Hi Ellen:
I buy a new Sunset Gardening book every three years or so and use them for cross-referencing. I find that some years are better than others at certain things. I would think that with the volume of reference material that they are working with, they would have to produce a five volume book every year to satisfy the needs of us gardeners. So keep the old and use them both!
Happy gardening!

The plant list is now up to 8000. At least 50,000 kinds of plants are being grown in this region.

Try the plant selection guide near the front for landscaping ideas.

They've added a good 500 new plants and the index lists both botanical and common names, so I'd be a bit surprised that the index in the 8th edition is any smaller than in previous editions. And Sunset is typically very good about listing the the most common of the common names alphabetically in the plant encyclopedia with reference back to the botanical. Have they stopped this feature?

I've not bothered with the newest edition as I find I no longer refer to Sunset much except for their listings of plants for specific situations. I don't find their zone information or hardiness ratings the least bit helpful or accurate - I think it makes a lot more sense for California gardeners with the very wide range of microclimates.

They actually have several specific 'garden design' titles on offer at present. CostCo has the Western Garden Book and one other, I think it's Gardening in the Northwest. (They also have Ciscoe's book).

Here is a link that might be useful: Sunset :: Bookstore :: Life in the West

For something else that is on their web site...

Here is a link that might be useful: Find the Right Plant

I just bought the new one after not buying one for five or six years. I love it and always have. Didn't notice anything different about the index. I see the sections in the front are greatly expanded.

Did you mean that the text is tiny? Or the contents of the index?

I'd probably enjoy working on a book like that myself. I've helped several organizations improve things from buildings to organization.

With books like that, its nice that they keep updating, since the gardens as well as the gardeners as well as gardeners change.

The one thing that I think is lacking, and it would not hurt their sales, is approved internet resources - many more of them.

A local garden program this morning interviewed Sunset's editor.

She said the index is essentially gone, due to the fact that the plants are alphabetical.

Beyond that, both common and botanical/scientific names are listed -- just as they have been in previous editions. You'll see that the entry under the comon name is cross-referenced to the botanical name, under which you'll find the basic information.

Further, they reworked some of the climate zones, so that they "more accurately reflect" existing conditions.

I'm not too thrilled with the new Sunset Book but it is what it is: very Cali-centric, and always trying feebly to keep up with what plants are really available out there, but a few years behind.

They are not just adding plants, they are eliminating some as well. They have always done this, though.

A lot of the additions did not come with accurate information. For example, it's great that they added more Grevilleas, but they seem to think none of them will grow outside of California. Even though it says in the introduction that Ciscoe Morris has been growing them.

It also indicates that Opuntia ficus-indica is a western native plant. Etc. etc. I don't want to be overly critical as I think Sunset is a valuable general reference overall. It just seems like the quality remains the same with each new edition, when they have the chance to improve.

I forgot to look at the climate zones... that's probably a good thing, LOL!

Yes: mistakes a-plenty, perhaps more than in the past. Maybe if dozens of readers point out their peeves they will make improvements by the next time. After I started contacting them I was hired as a 'checker' for awhile, but this wasn't kept up.