The seventeenth edition of this popular textbook has been expanded and thoroughly revised to include a substantial new introduction, updating information on existing topics such as 'Origin and Continuity of Life' and 'Sources and Uses of Energy' elaborating on new issues like the importance of forecasts and social forestry.

Extensively rewritten chapters on plant physiology to incorporate recent research in biochemistry, especially in the areas of mechanism of photosynthesis, respiration and protein synthesis. The introduction of concepts like structural and functional aspects of the ecosystem, old & modern trends in plant classification and differential methods of plant breeding, in the chapters on ecology, angiosperms and economic botany respectively. And additional teaching- and learning-aids like illustrations and diagrams and the use of the narrative method.