Sam Santhosh, the brain behind the project, is a US-based Malayali entrepreneur from Thrissur. Since 2016, his team has collected and planted 678 of the 742 plant species (of which three are repetitions) mentioned in the book. The search for the remaining 61 plants might take another two years, he said.Sam Santhosh, the brain behind the project, is a US-based Malayali entrepreneur from Thrissur. Since 2016, his team has collected and planted 678 of the 742 plant species (of which three are repetitions) mentioned in the book. The search for the remaining 61 plants might take another two years, he said.