Vegetation Dynamics and Crop Stress: An Earth-Observation Perspective focuses on vegetation dynamics and crop stress at both the regional and country levels by using earth observation (EO) data sets. The book uniquely provides a better understanding of natural vegetation and crop failure through geo-spatial technologies. This book covers biophysical control of vegetation, deforestation, desertification, drought, and crop-water efficiency, as well as the application of satellite-derived measures from optical, thermal, and microwave domains for monitoring and modeling crop condition, agricultural drought, and crop health in contrasting monsoon/weather episodes.

Agricultural Statistics is published each year to meet the diverse need for a reliable reference book on agricultural production, supplies, consumption, facilities, costs, and returns. Its tables of annual data cover a wide variety of facts in forms suited to most common use. The estimates for crops, livestock, and poultry made by the U.S. Department of Agriculture are prepared mainly to give timely current state and national totals and averages. They are based on data obtained by sample surveys of farmers and of people who do business with farmers. The survey data are supplemented by information from the Census of Agriculture taken every five years. Being estimates, they are subject to revision as more data become available from commercial or government sources. Unless otherwise indicated, the totals for the United States shown in the various tables on area, production, numbers, price, value, supplies, and disposition are based on official Department estimates. They exclude states for which no official estimates are compiled. Extensive data includes statistics for the following: Grain and Feed Cotton, Tobacco, Sugar Crops, and Honey Oilseeds, Fats, and Oils Vegetables and Melons Hay, Seeds, and Minor Field Crops Cattle, Hogs, and Sheep Dairy and Poultry Insurance, Credit & Cooperatives Agricultural Conservation & Forestry Consumption & Family Living Fertilizers & Pesticides Miscellaneous Agricultural Statistics such as Foreign Agricultural Trade Statistics including exports, fisheries and more. Professionals in the following fields to include farmers, ranchers, soil conservationists, surveyors, agricultural economist consultants, livestock manufacturers, livestock feedlot operators, food distributors, animal scientists, food chemists, food brokers, farm and land appraisers (and more) may have the greatest interest in this volume.

This title is intended as a manual for environmental education practitioners. It provides theoretical background with the view of improving environmental education practitioners' practice. Environmental education addresses topics such as: The origin of the term/concept environmental education in southern Africa; a philosophical perspective of environmental education; teaching for the environment; environmental issues; education for sustainability; environmental education in the informal sector; environmental education in business and industry; research in environmental education.

Developing Sustainable and Health Promoting Cereals and Pseudocereals: Conventional and Molecular Breeding reviews the most recent developments in the fields of cereal and pseudocereal breeding, with particular emphasis on the latest biotechnological techniques likely to lead to breakthrough changes in plant breeding. The book provides comprehensive information on the use of genetic resources or pre-breeding activities to improve health-related properties of cereals and pseudocereals. The text also explores targeted field-management practices and the latest in biotechnological methodologies, and offers a cohesive overview necessary for understanding the potential impacts and benefits of improved production of cereals and pseudocereals with high-nutritional value.

The image of western ranchers making a stand for their "rights"-against developers, the government, "illegal" immigrants-may be commonplace today, but the political power of the cowboy was a long time in the making. In a book steeped in the culture, traditions, and history of western range ranching, Michelle K. Berry takes readers into the Cold War world of cattle ranchers in the American West to show how that power, with its implications for the lands and resources of the mountain states, was built, shaped, and shored up between 1945 and 1965. After long days working the ranch, battling human and nonhuman threats, and wrestling with nature, ranchers got down to business of another sort, which Berry calls "cow talk." Discussing the best new machinery; sharing stories of drought, blizzards, and bugs; talking money and management and strategy: these ranchers were building a community specific to their time, place, and work and creating a language that embodied their culture. Cow Talk explores how this language and its iconography evolved and how it came to provide both a context and a vehicle for political power. Using ranchers' personal papers, publications, and cattle growers association records, the book provides an inside view of how range cattle ranchers in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana created a culture and a shared identity that would frame and inform their relationship with their environment and with society at large in an increasingly challenging, modernizing world. A multifaceted analysis of postwar ranch life, labor, and culture, this innovative work offers unprecedented insight into the cohesive political and cultural power of western ranchers in our day.

