Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Best Houseplant Book Available
Books on houseplants normally give a nice picture a short description of the plant with some cultural hints.I've always been disappointed with the limited information available on these common plants.In my opinion, lack of proper information is why so many people think they have a "brown thumb."Recently, while scanning through the Ball Publishing Catalog, I discovered a wonderful book on houseplants.

Lynn P. Griffith, Jr.Tropical Foliage Plants:A Grower's Guide.Ball Publishing.1998.

Lynn Griffith, the author, is President of the A&L Southern Agricultural Laboratories, Inc. that does agricultural testing and consulting work for clients in Florida, Latin America and the Caribbean.He has written many articles for technical journals about growing plants based on his trial and error learning and results of the testing he does for clients.This book pulls together his knowledge on the most common foliage plants.

Tropical Foliage Plants:A Grower's Guide is actually written for the grower producing foliage plants for local greenhouses, florist shops, and other stores.Since it is written in easy to understand language, it is also suitable for the hobbyist grower.Griffith provides information on habitat (where the plant originated), uses, varieties, propagation, culture, nutrition, diseases, insect and mite pests, disorders, tricks, and interior care of each plant covered.

The book is organized using the scientific name with the common name given also in the titles.Here is a complete list of the plants discussed:
Aglaonema (Chinese evergreen)
Anthurium
Aphelandra (Zebra plant)
Aralia/Polyscias
Araucaria (Norfolk Island pine)
Asparagus
Bromeliads:Aechmea, Billbergia, Guzmania, Neoregelia, Nidularium, Tillandsia, Vriesa
Caladium
Calathea
Chamaedorea (Parlor/Bamboo Palms)
Chlorophytum (Spider plants)
Chrysalidocarpus (Areca palms)
Cissus (Grape Ivy)
Codiaeum (Croton)
Cordelier (Ti plant)
Dieffenbachia (Dumb cane)
Dizygotheca (False Aralia)
Dracaena deremensis (Janet Craig, Warneckii)
Dracaena fragrans (Corn plant)
Dracaena marginata (Dragon tree)
Epipremnum (Pothos)
Fatsia
Ferns:Adiantum, Asplenium, Davallia, Nephrolepis, Platycerium, Pteris
Ficus benjamina and Ficus retusa (weeping figs)
Ficus lyrata (Fiddle-leaf fig), Ficus elastica (Rubber plant), Ficus maclellandii (Alii)
Gardenia
Hedera (English ivy)
Heliconia
Hibiscus
Howea (Kentia palm)
Maranta (prayer plant)
Peperomia

Philodendron
Phoenix (Date palm)
Ravenea (Majesty palm)
Rhapis (Lady Palm)
Schefflera actinophylla (Umbrella tree)
Schefflera arboricola (Dwarf Schefflera)
Spathiphyllum (Peace Lily)
Succulents:Beaucarnea, Crassula, Euphorbia, Hoya, Sansevieria
Succulents:Cacti
Sygonium (Nephthytis)
Yucca
Other foliage varieties: Acalypha (Copper leaf and Chenille plants), Aeschynanthus (Lipstick plant), Ardisia, Aspidistra (Cast iron plant), Bambusa (Bamboo), Begonia, Caryota (Fishtail palm), Fittonia (Nerve plant), Homalomena (Emerald Gem), Pilea, Plectranthus (Swedish ivy), Radermachera (China doll), Saintpaulia (African Violet), Sinningia (Gloxinia), Strelitzia (Bird of paradise, Tolmiea (Piggyback plant), Zebrina (Wandering Jew).

Strengths

Information is presented in an easy-to-read and well organized format.If necessary, the information is presented in two ways.Example:Temperature is expressed both in Fahrenheit and Centigrade.
Growers will find the technical information needed to grow these plants in a greenhouse setting.
A photographic section shows common problems.
Information is presented on using the plants in interior settings so the hobbyist has enough information to grow them well.This includes giving fertilizer information in terms of "teaspoons per gallon" and light levels needed expressed as foot candles and klux.
References for each plant are included so the grower or hobbyist will have an easier time finding additional information.

Weaknesses
Colored pictures for each plant would eliminate the need of looking up the plant in other identification books.
This book would be even more valuable to the hobbyist grower if a page of abbreviations and their meaning had been provided.
I strongly feel the plants listed under Other Foliage Varieties should have been given more attention.These plants are common in my local florist shops and garden centers.

