Land abandonment is increasing as human influence on the globe intensifies and various ecological, social, and economic factors conspire to force the cessation of agriculture and other forms of land management. The "old fields" that result from abandonment have been the subject of much study, yet few attempts have been made to examine the larger questions raised by old field dynamics.

Old Fields brings together leading experts from around the world to synthesize past and current work on old fields, providing an up-to-date perspective on the ecological dynamics of abandoned land. The book...