This timely Handbook synthesizes and analyzes key issues and concerns relating to the impact of agriculture on both farmers and non-farmers. With a unique focus on humans rather than animals or the environment, the book is interdisciplinary and international in scope, with contributions from sociologists, economists, anthropologists and geographers providing case studies and examples from all six populated continents. Looking at the pervasive impact of agriculture, the Handbook explores all aspects of the production of food and fiber within the agrifood value chain, including: farmers and laborers growing crops and raising livestock, businesses supplying inputs for these operations, and processors transforming plants and animals into intermediate and finished food, beverage and clothing products. Separated into four parts, it analyzes how the agrifood industry affects farmer well-being; the application of science and technology within an agricultural context; the ways in which agriculture affects the well-being of smallholder farmers, especially in developing countries; and agriculture's impact more broadly on society. This will be a beneficial read for economics and sociology students, particularly those looking at the impacts of agriculture. Accessible and clear, the Handbook will also be helpful for policymakers and agricultural NGOs wanting a more in-depth understanding of the impact of agriculture on human life.

If you drive through Mpumalanga with an eye on the landscape flashing by, you may see, near the sides of the road and further away on the hills above and in the valleys below, fragments of building in stone as well as sections of stone-walling breaking the grass cover. Endless stone circles, set in bewildering mazes and linked by long stone passages, cover the landscape stretching from Ohrigstad to Carolina, connecting over 10 000 square kilometres of the escarpment into a complex web of stone-walled homesteads, terraced fields and linking roads. Oral traditions recorded in the early twentieth century named the area Bokoni - the country of the Koni people. Few South Africans or visitors to the country know much about these settlements, and why today they are deserted and largely ignored. A long tradition of archaeological work which might provide some of the answers remains cloistered in universities and the knowledge vacuum has been filled by a variety of exotic explanations - invoking ancient settlers from India or even visitors from outer space - that share a common assumption that Africans were too primitive to have created such elaborate stone structures. Forgotten World defies the usual stereotypes about backward African farming methods and shows that these settlements were at their peak between 1500 and 1820, that they housed a substantial population, organised vast amounts of labour for infrastructural development, and displayed extraordinary levels of agricultural innovation and productivity. The Koni were part of a trading system linked to the coast of Mozambique and the wider world of Indian Ocean trade beyond. Forgotten World tells the story of Bokoni through rigorous historical and archaeological research, and lavishly illustrates it with stunning photographic images.

Exploring the emerging and vibrant field of critical agrarian studies, this comprehensive Handbook offers interdisciplinary insights from both leading scholars and activists to understand agrarian life, livelihoods, formations and processes of change. It highlights the development of the field, which is characterized by theoretical and methodological pluralism and innovation. The Handbook presents critical analyses of, and examines controversies about, historical and contemporary social structures and processes in agrarian and rural settings from a wide range of perspectives. Chapters explore the origins of critical agrarian studies, the concepts underpinning the diverse theoretical approaches to the field, and the strengths and weaknesses of different methodologies used within the field. Finally, it illuminates debates around the topic and trajectories for future research and development. This will be a vital resource for graduate students, scholars and activists interested in critical agrarian studies. The analytical and empirical insights will also be helpful to students of environmental and development studies as well as agricultural and development economics, human geography and socio-cultural anthropology.

GMOS and Political Stance: Global GMO Regulation, Certification, Labeling, and Consumer Preferences provides a foundational-to-current challenges resource for those involved in developing and applying regulations to these important resources. Beginning with basics of GMOs, the book first familiarizes the reader with the history, economic status, associated risks, global politics, and socio-economics of GMOs. From exploring the necessity of GMO regulations with the existing GMO technology as well as new gene editing technologies to discussion by GMO regulations experts from different continents and countries, readers will find the information necessary to understand the laws, rules, regulations and policies at domestic and international scale. A last chapter delivers an update and future look on gene-edited food and feed and discusses the possibilities on the future risk assessment, legislation and regulation of gene-edited products. GMOS and Political Stance provides a unique and applicable synchronization of all regulatory information on GMOs to facilitate effective and efficient regulatory development and adherence.