General Comments

This book will remain on my bookshelves for as long as I grow houseplants!I learned why my effort at growing so many foliage plants has left me less than satisfied with the results.I didn't realize how many plants were sensitive to fluoride in the water or that they were sensitive to alkaline water.As a result of reading this book, I will either select different plant species to grow inside or I will invest in a distilling system.I also learned that most common houseplants need an acidic (low Ph) potting media.Since my local water is very alkaline, all my plants wind up in media with a high Ph.This is something else I must address in order to do my best at growing many common foliage plants.

Those houseplant lovers who collect all the plant species possible will find this book an absolute necessity.It will be one of your most used houseplant books. ... Read more

Product Description

Product Description
This volume, the tenth in the series, comprises modern treatments for the families and genera of the eudicot orders Sapindales and Cucurbitales. The circumscription of the orders, families and genera conforms to the most recent systematic studies. The family treatments include descriptions of the families and the genera, genera classification keys, discussions of relationships and data on their morphology, reproductive biology, distribution, ecology and economic importance. Sapindales and Cucurbitales, as understood in this volume, comprise 16 families with 637 genera and roughly 9,240 species. Sapindales include large tropical and southern temperate tree families such as the Anacardiaceae, Sapindaceae (these in the modern circumscription, which includes Aceraceae and Hippocastanaceae), Meliaceae and Rutaceae, which have long been considered to be closely related. Cucurbitales represent a relatively new ordinal concept; apart from some small woody groups, the order contains two large families, Cucurbitaceae and Begoniaceae, which are predominantly, and likely basically, herbaceous.A detailed treatment of the tropical and southern temperate woody family Myrtaceae (itself comprising 142 genera and 6,700 species) is an addendum to the treatment of the Myrtales in Vol. IX of this series. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an OCR edition without illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from the publisher's website (GeneralBooksClub.com). You can also preview excerpts of the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Original Published by: s.n. in 1900 in 52 pages; Subjects: Plants; Ferns; Flowers; Crafts ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Way worth it!
This is hands down the best modern phylogenetic book for the price. Comes with a CD and is up to date with the modern classification of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. However, it is only about actual taxonomy and not technical like Judd, Soltis, Zomlefer etc. You will really just get an overview of the differences. That said gorgeous pictures and a handy list of what genus is in which order and family under APG2 makes this a winner.

An essential book for understanding APG systematics
New systematics (APG2) is complex and difficult to apprehend. This book provides a very helpful introduction to the topic. The pictures provided are a very good illustration of each of the families described.
I recommend the book to anyone interested in new botanical systematics.

Excellent reference
I used this book to help with my Master's thesis.If you're a visual person, it really helps give you an idea of what the myriad angiosperm families look like, along with brief little descriptions.Also comes with a CD that has a PDF of the entire book.

A perfect reference book for student researchers (and their teachers)
This book is as close to perfection as a research reference for the upper elementary and middle school classroom as a plant book is likely to get.The hundreds of photographs are gorgeous and very well-chosen.Taking a photo of a plant is one thing, but taking one that clearly highlights a particular botanical characteristic can be a real challenge, and these photos are consistently excellent in that respect.The prose is characteristically crisp, down to earth, and always skillfully pared down to just those points that are most important to the educational audience being served.The book is structured for ease of use and includes an excellent index, glossary, and bibliography.

The production quality is high.The handsome pages are printed on heavy, glossy paper to make the photographs come alive.The paperback binding is good, although I have my doubts about durability in my upper elementary classroom, considering how much use this book is bound to get.

The book is organized according to the most recent phylogenetic (evolutionary) classification of the angiosperms, that of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group -- certainly a unique selling point.At last the classification of the angiosperms has settled down enough for such a book to be written!

Speaking as a Montessori elementary teacher, I think this book should be in every Montessori training center's model classroom and on the required reading list for Montessori elementary trainees.Although its retail price will put it at the upper limits of some families' book budgets, it would also be a nice addition to home libraries of families with budding researchers.

Do be aware that the book "only" covers the flowering plants and is intentionally biased toward species of North America, but the bibliography sends one to the right books for information about the non-flowering plants and those of other climes.

Dr. Spears, on behalf of the many thousands of children (and others) who will benefit from your labors, I thank you. ... Read more

Product Description

One of the world's leading evolutionary biologists here reexamines the evolutionary history of flowering plants. This important book is the first to interpret the phylogeny of flowering plants in the light of modern knowledge about genetics, developmental biology, and ecology.

