This is a translation of Vera Aleksandrova's classic book, first published in Russian, which characterizes the vegetation of this rather special botanical region. Much important botanical research concerned with Arctic ecology is carried out in the Soviet Union, but is seldom available in English. Dr Aleksandrova's book is based on her own extensive research in the northern areas of the Soviet Arctic. Dividing the high Arctic into areas based on the characteristics of their vegetation, the book presents a probing analysis of the ecology of such regions worldwide. After describing the general characteristics, geographic and climatic, of this latitude, the book discusses in more detail the region's peculiarities of soil and microclimate, followed by an analysis of the plant community.