Nanotechnology in Agriculture and Agroecosystems presents the latest research on the role of nanotechnology in agriculture and agroecosystems, offering innovations and many potential benefits in terms of plant growth, food production, crop protection and ecosystem management. Sections introduce new perspectives on the use of nanotechnology in agroecosystems and sustainable agriculture. Subsequent chapters focus on specific areas of innovation, covering a wide range of applications, including plant disease and protection, food processing and packaging, soil quality, precision farming, and groundwater treatment. This is a valuable resource for researchers and advanced students across a range of disciplines, but it is also ideal for industrial scientists, engineers and R&D professionals with an interest in nanotechnology and sustainable technologies for agriculture and agro-industries.

Urban and Regional Agriculture: Building Resilient Food Systems explores the sustainable integration of food provision, distribution and consumption through urban farms, agricultural systems, user communities and structural facilities designed to optimize food production and consumption. The book addresses the fundamental and pressing challenges of urban planning problems, waste minimization, food sourcing, access and equity issues, and multiple land use optimization. Sections cover the need and opportunities of urban agriculture, discuss tradition and transition, space and regulatory topics, explore the range of urban agriculture options (aquaculture to urban permaculture), discuss support structures and constructs of physically creating urban agricultural areas, and much more. Edited and authored by leading experts in the field, this volume will be valuable for those working to address issues of food security in urban environments.

Application of Sampling and Detection Methods in Agricultural Plant Biotechnology describes detection methods for seed, plants and grain derived from biotechnology. This international handbook, based on a series of workshops carried out for governments in collaboration with ILSI and Co-published in partnership with the Cereals & Grains Association, provides the technical and practical information needed to develop, validate and use detection methods. This useful resource provides readers with the tools necessary to carry out reliable sampling, detection and interpretation of data.

Citrus Fruit: Biology, Technology and Evaluation, Second Edition presents a comprehensive view of these globally important crops, from cultivars to consumer acceptability. Now fully revised and updated to address the latest technologies and advancements, along with an exploration of highly current topics, including the impacts of climate and COVID-19, the book presents fresh fruit scenarios from around the globe. Sections explore the challenge of losses, background on fresh citrus cultivars production, factors that impact fruit quality, morphology, anatomy, physiology and biochemistry of fruit, fruit maturity, grades, and physico-chemical characteristics before moving into aspects of post-harvest technology. From irradiation and quality control to the nutritive, medicinal and safety aspects, the book presents the wide range of factors that can impact successful citrus crop production, delivery and consumption. Intended as a resource for researchers and scientists dealing with the growth, development and distribution of citrus fruit, the book provides up-to-date coverage on global citrus fruit production and practices.

Bioinformatics in Agriculture: Next Generation Sequencing Era is a comprehensive volume presenting an integrated research and development approach to the practical application of genomics to improve agricultural crops. Exploring both the theoretical and applied aspects of computational biology, and focusing on the innovation processes, the book highlights the increased productivity of a translational approach. Presented in four sections and including insights from experts from around the world, the book includes: Section I: Bioinformatics and Next Generation Sequencing Technologies; Section II: Omics Application; Section III: Data mining and Markers Discovery; Section IV: Artificial Intelligence and Agribots. Bioinformatics in Agriculture: Next Generation Sequencing Era explores deep sequencing, NGS, genomic, transcriptome analysis and multiplexing, highlighting practices forreducing time, cost, and effort for the analysis of gene as they are pooled, and sequenced. Readers will gain real-world information on computational biology, genomics, applied data mining, machine learning, and artificial intelligence. This book serves as a complete package for advanced undergraduate students, researchers, and scientists with an interest in bioinformatics.

Microbiome Under Changing Climate: Implications and Solutions presents the latest biotechnological interventions for the judicious use of microbes to ensure optimal agricultural yield. Summarizing aspects of vulnerability, adaptation and amelioration of climate impact, this book provides an important resource for understanding microbes, plants and soil in pursuit of sustainable agriculture and improved food security. It emphasizes the interaction between climate and soil microbes and their potential role in promoting advanced sustainable agricultural solutions, focusing on current research designed to use beneficial microbes such as plant growth promoting microorganisms, fungi, endophytic microbes, and more. Changes in climatic conditions influence all factors of the agricultural ecosystem, including adversely impacting yield both in terms of quantity and nutritional quality. In order to develop resilience against climatic changes, it is increasingly important to understand the effect on the native micro-flora, including the distribution of methanogens and methanotrophs, nutrient content and microbial biomass, among others.