First published in 1975, this volume provides a unique comparative treatment of annual and seasonal photosynthetic production in both terrestrial and aquatic environments on a world scale and examines the efficiency with which incoming light energy is utilised in different types of natural and managed vegetation, including agricultural crops. It discusses the characteristics of the vegetation which determine this productivity, including such features as leaf or plant arrangement in relation to light interception, the photosynthetic activity of the individual leaves or other organs and the strategy of the plant in making use of assimilates for growth and development. Most professional ecologists and plant physiologists will find much to interest them here and the book should form valuable background reading for students in plant biology, ecology and agriculture.