Mr. Stebbins is concerned with the evolution of genera, families, and other higher taxa; his analysis is based upon a unified theory that identifies the same fundamental processes at work in the origin of both species and the broader taxonomic categories. He shows, however, that subspecific evolution depends primarily on the natural selection of vegetative characters, whereas the emphasis at the transspecific level is on reproductive characters.

Major changes in evolutionary direction are interpreted as resulting from an interaction of environmental change and the inherent capacity of the organism to alter preferentially in some ways and not in others. The author facilitates this discussion by examining reversibility in certain simple evolutionary trends.

After reviewing basic principles and exploring major patterns of evolution in flowering plants, Mr. Stebbins turns to their actual history. On the basis of a detailed analysis he concludes that the most primitive forms are not represented in any extant category and are not found in the fossil record. His work gives definitive weight to the researches of others who have postulated a monophyletic origin of the angiosperms from a single, extinct group.

Although this beautifully illustrated volume will prove indispensable to botanists, it will be of great interest also to any student of evolutionary theory, theoretical biology, and ecology.

Product Description
Comprising about one hundred plates this atlas documents anddescribes theprocesses concerning the sexual reproductionin higher plants. It is dividedinto three parts:- Anther Development- Pistil Development- Progamic Phase and Fertilization.The scanning, transmission electron and light micrographsare all of immaculate quality and - for the viewer'sorientation - almost each plate is complemented by a schemeshowing a larger area of the plant indicating the site ofthesection.Together with instructive texts, the often strikingimagesprovide a valuable introduction into plant reproductivecellstructures for researchers and advanced students ofgenetics, plantbreeding and cell biology. ... Read more

Product Description
Each spring throughout the celebrated Hill Country and well beyond, locals and visitors revel in the palettes and variety of Texas wildflowers. From the Panhandle canyonlands to the islands of South Texas, from the eastern Pineywoods to the farthest reaches of the arid Trans-Pecos, some 5,000 species dot Texas's 268,820 square miles. Now Lone Star Wildflowers offers easy identification through color grouping and a wealth of insight from the origin of scientific and common names to growth cycles, uses, history, and native lore. Nieland and Finley have made countless forays with camera and notebook and have broadened their approach through years of research. In language accessible to every enthusiast, they offer wildflower lovers unparalleled enrichment. In the field, by the roadside, or in the classroom, Lone Star Wildflowers reveals the science, ecology, and rich lore of Texas flowers with these helpful features: nearly 500 full-color flower photographs, grouped according to the color spectrum and further arranged by family; an ''Exploring Further'' section in each color category, showing details of seedpods, leaves, buds, and fruits; current and historical uses of each flower, including applications for landscaping, water conservation, traditional medicine, pharmaceuticals, and food; information about plant toxins and range management practices affecting livestock and wildlife; coverage of growth cycles throughout the seasons, depicting young plants, buds, mature seed heads, and fruits as well as flowers. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

I Like It!
This is a great book for the everyday wildflower admirer. Putting the flowers in a color spectrum format is such an easy way to find a photo of a flower you are trying to identify. I carry my digital camera with me on trips, so when I see something in the field that I haven't seen before, I take a picture and then compare it with photos in the book. One of the most interesting features in this book is all the additional information on Native American's medicinal uses, food preparations, and toxicities to humans and livestock. This makes for a very interesting read on each flower. It is apparent that the authors have dedicated many hours to this book with beautiful photographs and a world of knowledge for the novice botanical enthusiast!

Very disappointing
A large number of very common Texas flowers cannot be found in the book. Just to name a few: White flowered milkweed (Asclepia Variegata), Green milkweed (Matelea Reticulata), Sandwort (Minuartia drummondii), Evening-star rain lily (Cooperia drummondii), White dandelion (Pinaropappus roseus)are not even mentioned, and that is just a few of the white flowers I can easily find in my land in Colorado and Edwards counties; it would take too long to enumerate all the relevant flowers the book misses. Only one species of Fleabane in the book, index shows Dandelion in page 123 but actually it is in page 113."Wildflowers of Texas" by Geyata Ajilvsgi, Shearer Publishing,ISBN 0-940672-73-1 is a much better book.

great book
This is a great book.It has great pictures and the descriptions of uses for these plants are really interesting.There are only two things that I don't like about this book and I can live with both of them.The first is that it is not as obvious as it could be which picture goes with which description.It can easily be figured out, but not having the name right next to the picture makes it a little harder to associate the name and picture when learning the plants.The other is that extra detailed photos of some plants are relegated to the end of each section rather than placed near the plant that they apply to. However, in spite of these few small flaws, I highly recommend this book.

