Plant anatomy is a vital part of plant descriptions and an integral component of taxonomy. It also provides a unique means of botanical identification of plant fragments and artefacts. The science in all of these roles has prospered for many years at the Jodrell Laboratory which is renowned as a principal world centre for the subject. Its reputation resides to a large extent in the substantial series of reference works on the systematic anatomy of dicotyledons and monocotyledons written by staff of the Anatomy Section in collaboration with researchers in other institutions. This present book, however, is the first from Kew to describe a single organ -the root -to provide a means of identification of a range of trees and shrubs when only the root is available. It has been inspired by the many root samples sent to the Jodrell Laboratory over the years, often when they seem to have been concerned with damage to the foundations of buildings. A previous book Tree Roots and Buildings written from the Anatomy Section by Dr D. Cutler and I. Richardson addressed itself to the frequency of damage of this sort caused by a range of tree species. In the present book the J odrell anatomists now expose the secrets of their diagnoses making it possible for others to recognize the plants from which roots are derived.