The Sonoran and Chihuahan deserts verge on the temperate, and there are mountain forests and tropical mangrove estuaries along the coast. Approximately 270 native and naturalized trees are covered, with identification keys and original line illustrations of leaves, flowering and fruiting bodies for most species.
1. Introduction; 2. Key to the major groups and families; 3. Species accounts; A. Coniferophyta (confiers); B. Magnoliophyta - Magnoliopsida (dicots); C. Magnoliophyta - Liliopsida (monocots); 4. Literature Cited; 5. Appendix; 6. Index; 7. Table I; 8. Table II; 9. Illustrators and list of illustrations
"[A]n important contribution to the botany of the North American desert realms. ... Although we have seen a lot of books on palms in recent years, this one gives an intimate perspective on the Sonoran palm flora, with useful features such as a diagram comparing leaf structure in Brahea, Sabal, and Washingtonia. The Trees of Sonora is a beautifully produced volume in terms of typography, reproduction of illustrations, and editing ..."--Grady L. Webster, Herbarium, University of California, Davis.