A look at the hidden world of Texas flowers and Texas' generally unknown natural beauties
"Lone Star Wildflowers: A Guide to Texas Flowering Plants" is a look at the hidden world of Texas flowers and Texas' generally unknown natural beauties. With well over four hundred full color photographs displaying these marvels, "Lone Star Wildflowers" outlines the state's countless species of flora and is sure to give any gardener or flower enthusiast something to enjoy. "Lone Star Wildflowers" is something not to be missed. ... Read more

Product Description
The book is divided into three parts: Flower, Anther, and Ovule. The principal aim of this volume (along with the other 3 volumes in the series) is to summarize the classical and current concepts about flower generative organs, their structure and development, and about seed formation processes. The book contains ample material that can be employed in theoretical generalizations, in analyzing the distribution of features (or their uniqueness) and evolutionary transformations of structures. This offers vast possibilities for revising the existing and developing new classifications and concepts. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Omitted the book's edition
The seller of this book failed to say which edition this book was in.Yes, it's a human error of me to assume I was buying the right book, but it is a seller's responsibility to be THOROUGH when writing the title of a book he/she is selling!

A great book for budding botanists and experts alike
If you are interesting in the common and not so common plants of Southern California coastal and chaparral areas, then this book should be in your collection. Easily followed keys allow even the beginner to determine aplant's identity.The book is also well illustrated with line drawings ofmost of the common plants. ... Read more

Product Description
A true cornucopia, The New Oxford Book of Food Plants overflows with information and is packed with beautiful, hand-painted illustrations of the worlds food plants. In an oversized format with alternating full-page color plates, readers will find a feast of facts about cereals, sugar crops, oil seeds, nuts, legumes, fruits, vegetables, spices, herbs, sea-weeds, mushrooms, wild food plants, and much more. This new edition is fully updated with the latest nutritional research, as well as beautiful new illustrations and descriptions of many exotic edible plants that have only recently found their way into our markets and onto our kitchen tables.

This is the most comprehensiveand most appealing reference book available on the many edible plants we grow in our gardens, buy in our shops, and eat with great relish. For example, readers will find authoritative coverage of fruit worldwide, both the varieties we commonly find at our local food stand (apples, oranges, strawberries, kiwi, bananas), and some we do not ordinarily see (mangosteen, manzanilla, marang, tamarind, or whortleberry). Entries typically discuss the source and history of a plant, how it is prepared for market, and how it is used as food. And in addition to covering everything from seaweeds to tropical root crops, the editor has included a glossary of botanical terms, a section on nutrition and health, nutrition tables, a list of recommended readings, and an index.

With marvelous illustrations and a wealth of nutritional, historical, and other information, The New Oxford Book of Food Plants belongs on the shelf of everyone who loves to garden, to cook, and to eat healthily.Amazon.com Review
Not enough tables of contents are enhanced by drawings ofnuts, herbs, and root vegetables, but the table of contents in TheNew Oxford Book of Food Plants is, setting the tone for a bookthat clearly delights in the glories of the world's bounty. Eachchapter, including grain crops and fruits, spices and seaweed, legumesand mushrooms among its 19 topics, is a cornucopia of information andbeautiful, educational illustrations. Take the chapter on oil crops,for example. Covering olives, sesame, peanuts, soy beans, sunflowers,and the rape plant, the prose describes where they grow and what thefruits look like, what kind of oil is produced and what it's used for,how it's made and how else the fruits may be used. Color drawings ofthe plants and their fruits are on the facing page. Put together bywriters who respect each plant and give them the attention and detailthat spell quality, this is a beautiful book and a charmingresource. --Stephanie Gold ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Wonderful Book, a joy to read even without reading!
I bought this book on a recommendation by The Scientist.It does a great job of describing the matter and the pictures are beautiful.It makes learning about plants fun.

wonderful
I love being able to actually see the evolution of a plant food from its beginnings, all the way to my plate. This book is a fantastic resource for plant foods and full of thorough information. Love it!

great gift, reference, and coffee table book
The original edition of this book was out of print for some years and it is delightful to see it out again, and expanded no less. It combines 2 great virtues: highly readable and informative text with illustrations of a quality that are "suitable for framing." It is a great book for anyone who takes an interest in botany, cooking, or gardening and you couldn't go wrong giving it as a gift to one of these types. It's also great for reference. If you're getting it as a gift I suggest ordering 2, because you'll want one for yourself when you see it.

