Frank Reichenbacher wrote:
I am looking for a single volume synopsis of plant systematics for the
world. Cronquist '68 was limited to flowering plants, I would like
everything in Plantae.

You want descriptions of all families, and an explanation
of the family circumscription, and references to related
families. Anything else?

No such book exists; it sounds as if, for your purposes,
you would do best to buy a used copy of Cronquist's book.

There is "Families and Genera of Vascular Plants", which is
a multivolume series: the series is very good, but most
volumes are still in preparation and the ones in print
each cost several hundred dollars US.

There is "Angiosperm Families" (also known as "Families of
Flowering Plants") by Watson and Dallwitz. The source is
an online database, with derivative HTML web pages etc.:
http://biodiversity.bio.uno.edu/delta/angio/. You could
download each of the over 500 families they describe into
a PDA or print each family's description and lug with you.
The downloads are free.

Una Smith

Los Alamos National Laboratory, MS K-710, Los Alamos, NM 87545
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Una Smith

Los Alamos National Laboratory, MS K-710, Los Alamos, NM 87545