The descriptions are on evennumbered pages with associated photos placed on facing pages. Plants are arranged alphabetically by scientific name within common family name. Each new family section begins with a brief description of the family, including its distribution, approximate number of species and general characteristics. In a nice touch for the layman, Hom includes the names of familiar species within the family having ornamental, medicinal or agricultural importance. The species descriptions generally include distinctive plant characters and often habitat information.
Any popular guide can illustrate only a fraction of the plants present in a particular area.
She has also included one species each of Ericameria and Chrysothamnus, although Jepson lists 7 and 6 species respectively of these genera in the Sierra. A word of caution about hasty identifications within these difficult groups might be in order for the casual user. The photographs themselves are virtually all by the author and range from good to excellent in terms of their usefulness for plant identification. There are a few photos that provide close-up details. One tiny lapse after her careful warning about common names is the identification of sky pilot, rather than Polemonium eximium, as a Sierran endemic.