Dies ist kein Buch iiber den Hunger in der "Dritten Welt" oder die EiweiB-Annut der Tropenbevolkerung. Es ist vielmehr dem natiir- lichen Reichtum der Tropen und Subtropen gewidmet. Einerseits handelt es von der Phylogenese und Domestikation der konventio- nellen tropischen Kulturpflanzen, beschreibt aber andererseits auch bisher wenig bekannte wilde und semi-kultivierte Gewachse, deren fortschreitende Selektion das Spektrum von Nutzpflanzen in den Aquatorialzonen bereichem wiirde. Ihre beschleunigte Domestika- tion aufgrund der neuzeitlichen Fortschritte in der Strahlengenetik, experimentellen Zytologie und Mutationsziichtung konnte eine Rei- he von Versaumnissen gutmachen, unter denen die gegenwartige Tropenlandwirtschaft leidet, und zur Milderung zahlreicher Proble- me der "Dritten Welt" beitragen. Die Anregungen zu diesem Buch gehen auf meine Spezialvorle- sungen und eigene langjahrige Experimentalarbeiten zuriick, die ich im Verlauf von drei lahrzehnten an mehreren Universitaten und Saatzuchtstationen der Alten und Neuen Welt durchgefUhrt habe. Das Geriist dieser Arbeit bilden ausgedehnte Sammelreisen und Ex- peditionen in den aquatorialen Breiten von Afrika, Amerika und Asien, die mir vor allem solche Kenntnisse vermittelten, die von weitverbreiteten Lehrbuchmeinungen abweichen.

World population is forecast to grow from 7 to 9 billion by 2050, 1 in 6 is already hungry and food production must increase by 70-100% if it is to feed this growing population. No single solution will solve this problem but recent developments in the genetic technologies of plant breeding can help to increase agricultural efficiencies and save people from hunger in a sustainable manner, particularly in African nations where the need is greatest. These advances can rapidly incorporate new traits and tailor existing crops to meet new requirements and also greatly reduce the time and costs taken to improve local crop varieties. This book provides a collected, reliable, succinct review which deals expressly with the successful implementation of the new plant genetic sciences in emerging economies in the context of the interrelated key regulatory, social, ethical, political and trade matters.

Soybeans are one of the most widely-grown crops in the world. As the world's main source of vegetable protein, they have a wide range of food and non-food uses. Current yields need to increase significantly to meet growing demand but in a way that reduces input use, does not damage the environment and is resilient to climate change. This collection reviews the wealth of research addressing this challenge. Volume 2 reviews advances in understanding and managing the range of diseases and pests that continue to cause significant crop losses. Part 1 discusses fungal, viral and bacterial diseases as well as developments in disease-resistant varieties, integrated pest and weed management. Part 2 summaries research on developing the food and non-food uses of soybean, from improving nutritional properties to uses in animal feed. With its distinguished editor and international team of authors, this will be a standard reference for soybean scientists, growers, government and non-government agencies supporting soybean cultivation. It is accompanied by a companion volume that reviews advances in breeding and cultivation techniques.

Alphonse de Candolle (1806-93) was a French-Swiss botanist who was an important figure in the study of the origins of plants and the reasons for their geographic distribution. He also created the first Code of Botanical Nomenclature. Despite initially studying law, he took over both the chair of botany at the University of Geneva, and the directorship of Geneva's botanical gardens from his father Augustin de Candolle (1778-1841). He published numerous botanical books, and edited ten volumes of the Prodromus, a seventeen-volume reference text intended to cover the key properties of all known seed plants. This work, reissued in the second edition of the English translation of 1886, is his most famous and influential book, tracing the geographic origins of plants known to have been cultivated by humans. It is one of the earliest studies of the history of crop domestication, and an important contribution to phytogeography.

