Contents: Introduction. 1. Morphology of palms. 2. Propagation of palms. 3. Palm culture and pests and diseases. 4. Distribution of Palmae (Arecaceae). 5. Family: Palmae (Arecaceae). Key to the subfamilies: I. Subfamily: Coryphoideae. ii. Subfamily: Calamoideae. III. Subfamily: Nypoideae. IV. Subfamily: Ceroxyloideae. V. Subfamily: Arecoideae. Glossary of botanical terms used. References. Index.

From the introduction: "The purpose of this manual is not just to enlist by name the palms that are cultivated in India but to give an overall impression on palms to those who wish to know their biology, propagation and culture and try to identify palms in the field or in their own garden. We hope that this will be possible by the simple key and description aided with photographs and map. All examples of palms given in this book are cultivated in India. In some exceptional cases examples of some palms not yet cultivated in India have also been cited because those are typical.

"A glossary of the scientific terms used in this book is given at the end with appropriate English alternatives."