After the indispensable descriptions of the structure of grasses and their flowers, there are lists of grasses for various habitats, followed by a key to grasses in flower. The keys are indented so more inconvenient to use than a modern dichotomous key (why do higher plant botanists persist with this format…?) as the two halves of the early couplets are often separated by several pages. That said, the keys generally work well.

Species accounts follow the key and these comprise a full page of excellent line-drawings facing a full page description.

After the species accounts are: "the vegetative key" ie a key to common grasses using vegetative characters, a discussion of grass "seeds" and a key to common species from their seeds, a key to cereal grasses, discussion of grasses for agricultural, conservation and amenity purposes, a key to turf grasses, discussion of ornamental grasses, classification, bibliography, glossary and index.

The 1984 edition updates the taxonomy (albeit in a half-hearted fashion with new names merely added at the foot of the page.)

This work was "the bible" for many years from its first publication in 1954. Nowadays, Stace’s "New Flora" is preferred, but Hubbard remains useful for the quantity of information it contains and especially the drawings. It’s also much more portable.