanical Illustration by Christabel King
Generally well received on publication - in part because it was the first book about the techniques of botanical illustration published by Kew. However some are now more critical of the amount of detail provided - and it's been overtaken in terms of scope and quality of content by other books which have been published since.

IN MY VIEW: This is not the leading handbook it was regarded as by some when it was published. I'd welcome Kew Publications commissioning a revised and expanded edition, with contributions from more of the professional botanical illustrators who work with the botanists at Kew.
Those looking for explanations of how to paint aspects of plants will not find a 'step by step' approach - rather they get examples of completed paintings.
​This is the very first book of instruction about botanical illustration by the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew.

The book covers a wide range of topics relevant to the subject including:
  • the differences between botanical art and scientific botanical illustration
  • using magnification and dividers
  • how to paint for Curtis's Botanical Magazine
This book has been very popular and sold a lot of copies. ​There is now a Kindle edition.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
The author, Christabel King, is a recognised expert on botanical illustration and has recently retired after working for Kew Gardens for c.40+ years producing scientific botanical illustrations for professional science publications.

Paperback: 128 pages (a slimmer volume than most in this field)
Publisher: Search Press  Ltd (UK)
Publication dates
  • (UK): 26 July 2015
  • (USA) September 2015

RATED 4.5 out of 5 stars by 176 global ratings on Amazon
​​
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Drawing in Black and White
​

Illustrating in Black and White
by Gretel W. Dalby-Quenet
RECOMMENDED: This book is a rare example of book about botanical drawing in pen and ink.
​(Although not exclusively about pen and ink)
The author worked for six years as the Botanical Artist in the Natural History Museum and also undertook various commercial commissions.
The Contents cover:
  • Materials and Techniques
  • Quality of Line
  • Tonal Perspective
  • Colour and Vairations
  • Counterchange
  • Botanical Illustration Conventions
  • Dissections
  • Labelling
  • Reproduction
  • Copyright

It would be nice to see this resurrected by the CPGFS - and a second edition printed.
​Paperback: 48 printed pages of text with monochrome illustrations throughout. First edition in stapled duck-egg blue card wrap covers [softback].
Size: Folio 12'' x 8¼''.
Publisher: Chelsea Garden Florilegium Society.
Language: English
Printed by Kall Kwik Printing Horsham 2000.

CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE ON AMAZON.
You can order from Summerfield Books for a very reasonable sum.
Biological Illustration: A guide of drawing for reproduction
by Claire Dalby and DH Dalby
RECOMMENDED: This provides a detailed discussion of drawing in pen and ink and in particular the nature of line and tone that can be achieved using pen and ink and how you need to draw and what you need to do when producing illustrations for reproduction and publication.
Picture
Some pamphlets come with this cover
This dense but concise guide provides
  • a practical guide to black and white drawing - covering marking techniques 
  • list of suitable tools, materials and equipment - including pens, pencils and brushes
  • a summary of the limitations imposed by printing techniques and how to address these in terms of line width and dot spacing
  • a summary of preparation of artwork required for publication/printing
  • an Appendix which addresses some of the technical problems in pen drawing

​Review: A Guide to Biological Illustration (2012) by Tania Marien
Don’t let its age  cause you to doubt the value of the information it has. While today there may be more convenient pen and ink tools at our disposal, not to mention technologically nifty ways of creating pen and ink-like drawings with apps, nothing beats learning from people with years of experience behind them.
​​I've got this as both a download and a pamphlet.  It's very occasionally available on Amazon.

