A BOOK on a type of woodland flower highly valued in Japan has been published by Craven College lecturer Michael Myers.

But English speaking gardeners, and followers of his Craven Herald gardening column, will struggle to read it, as it is printed in Italian.

Conoscere e coltivare le Hepatica - or Learn and Grow Hepatica - was published in Italy at Easter, to coincide with the annual VerdeMura gardening show.

And it came about following a chance encounter on Facebook with an Italian journalist who went on to translate the original English text that Michael had submitted as his thesis for his RHS Master of Horticulture.

Both the book, and Michael's garden, have also featured in the Italian gardening magazine, Gardenia.

"Hepaticas are a small genus of woodland plants closely related to our native wood anemones," said Michael. "They are becoming increasingly collectable with some varieties exchanging hands in Japan for thousands of pounds."

He is now busy on his second book, about snowdrops. It too will be in Italian, and he hopes to attend its planned launch at next year's VerdeMura.

Meanwhile, it has been a busy spring for Michael who has also started showing alpines again at the Alpine Garden Society shows.

He currently lies in fifth place in the series, which features 22 shows in the UK and Ireland between February and October.

He is also looking at naming a Alpine flower after his wife, Helen. He collected the specimens of Cardamine heptaphylla in the Maritime Alps in 2003.

"The flowers of this delightful woodland species are generally white but in this form they are pale pink, and gradually gradually darken with age," he said.