Excellent for learning about food plants from all over.
This book is great for learning to identify food plants from all over the world.The illustrations are realistic and each plant is described.I use it to help my 4-H horticulture judging team prepare for the nationaljudging contest.The plants and illustrations in this new edition are thesame as in the original book, however the 1998 edition has an excellentsection on phytonutrients. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

lots of flowers
The book is great, explained a lot to me about a lot of plants that I was not aaware of, book is just as decsribed ! Good buy ... Read more

Product Description
No other single volume reference to the Jehol site and its fossils exists and nowhere is there such a collection of fine photos of the fossils concerned. This book has pieced together the most up-to-date information on the Jehol Biota, a place that has shown the world some of the most astonishing fossil finds including the first complete skeleton of Archaeopteryx in 1861, four-winged dinosaurs- many feathered ones, the first beaked bird, the first plants with flowers and fruits, and thousands of species of invertebrates. Authors shed new light on a number of interesting theoretical issues in evolutionary biology today, such as the origin and early evolution of some major taxonomic groups.

The first two chapters give an inviting introduction to the Jehol Biota in terms of its history of study, its main components, its scientific importance, its geographical, geological and biostratigraphic framework, and its renowned fossil discoveries. Each of the remaining chapters deals with a particular organismal group of the Biota written by leading experts. The book is lavishly illustrated with nearly 280 illustrations, which include 200 photographs that show the diversity of the taxa and beauty of their preservation. The colored life restorations, elegantly done by some of China's most celebrated scientific illustrators, give a kiss of life to the dead bones. Although targeted primarily at an educated public, the book is also an invaluable source of information for students and professionals in paleontology, geology, evolutionary biology and science education in general.

* Authoritative introduction to an exciting, classic Mesozoic site home to many of the world's most important and best preserved fossils
* Clear informative text accessible to the professional and lay reader alike
* Over 200 high quality photographs of a wide range of extraordinary fossils
* Beautiful colour paintings depicting reconstructed animals and plants in lifelike landscapes
* Lavish, large format, high quality production ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

GEEK ALERT!
I bought this fossil book because i'm interested in fossils, but this book is only for geeks. The fossils are boring plants and fish, the coolest one is the one on the cover. Where's T-REX?

On a deserted island with only one book?
For me, this one would be a red hot candidate!
Very well written in clear, concise language, not too hard to understand (I think) for anybody, with exquisite drawings and photographs of many of the fossilised early life forms, including vertebrates, invertebrates and plants. With a particular interest in ornithology, the reason I settled on this book is that it features the feathered dinosaur fossils.

If you are just a tiny bit interested in fossils and early life, this book is pretty well guaranteed to fire up that interest. The more you read of this book, the more you are dragged into this revelation of life past.
The authors are mostly Chinese (and one Swedish) scientists, and their enthusiasm and delight in sharing their findings and knowledge permeate every chapter.
And at $56, - money very well spent! (Might even get your mind off the present (Oct '08) stock market disasters).

