Botanists working at gardens and in academies around the world look at diversity among seed plants, among which are flowering plants but not ferns or mosses, at the level of genes and expressed traits. They begin by summarizing the diversity and evolution of angiosperms and gymnosperms, then focus on specific aspects of one or both groups. Among the topics are chloroplast genomes, reticulate evolution, crucifer evolution in the post-genomic era, the evolution of the flower, diversity in secondary metabolism, the ecological importance of species diversity, and genomic diversity in nature and domestication. A final chapter looks at conserving genetic diversity in plants of environmental, social, or economic importance. Distributed in the US by Oxford University Press. Annotation ©2005 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)