Food security and environmental conservation are two of the greatest challenges facing the world today. It is predicted that food production must increase by at least 70% before 2050 to support continued population growth, though the size of the world's agricultural area will remain essentially unchanged. This updated and thoroughly revised second edition provides in-depth coverage of the impact of environmental conditions and management on crops, resource requirements for productivity and effects on soil resources. The approach is explanatory and integrative, with a firm basis in environmental physics, soils, physiology and morphology. System concepts are explored in detail throughout the book, giving emphasis to quantitative approaches, management strategies and tactics employed by farmers, and associated environmental issues. Drawing on key examples and highlighting the role of science, technology and economic conditions in determining management strategies, this book is suitable for agriculturalists, ecologists and environmental scientists.

Grain legumes are characterised by their nutritional value, an ability to grow rapidly and improve soil health by fixing nitrogen. This makes them a key rotation crop in promoting food security amongst smallholders in particular. However, yields are constrained by factors such as pests and diseases as well as vulnerability to poor soils, drought and other effects of climate change. This collection reviews the wealth of research addressing these challenges. Volume 1 focusses on breeding and cultivation. Part 1 summarises advances in understanding crop physiology and genetic diversity, and how this understanding has informed the development of new varieties. Part 2 reviews improvements in cultivation techniques to make the most of these new varieties, from variety selection and seed quality management, through pest and disease management to storage and quality assessment. With its distinguished editorial team and international range of expert authors, this will be a standard reference for the grain legume research community and farmers of these important crops as well as government and other agencies responsible for agricultural development. It is accompanied by a companion volume which reviews particular grain legumes.

This book identifies targets for plant transformation by molecular biology for two crops of major importance in European agriculture - wheat and oilseed rape - and the potentially important protein crop faba beans. Modern techniques have enabled researchers to identify, isolate and modify plant genes, and much effort is now being devoted to improving these techniques and to adapting them to crop plants. By these means, it should prove possible to make defined changes to plants of commercial value, to improve their yield, quality and resistance to stresses, pests and diseases. This volume results from a report prepared for the Genetics and Biotechnology Division of the Commission of the European Communities by Dr Austin and his colleagues at the Plant Breeding Institute, where some of the work is being carried out. It therefore provides an authoritative account of the area for research workers and students.

Biology of Citrus provides a concise and comprehensive discussion of all major developmental, genetic and horticultural aspects of citriculture in an easily readable text. The book deals with the history, distribution and climatic adaptation of the crop, followed by taxonomy and systematics, including a horticultural classification of edible citrus species. Subsequent chapters cover tree structure and function, reproductive physiology, including flowering, fruiting, productivity, ripening, post-harvest and fruit constituents. The main aspects of cultivated citrus, such as rootstocks, irrigation, pests, viruses and diseases are dealt with, leading to a concluding chapter that considers genetic improvement, including the use of tissue culture and plant biotechnology. The book includes many specially produced original illustrations and the extensive reading lists will make it invaluable for students and citrus specialists.

Spices provide our food with nutraceutical value rather than actual nutrition. But apart from the popular and major spices, there are several other spices, which, in spite of their enormous contribution to human health, remain underexploited or underutilized. This new volume, Underexploited Spice Crops: Present Status, Agrotechnology, and Future Research Directions, is a valuable compilation of agrotechniques coupled with background information, research works, and scientific discussions on these spices. It will include in-depth narration on underexploited spice crops as products in influencing present-day the global export market and the renewed interest in these crops throughout the world. The volume deals with the scientific approach of growing underexploited spices with the intention of popularizing them. Separate chapters on the importance of each spice, methods of growing and harvesting, and recent research from around the world along with future strategies are covered.

Peanut Agriculture and Production Technology: Integrated Nutrient Management focuses on agricultural techniques and integrated nutrient management of peanuts (Arachis hypogaea L.). Peanuts are the second most important oil crop of India, occupying 5.7 million hectares, with an average production of 0.8 ton/ha, which is 23.5% of the India's total oil seed production. Worldwide annual production of shelled peanuts was 42 million metric tons in 2014. It is the world's 4th most important source of edible oil and the 3rd most important source of vegetable protein. The volume includes basic and advanced information on production, agrotechniques, and integrated nutrient management of Arachis hypogaea L. crop plant. It studies the physiology of the peanut, looking at the proper environmental conditions for optimal growth as well as under various subnormal conditions. It explores the methods of nitrogen application as well as the influence of different sowing dates and population densities to harvest its full yield potential. The book covers methods to achieve balanced nutrition, including using organic manures in groundnut farming to enhance yielding ability. The book will be a rich resource for those in agriculture, horticulture, and allied sciences, particularly for agricultural scientists in plant and crop physiology, agronomy, and soil science. Farm owners and managers of peanut crops and production will also benefit from the information provided in this volume.

