The Biology of Frankia and Actinorhizal Plants provides a comprehensive review of Frankia and the actinorhizal plants. It reviews the state of knowledge on all aspects from molecular genetics through ecology to practical applications; describes methods used in research and practical applications; and is a guide to the literature. The book begins with overviews of Frankia and the actinorhizal plants, and developments in the field prior to the first confirmed isolation of Frankia. Next is a series of authoritative chapters on the biology of Frankia, the symbiosis, and actinorhizal plants. Although methods used in research and in practical applications are included throughout the book, they are given special emphasis in the middle section. The final section of the book concerns the ecology and current and potential uses of actinorhizal plants in both the temperate regions and the tropics. This work is intended as a reference text and handbook of methods for a wide audience including established workers and students of Frankia and actinorhizal plants, specialists and students in other areas of nitrogen fixation (including the Rhizobium-legume symbiosis), soil microbiologists, plant physiologists, ecologists, general biologists, foresters, specialists in land reclamation, and managers requiring an authoritative overview of this rapidly developing field.