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Vascular plants, also known as tracheophytes and also higher plants, form a large group of plants that are defined as those land plants that have lignified tissues (the xylem) for conducting water and minerals throughout the plant. They also have a specialized non-lignified tissue (the phloem) to conduct products of photosynthesis. Vascular plants include the clubmosses, horsetails, ferns, gymnosperms (including conifers) and angiosperms (flowering plants). This book provides an important collection of topics that sheds light on many aspects of the evolutionary patterns of gymnosperms, angiosperms, and pteridophtes.