'We at Too Good To Go, found the research presented immensely insightful as we continue to build awareness raising campaigns with the aim of changing behaviours.' Too Good To Go This book provides a comprehensive review of the causes and prevention of food losses and waste (FLW) at key steps in the supply chain. The book begins by defining what is meant by food losses and waste and then assessing current research on its economic, environmental and nutritional impact. It then reviews what we know about causes and prevention of FLW at different stages in the supply chain, from cultivation, harvesting and storage, through processing and distribution to retail and consumer use. The third part of the book looks at FLW for particular commodities, including cereals and grains, fresh fruit and vegetables, roots and tubers, oilseeds and tubers, meat and dairy products, and fish and seafood products. The final section in the book reviews the effectiveness of campaigns to reduce FLW in regions such as North and Latin America, Asia and the Pacific, the Middle East and, sub-Saharan Africa.

Nano-enabled Sustainable and Precision Agriculture is the first single-volume resource to cover this important field using a whole systems approach that considers both opportunities and challenges. The book provides a comprehensive understanding of the role of nanotechnology in agriculture from broad aspects, but also includes a comprehensive view of the interaction of nanomaterials with soil-plant systems. It highlights aspects not described in previous books, including the application of nanoinformatics and artificial intelligence in nano-enabled sustainable agriculture, the application of nanotechnology in alternative forms of agriculture such as hydroponics, and regulatory frameworks for this research field. The book addresses all these aspects by including sections on enhanced sustainability, reduced pollution and enhanced ecosystems' health, and the role of nanoinformatics and machine learning.

Making hay has always been hard work, just about the hardest work on a farm. Spanning 150 years, The Haymakers tells a story of the labor and heartbreak suffered by five families struggling to make the hay that fed their livestock, a story not just about grass, alfalfa, and clover, but also about sweat and fears, toil and loss. The Haymakers is an epic -- the history of man's struggle with nature as well as man's struggle against machines. It relates the story of farmers and their obligations to their families, to the animals they fed, and to the land they tended.

Hoffbeck also documents and preserves the commonplace methods of haymaking. He describes the tools and the methods of haymaking as well as the relentless demands of the farm. Using diaries, agricultural guidebooks and personal interviews, the folkways of cutting, raking, and harvesting hay have been recorded in these chapters. In the end, this book is not so much about agricultural history as it is about family history, personal history -- how farm families survive, even persevere.

The world population is projected to reach nine billion by 2050, and in the coming years, global food demand is expected to increase by 50% or more. Higher crop productivity gains in the future will have to be achieved in developing countries through better natural resources management and crop improvement. After nitrogen, phosphorus (P) has more widespread influence on both natural and agricultural ecosystems than any other essential plant element. It has been estimated that 5.7 billion hectares of land worldwide contain insufficient amounts of available P for sustainable crop production, and P deficiency in crop plants is a widespread problem in various parts of the world. However, it has been estimated that worldwide minable P could last less than 40 years. For sustaining future food supplies, it is vital to enhance plant P use efficiency. To bring the latest knowledge and research advances in efficient management of P for economically viable and environmentally beneficial crop production in sustainable agriculture, Phosphorus Management in Crop Production contains chapters covering functions and diagnostic techniques for P requirements in crop plants, P use efficiency and interactions with other nutrients in crop plants, management of P for optimal crop production and environmental quality, and basic principles and methodology regarding P nutrition in crop plants. The majority of research data included are derived from many years of field, greenhouse, and lab work, hence the information is practical in nature and will have a significant impact on efficient management of P-fertilizers to enhance P use efficiency, improve crop production, promote sustainable agriculture, and reduce P losses through eluviations, leaching, and erosion to minimize environmental degradation. A comprehensive book that combines practical and applied information, Phosphorus Management in Crop Production is an excellent reference for students, professors, agricultural research scientists, food scientists, agricultural extension specialists, private consultants, fertilizer companies, and government agencies that deal with agricultural and environmental issues.

