"What are the lives of trees, of conifers, like?. How do seedlings establish and develop into saplings? How do some seedlings stay alive for decades, marking time in the deep shade of the forest? How do the distinctive forms of saplings of the different species arise?. When, how, and where do cones come from? What is the sex life of a conifer? Where does pollen come from? What does pollen do?" - From the Introduction A comparative account of the coniferous trees indigenous to Northeastern North America Extensively illustrated with full-colour photographs, diagrams, and drawings by the author, Graham R. Powell's Lives of Conifers examines the complex and fascinating life cycles of the 12 coniferous trees that grow naturally in northeastern North America on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border. Tracing their development from seeds and seedlings, to saplings, through the pole stage to maturity, old age, and death, the book is designed to pro-vide a comparison of each species at each stage of life, thus aiding in the recognition and identification of species at all stages of their existence. It includes descriptions of developmental processes and how they differ among the species.

The species covered in the book are: the balsam fir, eastern hemlock, tamarack larch, eastern white pine, jack pine, pitch pine, red pine, black spruce, red spruce, white spruce, eastern juniper, and eastern thuja. The book is based almost entirely on what is visible to the careful observer in the forest, and includes only the parts of trees that can be seen above ground. Lives of Conifers will appeal to forest scientists, forestry students, foresters, forest technologists, botanists, horticulturists, arborists, naturalists, and general readers interested in knowing more about their natural surroundings.