Vegetation and Vascular Flora of Doi Sutep-Pui National Park, Northern Thailand 

Max's ground-breaking study of Doi Suthep resulted in perhaps the most complete flora and vegetation description of any of Thailand's protected areas at the time of publication and it was the first to be computerized as a database. His records and specimens of 2,244 vascular plant species (still kept at the CMUB Herbarium) firmly established Doi Suthep as a botanical treasure, although such diversity was severely threatened, even in the 1990's, by annual forest fires and encroachment for agriculture and tourism development - a situation which has only grown worse over time. Max's growing knowledge of the tree species of Doi Suthep and their habitat requirements, as he compiled the book, was of immense value to FORRU's early research projects. Restoration of forest ecosystems requires knowing which tree species are representative of the forest types being restored, their elevation ranges and their tolerance of disturbance. Thanks to Max's collections and meticulous notes, all these essential data were available to FORRU, right from the unit's foundation, making our work a lot easier than it might otherwise have been. Even today, the enumeration can be used to help identify candidate framework species for testing to restore different forest types, at different elevations, and to plan seed collection programs using the phenology data.