Abstract: The book of "The Vegetation and Its Utilization in Xinjiang" was published in 1978, was one of the achievements of Xinjiang Synthetical Investigation Team of Chinese Academy of Sciences based on the large-scale field investigation on the natural resources in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in the late 1950 s, and is also the most complete and systematical book about the vegetation research with the modern research methodology of botany in Xinjiang's history. The book has been one of the important references in the mid-and long-term planning of the development of agriculture and animal husbandry in the autonomous region and its all prefectures (cities), and provides the scientific basis for the development of agriculture and animal husbandry, the rational management, and the exploitation and utilization of the plant resources since recent decades. Some of the desert plant communities, however, are not recorded in the book. They are the communities of Salsola abrotanoides, S. dschungarica, Suaeda dendroides, S. Microphylla, Kalidium caspicum, Capparis spinosa, A mmopiptanthus nanus, Eremosparton songoricum, Calligonum klementz ii, C. rubicundum, and Ephedra distachya, respectively. The description of the desert plant communities mentioned above can not only be referenced by the revision and the second edition of the book of "The Vegetation and Its Utilization in Xinjiang" in future, but also reveals the plentifulness of the biodiversity of the desert ecosystems in Xinjiang, and the desert plant communities provide more plentiful and vaster objectives for researching, exploiting and protecting the desert ecosystems in Xinjiang. Undoubtedly, some new desert plant communities will be found in future.

Key words: vegetation and its utilization in Xinjiang, desert plant community