A reference text with the latest information and research for educators, students, and researchers! World hunger and malnutrition remain an alarming concern that spurs researchers to develop quality technology. The Handbook of Seed Science and Technology is an extensive reference text for educators, students, practitioners, and researchers that focuses on the underlying mechanisms of seed biology and the impact of powerful biotechnological approaches on world hunger, malnutrition, and consumer preferences. This comprehensive guide provides the latest available research from noted experts pointing out the likely directions of future developments as it presents a wealth of seed biology and technological information. Seed science is the all-important foundation of plant science study. The Handbook of Seed Science and Technology provides an integrative perspective that takes you through the fundamentals to the latest applications of seed science and technology. This resource provides a complete overview, divided into four sections: Seed Developmental Biology and Biotechnology; Seed Dormancy and Germination; Seed Ecology; and Seed Technology. The Handbook of Seed Science and Technology examines: the molecular control of ovule development female gametophyte development cytokinins and seed development grain number determination in major grain crops metabolic engineering of carbohydrate supply in plant reproductive development enhancing the nutritive value of seeds by genetic engineering the process of accumulation of seed proteins and using biotechnology to improve crops synthetic seeds dormancy and germination hormonal interactions during dormancy release and germination photoregulation of seed germination seed size seed predation natural defense mechanisms in seeds seed protease inhibitors soil seed banks the ecophysiological basis of weed seed longevity in the soil seed quality testing seed vigor and its assessment diagnosis of seed-borne pathogens seed quality in vegetable crops vegetable hybrid seed production practical hydration of seeds of tropical crops seed technology in plant germplasm The Handbook of Seed Science and Technology is extensively referenced and packed with tables and diagrams, and makes an essential source for students, educators, researchers, and practitioners in seed science and technology.

This book addresses aspects of rice production in rice-growing areas of the world including origin, history, role in global food security, cropping systems, management practices, production systems, cultivars, as well as fertilizer and pest management. As one of the three most important grain crops that helps to fulfill food needs all across the globe, rice plays a key role in the current and future food security of the world. Currently, no book covers all aspects of rice production in the rice-growing areas of world. This book fills that gap by highlighting the diverse production and management practices as well as the various rice genotypes in the salient, rice-producing areas in Asia, Europe, Africa, the Americas, and Australia. Further, this text highlights harvesting, threshing, processing, yields and rice products and future research needs. Supplemented with illustrations and tables, this text is essential for students taking courses in agronomy and production systems as well as for agricultural advisers, county agents, extension specialists, and professionals throughout the industry.

Jatropha curcas or Physic Nut is a small tree (bush plant) that produces fruits under tropical climate. The fruits contained seed that are 40 percent oil rich. This oil is excellent for biodiesel. The bush is a now new coming crop because it may cope with harsh environmental conditions such as semi-aridity and poor land. It is considered as one alternative for climate mitigation that does not compete with arable land normally dedicated to food crop and can be used to regain degraded land or fight desertification. This bush has been considered seriously by the international community only recently (2006-2008), but worldwide scientists did an outstanding job to drawn Jatropha out of its semi-wild status and bring it on the industrial scene. Problems remains, but we have now a comprehensive picture of this crop and almost every technological challenged were addressed. From now, the job will have to concentrate on breeding in order to domesticate this species. Therefore, it is the right time to sum up worldwide contributions in a comprehensive book with a breeding looking to improve the chance of this plant to stabilize as a crop and to fulfil with the expectations that humans invested in it. A book with this perspective will help international community to give a step on. The book will be a broad and comprehensive look on Jatropha until the details since the book is being contributed by international experts worldwide that have already published works in the international press of Science. Illustrations, tables geographic maps, GPS location, etc are added by each contributors according to the feeling they have concerning what they think their contribution should be.

The coconut palm is a very important plant in the tropical regions, both as a cash crop and in subsistence agriculture. Although most coconut production is dedicated to copra and its subsequent oil extraction, the number of products that can be obtained from the palm is seemingly limitless. However, the coconut industry has several problems that affect its productivity, especially: the use of unimproved planting material, the old age of existing plantations, and various pests and diseases. This book deals with the most severe of the diseases, lethal yellowing, which has killed millions of coconut palms in Latin America and the Caribbean alone and which, together with related diseases in Africa and possibly India and Southeast Asia, poses a world-wide threat to coconut production. The papers were presented to a symposium on "Lethal Yellowing Research and Practical Aspects", held in Mexico in November 1993. The book should help to maintain the momentum in lethal yellowing research, stimulating further research on coconut palms, an orphan crop having many uses.

