Essentials of developmental plant anatomy /

The essentials of plant anatomy (as this book provides) are exhaustive in detail--in the sense of emptying or draining one of strength rather than exhaling in profound satisfaction. In the first six pages, the authors use 59 technical terms in otherwise intelligible sentences, words that are unlikely to be heard even at one's local plant nursery. This should not discourage the reader. The precise use of language is critical to science, and the authors recognize that getting started can be overwhelming. They provide pen-and-ink illustrations (99) and black-and-white photographs or micrographs (52) for assistance. The glossary lists 249 entries (nearly two per page of this concise volume). The authors also offer, in their understated step-by-step tour, an invitation to wonder. Only the most jaded microscopist will not be awed by the detailed anatomy of seed germination, or even stem elongation, revealed in the language of plant scientists. By taking readers on this tour, starting with the flower and pollination, to seed, root, stem, leaf, and finally trunk, one momentarily glimpses the many worlds within worlds the authors' words expose. Summing Up: Recommended. All readers. --George C. Stevens, University of New Mexico