Common families of flowering plants By Michael Hickey and Clive King ISBN 0521576091, published in 1997 by Cambridge University Press, b&w illustrations, soft cover, 212 pages Price $A75.00 plus $A11 postage within Australia, overseas postage please request a quote

This book provides a basic introduction to twenty-five commonly occurring families of flowering plants, chosen for their economic, ornamental and ecological importance. It is designed to enable students of botany and related disciplines to gain some knowledge of the general characteristics of each family and the relationships between them. It will also be helpful to those pursuing courses in botanical illustration, field studies, and other activities requiring a knowledge of flower structure. An introductory section provides basic botanical information which is often assumed to be known and which is essential for a proper consideration of the families themselves. These are described in the second section of the book. For each family, information on its distribution, classification, general features and economic Importance precedes a detailed description of a typical representative species. For the larger or more varied families several representative species are included. The text is illustrated throughout with clear and accurate line drawings taken from life and these are accompanied by a written commentary. There are also numerous explanatory drawings. An exhaustive glossary is provided as an additional aid to the reader.

Table of contents

• Foreword and acknowlegements
• Preface
• Systematic grouping of plants
• Authorities
• Signs and abbreviations
• Floral fornula
• Summary of classification
• General botany
• Families in systematic order: dicotyledons (pages 32-155), monocotyledons (pages 156-192)
• Comparitive tables
• References
• Glossary
• Index to families and genera