Plants, Chemicals and Growth investigates natural and synthetic chemicals that control plant growth and development. It examines how plant growth regulators, such as 2,4-D, 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid, 2,4,5-T, 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid, ammonium sulfamate, indole-3-butyric acid, disodium 3,6-endoxohexahydrophthalate, gibberellic acid, and 2-chloroethyltrimethylammonium chloride, induce biological responses in plants. These responses range from tropism and chemotropism to growth of organs by cell division and enlargement, rhythmic phenomena in growth and development, initiation of lateral organs and problems of phyllotaxy, and the regulatory effects of light and temperature on growth and form. Comprised of 10 chapters, this volume begins with an overview of chemical regulators and the ways in which they elicit biological responses in plants; how chemical regulation of plants is related to the growth and development of flowering plants; cell growth and cell division; cell cycle; and cellular ontogeny. It then looks at the history and modern concepts of growth-regulating compounds, such as auxins, cytokinins, and gibberellins. The book introduces readers to how chemicals induce growth in quiescent cells; natural sources of growth stimulatory substances; synergisms and interactions of growth regulatory systems; growth-regulating effects in free cell systems; examples of biologically active compounds; the mechanisms of action of plant growth regulators; concepts and interpretations of plant growth regulation; and prospects and problems associated with chemical regulation of plant growth and behavior. Teachers, biology students, agriculturalists, and researchers will find this book extremely useful.

Intended for undergraduate and graduate courses in plant development, this book explains how the cells of a plant acquire and maintain their specific fates. Plant development is a continuous process occurring throughout the life cycle, with similar regulatory mechanisms acting at different stages and in different parts of the plant. Rather than focussing on the life cycle, the book is structured around these underlying mechanisms, using case studies to provide students with a framework to understand the many factors, both environmental and endogenous, that combine to regulate development and generate the enormous diversity of plant forms. New approach to the study of plant development and a refreshing look at this fast-moving area. Authors focus their discussion on the basic mechanisms which underpin plant development, tackling the fundamental question of how a single cell becomes a complex flowering plant from a cellular perspective. An up-to-date, modern text in plant development for advanced level undergraduates and postgraduates in plant science. Thought-provoking treatment of a difficult subject, the text will satisfy the needs of advanced level undergraduates and postgraduates in plant science. Experimental case studies throughout. The artwork from the book is available at www.blackwellpublishing.com/leyser

Plants, Chemicals and Growth focuses on chemicals that regulate the growth and development of plants. It explores the problems of growth and growth regulation by looking at the roles of chemical substances, natural and synthetic, which affect the behavior of the cells of flowering plants. It also describes the variety of responses triggered by such chemicals, which include herbicides, those that stimulate the rooting of cuttings or cause leaf or fruit abscission, and those associated with fruit setting and artificial parthenocarpy. Comprised of 10 chapters, this volume begins with an overview of examples of chemical regulators and the biological responses they induce in plants, from tropism and chemotropism to nastic responses; rhythmic phenomena in growth and development; initiation of lateral organs and problems of phyllotaxy; periodicities in growth; and effects on the balance between vegetative growth, flowering, and fruiting. It discusses the totipotency and exogenous regulation of cells, history and modern concepts of plant growth regulators, the ways chemicals induce growth in quiescent cells, and growth-regulating effects in free cell systems. The reader is also introduced to biologically active compounds, such as indolyl and triazine compounds; how plant-regulating substances work; concepts and interpretations of plant growth regulation; and problems and prospects of chemical regulation of plant growth and development. This book will be of interest to teachers, biology students, agriculturalists, and researchers.

Biochemistry and Physiology oj Plant Hormones is intended primarily as a textbook or major reference for a one-term intermediate-level or advanced course dealing with hormonal regulation of growth and development of seed plants for students majoring in biology, botany, and applied botany fields such as agronomy, forestry, and horticulture. Additionally, it should be useful to others who wish to become familiar with the topic in relation to their principal student or professional interests in related fields. It is assumed that readers will have a background in fundamental biology, plant physiology, and biochemistry. The dominant objective of Biochemistry and Physiology oj Plant Hor mones is to summarize, in a reasonably balanced and comprehensive way, the current state of our fundamental knowledge regarding the major kinds of hormones and the phytochrome pigment system. Written primarily for students rather than researchers, the book is purposely brief. Biochemical aspects have been given priority intentionally, somewhat at the expense of physiological considerations. There are extensive citations of the literature-both old and recent-but, it is hoped, not so much documentation as to make the book difficult to read. The specific choices of publications to cite and illustrations to present were made for different reasons, often to illustrate historical develop ment, sometimes to illustrate ideas that later proved invalid, occasionally to exemplify conflicting hypotheses, and most often to illustrate the current state of our knowledge about hormonal phenomena.