This handbook is a new project of ISTA to collect the special knowledge in laboratory seed testing of flower seeds. It contains comprehensive laboratory seed testing methods for the most frequently tested flower species. It is intended to assist the practising seed analyst by collecting as many illustrations and descriptions as possible to give guidance in everyday laboratory flower seed testing of purity, germination and viability. The handbook also provides assistance in training new analysts for flower seed testing in accordance with the international principles.

The handbook contains as a start 20 working sheets on 6 plant families in an A4 size loose ring binder with a series of procedures and detailed descriptions, full colour pictures, instructions and conditions of the most important laboratory seed tests on flower species or genera.

For easy reference the families and the genera are arranged in alphabetical order.
The Introduction helps to handle and understand the parts of the working sheets and a glossary is included to give relevant information about the expressions used in seed analysis.

The starting 20 working sheets are:

Asteraceae family:
    Ageratum houstonianum, Aster spp., Bellis perennis, Callistephus chinensis ,
    Calendula officinalis, Centaurea spp., Coreopsis spp., Cosmos spp.,
    Dahlia pinnata, Gaillardia spp., Gazania rigens, Helichrysum bracteatum,
    Rudbeckia spp., Tagetes spp., Zinnia spp.

Balsaminaceae family:     Impatiens spp.

Caryophyllaceae family:   Dianthus spp.

Primulaceae family:         Cyclamen persicum    

Solanaceae family:          Petunia x hybrida

Violaceae family:             Viola spp.