Feathers of Interest
The dust jacket of this book states: "This is a first class scientific and pictorial compendium of the most important fossil locality to be found in generations - supassing the Mongolian Flaming Cliffs and rivaling Messel and Solnhofen." This is not excessive hyperbole for the thousands of fossils in excellent preservation have revealed this area to be probably the most notable and famous discovery since Archaeopteryx in 1861. The discoveries include not only birds just a little more derived than Archaeopteryx and the very earliest birds with beaks, but also a variety of dinosaurs with an array of feathers not used for flight but probably for display and thermal regulation. This is the first finding of true feathers in animals other than birds. In addition there are fossils of several early flowering plants that show some advanced characters of specialization seen in later evolved families. This book covers these varied findings giving some historical background, brief description and characterization and an indication of its importance in relation to other discoveries in the same taxonomic group. The value of the book is further enhanced by lavish color illustrations, drawings, diagrams and paintings.
"Jehol" is an old Wade-Giles romanization of what now in Pinyon romanization would be "Rehe". However since the American geologist A.W. Grabau published the name Jehol Fauna in 1926 the name Jehol remains as the area name. The book is about the spectacular discoveries made from 1996 onward in one small part of the "Jehol" region. The whole area is almost the size of continental Europe and covers northeastern China (Manchuria), parts of Mongolia, Korea, Russia and the Sea of Japan. Most of the recent discoveries are concentrated in western Liaoning, Hebei, Jilin in China and some adjacent areas. The time of formation is somewhere in Early Cretaceous, the area was near the Tethys Ocean and had a warm, wet equable climate. The dating of the Jehol biota has been debated for many years (an still is) but most workers accept Early Cretaceous - about 139 Mya for some beds and 125 Mya for many others. The beds are gray lacustrine layers intercalated with volcanic tuffa. A picture emerges of large lakes teeming with fish and other animals surrounded by lush forests filled with birds, animals and feathered dinosaurs of all sizes and hordes of insects and other invertebrates. This lasts until all is covered in volcanic ash and the whole thing starts all over again.
The several chapters take each biologic group separately so that among the animals are chapters on Gastropods, Bivalves, Conchostrachians, Ostracods, Shrimps, Insects and Spiders, Fishes, Amphibians, Turtles, Squamates, Pterosaurs, Dinosaurs, Birds, Mammals etc. and plant groups Charophytes, Land Plants, Angiosperms, Spores and Pollen. The findings of greatest general interest is in the many types of dinosaurs adorned with feathers. The first of these was Sinosauropteryx in 1996. It had many tufts of thin hair-like structures all over it's body. Some said they were primitive feathers and others disagreed. About a thousand specimens have been discovered. The following year two dinosaurs with indisputable feathers were found: Protoarchaeopteryx and Caudipteryx. Both were unable to fly. This finding was followed by many other feathered species including the smallest known dinosaur, Microrapter(about 16 inches in length). A secong species, Microrapter gui, discovered in 2003 had long feathers on it's arms and also on it's legs so that it had "four wings" but was probably a glider and a tree dweller.
By now about a dozen "feathered" dinosaurs have been found; some with several individual specimens and some with hundreds. Among the fossil birds, Confuciusornis, is notable as it appears to be the oldest beaked bird known to date. It is built to fly and the male had a bird-like tail with long feathers for display. A contemporary was Jeholornis with teeth, long wings and a long, feathered, reptilian bony tail and was little advanced from Archaeopteryx. Among the mammals are several Trichodonts, a few Multituberculates, Symmetrodonts and one Eutherian, Eomia; the earliest placental animal so far known. It is also the first such with specialized limbs for a scansorial habit.
The plant life was abundant and is well representedin in the fossil lake bottoms. Bryophtes, Lycopods, Shenopsids, Filicopsids, Ginkos, Czekanowskialeans (early seed plants), Conifers, Bennettites, Gnetales, and Angiosperms. Some of the latter were specialized aquatics such as Archefructus, and the advanced Sinocarpus with features of eudicots.
This is a grand book, grandly written and illustrated; a true gem that will be read and reread often. ... Read more

Product Description
Explores the evolutionary trends in each major flowering plant part-vegetative organs, flowers and inflorescences, fruits, and seeds. Examines microsporangia, microspores, and pollen grains as well as megasporangia, mega-spores, and the ovule, and covers evolutionary trends in pollination, fertilization, and triple fusion. ... Read more

Product Description
This book is designed to enable students of botany to gain some knowledge of the relationships between families of plants. The text of each of the 100 plant families described is in two parts. The first part gives the general characteristics of the family, mentions some of the principal economic and ornamental plants and includes a section on classification. The second part describes in detail a typical representative of the family, as far as possible a plant which is common in the wild or in cultivation and therefore easily obtainable. In this new edition there is a larger page-size, and also a different layout of the text. In addition, a considerable number of illustrations have been redrawn and many more added, including drawings of whole plants. Alterations to the text include extensive revision of the introduction, an increase in the number of comparative tables, and the addition of a table of family characters. ... Read more

Product Description
This new encyclopaedia, the second volume of which is presented here, offers access to the diversity of ferns and seed plants, the most imrtant groups of green land plants. Available information of general and systematic relevance is synthesized at the level of families. Evidence from virtually all disciplines important to modern taxonomy makes the work a most valuable source of reference not only for taxonomists, but for all who are interested in the various aspects of plant diversity. A revised classification includes a complete inventory of genera along with their diagnostic features, keys for identification, and references to the literature. ... Read more