This book provides comprehensive and useful information on the medicinal plants especially those used as food supplement in the form of health vitalizers and invigorators. A subjective approach is attempted for the first time in this book with all the information available in one single volume. Separate chapters are devoted to the medicinal values of each herb. The details about various plant extracts possessing significant anti-stress activity, are presented in this book.

For the researchers of rice blast disease and plant blast resistances, IRBC is an important chance to exchange information and discussion on rice blast, which has been a rather minor topic on international plant pathological meetings. Especially for those in Asia, where the blast is one the most important agricultural concerns, IRBC was a unique opportunity to discuss on rice blast with scientists in the West, in where it is achieving the positions of a model pathogen and a model system to study plant microbe interactions. However, I and probably many of Japanese blast researchers have felt an accumulated frustration that, in world plant pathological conferences, the information presented from Asia is only a small fraction although they have much more information that may be valuable for world plant pathologists and resistance researchers. I have noticed also some concept gaps between the researchers in East and West, particularly in the field resistance and the multiline system. There seems to be few who study field resistance and multilines in the West, while in Japan they are expected to become mainstream strategies to suppress the disease. Surely there is a great value in rd having 3 IRBC in Japan for cultivating wider communication between the scientists of the East and West.

For centuries, bird guano has played a pivotal role in the agricultural and economic development of Latin America, East Asia, and Oceania. As their populations ballooned during the Industrial Revolution, North American and European powers came to depend on this unique resource as well, helping them meet their ever-increasing farming needs. This book explores how the production and commodification of guano has shaped the modern Pacific Basin and the world's relationship to the region. Marrying traditional methods of historical analysis with a broad interdisciplinary approach, Gregory T. Cushman casts this once little-known commodity as an engine of Western industrialization, offering new insight into uniquely modern developments such as environmental consciousness and conservation movements; the ascendance of science, technology, and expertise; international relations; and world war.

The genus Thymus consists of about 350 species of perennial, aromatic herbs and subshrubs native to Europe and North Africa. Various types of thyme are used all over the globe as condiments, ornamentals and sources of essential oil. Thyme oil (distilled from its leaves) is among the world's top ten essential oils, displaying antibacterial, antimycotic, antioxidative, food preservative and mammalian age-delaying properties. Because of the wide variety of its applications, the demand for thyme oil is growing; hence thyme commands an important place in an expanding world market. Commercial supply of thyme originates mainly from European countries, but recently this increased demand has lead to new winter-hardy, high yield cultivars being developed for commercial cultivation in Canada and North America.
This comprehensive volume covers all aspects of the biology, cultivation, pharmacology, chemistry and industrial processing of the genus Thymus. It is the most up to date overview of current knowledge in thyme use, and will be an invaluable reference source to those interested in medicinal plants, natural products, pharmacy, pharmacognosy and agronomy.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203216857

Crops experience an assortment of environmental stresses which include abiotic viz., drought, water logging, salinity, extremes of temperature, high variability in radiation, subtle but perceptible changes in atmospheric gases and biotic viz., insects, birds, pests, weeds, pathogens (viruses and other microbes). The ability to tolerate or adapt and over winter by effectively countering these stresses is a very multifaceted phenomenon. In addition, the inability to do so which renders the crops susceptible is again the result of various exogenous and endogenous interaction in the ecosystem. Both biotic and abiotic stresses occur at various stages of plant development and frequently more than one stress concurrently affects the crop. Stresses result in both universal and definite effects on plant growth and development. One of the imposing tasks for the crop researchers globally is to distinguish and to diminish effects of these stress factors on the performance of crop plants, especially with respect to yield and quality of harvested products. This is of special significance in view of the impending climate change, with complex consequences for economically profitable and ecologically and environmentally sound global agriculture. The challenge at the hands of the crop scientist in such a scenario is to promote a competitive and multifunctional agriculture, leading to the production of highly nourishing, healthy and secure food and animal feed as well as raw materials for a wide variety of industrial applications. In order to successfully meet this challenge researchers have to understand the various aspects of these stresses in view of the current development from molecules to ecosystems. The book will focus on the following broad research areas in relation to these stresses which are in the forefront in contemporary crop stress research.

