The book describes and illustrates 129 species and subspecies and 48 named varieties, cultivars, and forms plus 23 hybrids appropriate for the home garden and confined public landscape spaces within tropical climates. The authors have also included a section on Tailored Small Trees, large shrubs that are readily transformed into small trees through intelligent, selective pruning.
The authors warn against planting a number of species known to be invasive in Hawai'i and advise caution when planting others that have the potential to escape cultivation and become weeds.
Fred D. Rauch, Ph.D., is emeritus professor of horticulture at the University of Hawai'i. Paul R. Weissich, A.S.L.A., director emeritus of the Honolulu Botanical Gardens, is currently a licensed landscape architect.