Pages: 14
Pamphlet: 17.5cm x 24cm
Download: A4 - see link below
Published: Field Studies Council 5 (1980) pages 307-321
Authors: Claire Dalby GM (RHS: 1995 ) RE RWS ​born in St Andrews, Scotland in 1944. Studied art, specialising in engraving and calligraphy, at the City and Guilds of London Art School (1964 to 1967). Works as a Watercolour Painter, Wood Engraver, Botanical Illustrator. Has painted fungi and lichens (and other plants) for more than four decades. 
  • 1994 Jill Smythies Prize, Linnean Society of London, 
  • 1995 RHS Gold Medal,
  • 2006 RCGS GM. 2010
  • Solo exhibition at the RBG Edinburgh. 
Collections which have examples of her work include The Royal Collection, Natural History Museum; the Science Museum; the Victoria and Albert Museum; the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford; Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge and National Library of Wales in the UK. Overseas collections include: the Hunt Institute and the Australian Biological Resources Study Centre in Canberra. She was elected a full member of the Royal Watercolour Society in 1977. Also elected to full membership of the Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers (RE) in 1982.
Dunkery Hugh (DH) Dalby: Researcher, Department of Botany at Imperial College London. He was Director of the Herbarium of Bryophytes (BBSUK) of the "British Bryological Society", between 1960 and 1964 , in Cardiff , Wales . He's also a member of the "International Association of Lichenology". He has an entry in the International Plant Names Index. The abbreviation "Dalby" is used to indicate Dunkery Hugh Dalby as an authority on the scientific description and classification of plants.
GUIDEBOOK: Graphite and its Possibilities applied to Scientific Illustration
by Rogerio Lupo, Brazilian winner of the Margaret Flockton Award in 2010 and 2013.
This workshop guidebook has been written by Rogerio Lupo, a professional scientific/botanical illustrator and teacher in Brazil.  The text, when translated into English was reviewed by the American botanical illustrator Bobbi Angell.
THIS RESOURCE IS FREE. You can
My method for rendering scientific botanical illustrations is still quite handcrafted, remaining away from digital systems, which are welcome though when it's time to scan the drawing and add scales, captions etc. But that's how I can work better on the composition, and after all this is still handier and faster than what I would get using some software.
A video lesson ( next to this book on the Scientific Botanical Illustration Page) aims to support the study and practices of the Guidebook: Graphite and its Possibilities Applied to Scientific Illustrations.
The Guild Handbook of Scientific Illustration (2nd Edition) 
​edited by Elaine R. S. Hodges
RECOMMENDED FOR GENERAL SCIENTIFIC ILLUSTRATION:
​​The book is professional and comprehensive - as one might expect from a 'proper' professional handbook which covers 652 pages! It is however about a lot more than botanical illustration.
This handbook is commonly regarded as "the bible" within the scientific illustration community. It covers all techniques for rendering in conventional and digital media although the subject matter is not all botanical. 

It is:
  • Sponsored by the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators
  • the people who contribute to it are the top illustrators, scientists, and industry experts
  • edited by one of the founders of the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators who has been working in scientific illustration since 1965​
It covers:
  • studio basics and archival considerations
  • lighting of subject matter
  • rendering techniques (152 pages) in a variety of media including: line and ink, pencil, carbon dust, watercolour and wash, gouache and acrylics, airbrush
  • producing murals, models and dioramas and moving from 2d to 3D
  • using computer graphics for scientific illustration
  • only one of the 13 sections relates to how to illustrate plants - but it is 22 pages long
  • technical matters relating to using a microscope, charts and diagrams, photography and the printing process 
  • the business of scientific illustration - including copyright, contracts and how to operate a freelance business

CRITICAL NOTES:
  • This volume is now very out of date in relation to developments in media for scientific illustration since 2003 e.g. the use of contemporary digital media.
  • Most of the illustrations are monochrome.
  • The quality of the binding is questionable for a book of this size

​This book is VERY expensive 
- however the price needs to be considered within the context of the fact it is a very large professional manual for people who spend their lives on scientific illustration.
​
I suggest you consider
  • either reviewing a copy before making a purchase.
  • or buying a second hand copy.​​ ​
Hardcover: 656 pages
Publisher: Wiley
Edition: Second
Publication date: May 29, 2003

Average Customer Rating out of 5 stars:
  • in UK: 4.5 based on 36 customer reviews
  • in USA: 4.6 based on 38 customer reviews​

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Note:  some criticisms for how shipped (which should not be made in these reviews - however it does highlight the need to look for 3rd party suppliers with excellent reputation on shipping as this is a big heavy book)
Natural History Illustration in Pen and Ink
by Sarah Morrish
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
This books focuses on Natural History Illustration rather than botanical illustration. However
  • all the practical advice about materials and equipment and and detailed instruction information about mark-making techniques and how to develop illustrations in pen and ink are also applicable to botanical subject matter.
  • Plus the book includes a 26 page chapter on botanical subjects
  • it's particularly suitable for those who prefer to develop monochrome illustrations but also tackles how pen and ink can be used with other media.
Suitable for all skills levels from beginners to experienced artists wanting to try developing their skills using pen and ink.
This book has its own Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/NaturalHistoryIllustrationPenandInk
Publisher ‏ : ‎ The Crowood Press Ltd (10 Aug. 2021)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 208 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1785009222
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1785009228
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 22 x 1.5 x 28 cm
​Also available on Kindle

Ranked #12 in Pen and Ink Drawing within 4 weeks of publication in August 2021 - and is the ONLY book about technical illustration in pen and ink in the top 12. It's selling very fast and has already gone for reprint.

RATED 5 out of 5 stars by 7 global ratings on Amazon UK

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sarah Morrish is a widely-respected artist, illustrator and tutor, with many years of teaching experience. With a working background in ecology and conservation, she aims to raise awareness of the beauty and fragility of nature in all its forms. She is a member of the American Society of Botanical Artists, the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators, the Chelsea Physic Garden Florilegium Society and a Fellow of the Linnean Society.