With contributions from nearly 130 internationally renowned experts in the field, this reference details advances in transgenic plant construction and explores the social, political, and legal aspects of genetic plant manipulation. It provides analyzes of the history, genetics, physiology, and cultivation of over 30 species of transgenic seeds, fruits, and vegetables. Stressing the impact of genetic engineering strategies on the nutritional and functional benefit of foods as well as on consumer health and the global market economy, the book covers methods of gene marking, transferring, and tagging public perceptions to the selective breeding, hybridization, and recombinant DNA manipulation of food.

Genome sequence studies have become more and more important for plant breeding. Brassicas and Legumes: From Genome Structure to Breeding comprises 16 chapters and presents both an overview and the latest results of this rapidly expanding field. Topics covered include: genome analysis of a flowering plant, Arabidopsis thaliana; the sequence of the Arabidopsis genome as a tool for comparative structural genomics in Brassicaceae; application of molecular markers in Brassica coenospecies; the molecular genetic basis of flowering time variation in Brassica species; quantitative trait loci for clubroot resistance in Brassica oleracea; structural differences of S locus between Brassica oleracea and Brassica rapa; Brassica and legume chromosomes; sequence analysis of the Lotus japonicus genome; introduction of an early flowering accession ‘Miyakojima’ MG-20 to molecular genetics in Lotus japonicus; genetic linkage map of the model legume Lotus japonicus; construction of a high quality genome library of Lotus japonicus; genome analysis of Mesorhizobium loti: a symbiotic partner to Lotus japonicus; molecular linkage map of the model legume Medicago truncatula; genetic mapping of seed and nodule protein markers in diploid alfalfa (Medicago sativa); mapping the chickpea (Cicer arietinum) genome: localization of fungal resistance genes in interspecific crosses.  

Development of superior crops that have consistent performance in quality and in quantity has not received the same emphasis in the field of genetics and breeding as merited. Specialty trait requires special focus to propagate. Yet basic germplasm and breeding methodologies optimized to improve crops are often applied in the development of improved specialty types. However, because of the standards required for specialty traits, methods of development and improvement are usually more complex than those for common commodity crops. The same standards of performance are desired, but the genetics of the specialty traits often impose breeding criteria distinct from those of non-specialty possessing crops. Specifically, quality improvement programs have unique characteristics that require careful handling and monitoring during their development for specific needs. Adding value either via alternative products from the large volumes of grain produced or development of specialty types is of interest to producers and processors. This work assimilates the most topical results about quality improvement with contemporary plant breeding approaches.The objective of this book is to provide a summary of the germplasm, methods of development, and specific problems involved for quality breeding. In total, fourteen chapters, written by leading scientists involved in crop improvement research, provide comprehensive coverage of the major factors impacting specialty crop improvement.

This book, first published in 1990 and reprinted here, is a comprehensive, state-of-the art reference on the design principles and management techniques of two primary agricultural irrigation methods. The book presents a systematic approach to the optimal design, management and operation of these two systems. Focusing on the synthesis of the entire design process, the authors present the chapters in the sequence used to design systems with the analytical material presented and demonstrated in a concise manner. For the first time in any book, Sprinkle and Trickle Irrigation offers complete design strategies and presentations for all of the major types of sprinkle and trickle systems: - Periodic-move - Center-pivot - Traveling sprinkler - Linear-moving - Set sprinkler - Drip, spray and line-source Sequential sample calculations that involve the steps in the design of typical irrigation systems are used extensively. As the book progresses, these calculations become more comprehensive and are linked together to form complete design packages for the various types of pressurized systems. The book also presents a section on selecting pressurized irrigation systems, a review of soil-plant-water relationships, unique insight into pipeline hydraulics and economics, design specifications for fertilization and frost control, a glossary and an annotated bibliography of ASAE Standards for Pressurized Irrigation Systems. Sprinkle and Trickle Irrigation is an important practical reference for agricultural engineers, irrigation system designers and agricultural managers, as well as a vital text for professors and researchers in agricultural engineering. "Sprinkle and Trickle Irrigation presents beginning-to-end coverage of the processes and computations needed in the planning and design of sprinkle and trickle irrigation systems. The textbook is created for the thinking person who desires more than cookie-cutter recipes or simple, routine "rule-of-thumb" designs. Rather, the authors of Sprinkle and Trickle Irrigation present concise rationale and philosophy behind each computation formula, figure and table. They decouple "recommended" design parameters into underlying components that can be recoupled at the time of the design to apply to specific cases and situations. In the process, the reader gains visualization skills that allow him/her to peer "inside" an irrigation system, both hydraulically, economically, and operationally. Sprinkle and Trickle Irrigation is a classic design text and reference that should be on every practitioner's desk. The chapters on center-pivot, linear-move and travelling sprinklers go well beyond other current texts. Solid and encompassing economics are infused into all design topics, including application, distribution, and pumping systems. I have lectured out of Sprinkle and Trickle Irrigation for twelve years at the university-senior level. I am confident that all students who completed this design course know not only how to design efficient and effective pressurized irrigation systems, but also know why they use the procedures that they use." Dr. Richard G. Allen, Professor, University of Idaho

