PREFACE. 



With the completion of volume two of American Plants, the editor 

 may perhaps be pardoned for presenting a few words regarding the plan 

 and reason for producing the work. 



The plan was to index every work of importance on West American 

 botany, and to print a description of every genus, species, variety or form 

 credited to the state of California. As far as possible it was desired to 

 reprint in each case the earliest published description, not only of species 

 generally considered valid, but also of those published that have since 

 been relegated to synonymy however remote might be the chances of 

 reviving to specific rank. 



It was also desired to collect all scattered notes, supplemental to the 

 original descriptions, or pertaining to geographical distribution, economic 

 value, synonymy, citing place of publication or the authority for each. 



Volumes one and two were intended to cover these features for the 

 flora of the southern counties, but the reader will still find the ideal far 

 from realized. Many works yet remain to be consulted and many species 

 must be added to the enumeration here given. The editor hopes to con- 

 tinue until all that has been published relative to the California flora is 

 fully indexed, and all valid species described. Nearly half the work is now 

 published, and much of the balance is in MS. 



May the errors of omission or commission in this volume be corrected 

 in the next. 



