This comprehensive reference describes plants native to the Pacific Northwest--the ferns and conifers; annuals, perennials, and grasses; and flowering trees and shrubs that populate and define this distinctive region. Featured are some 530 subject species that occur naturally from southwestern Alaska to Oregon's border with California, and from the coast east to Idaho, plants that are not only beautiful ornamentals but important components of habitat diversity.

Illustrated throughout with nearly 600 eye-popping color photographs and original pen-and-ink drawings, the book is smartly separated by plant type into five encyclopedic sections. Detailed descriptions include reommendations for cultivation and siting, from streambanks to parking strips, and lists suggesting natives for particular garden situations or themes--arid or sodden; hedgerows and meadows; hummingbird and rock gardens--concludes the book.

Gardeners and conservationists alike will find much of value and interest in this impeccably presented and illustrated regional resource, which is sure to become a classic on the subject.