Many of our current agricultural crops are natural or agricultural hybrids (between two or more species), or polyploids (containing more than one genome or set of chromosomes). These include potato, oats, cotton, oilseed rape, wheat, strawberries, kiwifruit, banana, seedless watermelon, triticale and many others. Polyploidy and hybridization can also be used for crop improvement: for example, to introgress disease resistance from wild species into crops, to produce seedless fruits for human consumption, or even to create entirely new crop types. Some crop genera have hundreds of years of interspecific hybridization and ploidy manipulation behind them, while in other genera use of these evolutionary processes for crop improvement is still at the theoretical stage. This book brings together stories and examples by expert researchers and breeders working in diverse crop genera, and details how polyploidy and hybridization processes have shaped our current crops, how these processes have been utilized for crop improvement in the past, and how polyploidy and interspecific hybridization can be used for crop improvement in the future.

Hemp, Cannabis sativa, has been called the world's most versatile plant. Materials made from hemp fiber have been discovered in tombs dating back to 7000 B.C. During the Middle Ages hemp was used to treat fevers, insomnia, and malaria. Columbus's ships had sails of hemp, and during colonial times it was universally grown because its strong fibers made superior ropes, sails, cloth, and paper. In fact, hemp was used for money in most of the Americas from 1631 until the early 1800s, and the original drafts of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were written on hemp paper.As a food, the oil from hemp seeds has the highest percentage of essential fatty acids and the lowest percentage of saturated fats. Britain and Canada have recently lifted bans on growing industrial hemp and today it is reappearing in the marketplace in an amazing array of products: from lip-salve, jeans, salad oil, and cheese to paper products, composite fiberboard, and biomass fuel.This illustrated, easy-to-read guide covers all aspects of hemp: - The history of its cultivation worldwide - Its role as a source of renewable energy and as an alternative for paper manufacturing and fossil fuels- Its versatility as a fiber- Its many nutritional and medicinal uses- Examines the physiological and psychological effects of marijuana use in recreation and therapy- A comprehensive resource section includes information on organizations involved in legalizing hemp, product suppliers, and an annotated bibliography.

In this major 1993 work, Lloyd Evans provides an integrated view of the domestication, adaptation and improvement of crop plants, bringing together genetic diversity, plant breeding, physiology and aspects of agronomy. Considerations of yield and maximum yield provide continuity throughout the book. Food, feed, fibre, fuel and pharmaceutical crops are all discussed. Cereals, grain legumes and root crops, both temperate and tropical, provide many of the examples, but pasture plants, oilseeds, leafy crops, fruit trees and others are also considered. After the introductory chapter, the increasing significance of crop yields to the world's food supply is highlighted. The next three chapters consider changes to crop plants over the last ten thousand years, including domestication, adaptation and improvement. Aimed at research workers and advanced students in crop physiology and ecology, agronomy and plant breeding, this book also reaches conclusions of relevance to those concerned with developmental policy, agricultural research and management, environmental quality, resource depletion and human history.

Turfgrass is required to meet a challenging range of aesthetic, functional and environmental requirements, whilst also adapting to the threat of abiotic and biotic stresses which are being accentuated by climate change. The turfgrass industry is also facing increasing pressure to reduce its environmental impact and advance more sustainable maintenance practices that utilise and/or optimise fewer agronomic-related resources. Achieving sustainable turfgrass management summarises the wealth of recent research that addresses these challenges, whilst also identifying potential mitigation strategies to reduce the sector's contribution to climate change, such as reduced fertilizer use and water conservation. This collection also highlights developments in breeding for improved cultivars of turfgrass with enhanced abiotic and biotic stress responses, as well as climate resilience. In its extensive exploration of turfgrass physiology, breeding and cultivation, the book showcases how the turfgrass industry can adopt more sustainable management practices and reduce its environmental impact.