1: Introduction to Flower Seeds and the Flower Seed Industry, Miller B McDonald and Francis Y Kwong
2: History of the Flower Seed Industry, Nona Koivula, All-America Selections and the National Garden Bureau, Illinois, USA
3: Ornamental Bedding Plant Industry and Plug Production, Debbie Hamrick, Flora Culture International Magazine
4: The Uses and Potential of Wildflower Seed in Landscaping, Gene P Milstein, Applewood Seed Company, Colorado, USA
5: Breeding Flower Seed Crops, Neil O Anderson, University of Minnesota, USA
6: Factors Affecting Flowering in Ornamental Plants, John Erwin, University of Minnesota, USA
7: Seed Development and Structure in Floral Crops, Deborah J Lionakis Meyer, California Department of Food & Agriculture, USA
8: Flower Seed Physiology and Plug Production, Miller B McDonald
9: Seed Dormancy in Wild Flowers, Carol C Baskin and Jerry M Baskin, University of Kentucky, USA
10: Flower Seed Longevity and Deterioration, Miller B McDonald
11: Flower Seed Production, Francis Y Kwong
12: Flower Seed Cleaning and Grading, Francis Y Kwong, Ruth L Sellman, Henk Jalink and Rob van der Schoor, PanAmerican Seed Company, and Plant Research International, The Netherlands
13: Flower Seed Priming, Pregermination, Pelleting and Coating, G Tonko Bruggink, Syngenta Seeds BV, The Netherlands
14: Laboratory Germination Testing of Flower Seed, Marian Stephenson, California Dept of Food and Agriculture, and Jolan Mari, PanAmerican Seed Company, USA
15: Tetrazolium Testing for Flower Seeds, Annette Miller, USDA, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
16: Vigor Testing in Flower Seeds, Robert L Geneve, University of Kentucky, USA
17: Conserving Herbaceous Ornamental Plant Germplasm, David Tay, Ohio State University, USA
18: Conclusions, Miller R McDonald and Francis Y Kwong

The floral industry represents a significant proportion of agricultural income in several developed countries, particularly the USA, the Netherlands and Japan. Hitherto the sheer diversity of flower seeds, in their form, function and biology, has hindered the production of a comprehensive treatment of the topic. This book provides a unique and much-needed resource of information on the biology and technology of flower seeds. It presents in-depth information on the history and evolution of the ornamental and wild flower seed industries followed by recommendations for successful breed and production programs. A comprehensive coverage of the biology of flower seeds is considered as well as appropriate technologies associated with germination, vigor and viability testing. In this volume, the first of its kind, international authorities from academia and industry have been brought together to provide a comprehensive reference resource for both practitioners and students of seed science and technology and of ornamental horticulture.