Faba bean is a species of flowering plant in the Fabaceae family and the fourth most widely grown winter season legume after pea, chickpea, and lentil. The nutritional profile of faba beans is excellent as they contain an adequate quantity of proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals and various polyphenols. Faba bean seeds are a rich source of carbohydrates and starch. Because of higher amylose content than cereal starches, legume starches provide distinctive properties such as high gelation temperature, fast retro-gradation, high resistant starch and gel elasticity to food systems. Faba bean has been a beneficial source of protein in food products worldwide for centuries and continues to be highly produced and consumed to this day. Faba bean Chemistry, Properties and Functionality studies the global status and production of faba bean food products plus their agronomy, nutritional value and potential medicinal applications. The agrarian conditions are studied in full, as are postharvest practices. The chemical makeup of faba bean is a major focus, especially in relation to nutrient composition and quality. Chapters in this text focus on anti-nutritional attributes, antioxidants and bioactive compounds plus the effects of processing, storage and cooking on their nutritional value. Starch and its modification, structure, properties and industrial applications are covered, as is protein, genetic improvement and functional product formulation. The text also looks at the future perspectives of this valuable plant and food source. To date, no reference works have exclusively covered faba bean. This book provides a much-needed single source reference point for researchers looking to gain knowledge on this important plant and its use in high protein, health-beneficial food products.

This volume mainly reports on new and recent advancements on different aspects of Pseudomonas syringae, a plant pathogenic bacterial species that include a high number of pathogens of important crops, which is an interesting model organism in plant pathology. In addition some related fluorescent Pseudomonas spp., responsible of new and emerging diseases, as well as some pathogens previously included in the above genus and now classified in the genera Ralstonia, Acidovorax are also considered. The tremendous recent advancements on: the ecology and epidemiology and, in particular, the adaptation of P. syringae to stresses and adverse environmental conditions; the function and regulation of genes involved in the production of phytotoxins and on their mechanism of action in the interaction with the host cells; the structure, function and regulation of type three secretion system (TTSS) and the transport of the effectors proteins in the host cells; the possibility to control diseases through the induction of the systemic acquired resistance (SAR); the development of molecular techniques for the highly specific and sensible identification and detection of pathogens; the determination of the causal agents of new and emerging diseases as well the classification of the different pathovars of P. syringae; are reported in 76 chapters cured by leading scientist in the respective fields.

Sage, the Genus Salvia is one of the most famous and used herbs in the world. This volume, containing over twenty chapters written by leading experts in the field, presents a comprehensive coverage on all aspects of Salvia. Topics covered include the presentation of the most known Salvia species (approximately 400 of them), the distribution of the genus, its chemotaxonomy, ecophysiology, cultivation technology and breeding methods, information on the extraction, isolation, characterisation and structure of a large number of bioactive components, the various pharmacological properties of the species, the share of Salvia products in aromatherapy and the natural cosmetics market, biotechnological techniques, and commercial aspects.

This comprehensive volume on Salvia should be of interest to everyone involved in medicinal and aromatic plant applications and research.

This book provides a broad-based foundation of knowledge about brown rice, including the latest information on health benefits and disease prevention resulting from consumption of brown rice, and information on consumer knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors towards brown rice. It is the first book of its kind to provide a comprehensive review of current brown rice science and technology, regulatory/policy issues, dietary intake, consumer interest and health promotion. The edited volume focuses on the latest developments in breeding varieties for high quality brown rice, varietal variations, defects, milling, cooking quality, eating quality, post-harvest management and methods to improve shelf life. Contributing authors address the physical, chemical, engineering, nutritional and glycemic qualities of brown rice in different chapters. Authors also discuss the physiological functions of brown rice in vivo and radical scavenging activity, emphasizing their importance to growers, technologists and consumers, and providing insight into future advances. This comprehensive collection benefits scientists, nutritionists, dieticians, diabetic educators, and professionals in the food industry. The information covered is valuable for food scientists and technologists working to develop new brown rice products and enhancing the taste, quality, and health profile of brown rice.

If you?re an agronomist, horticulturalist, plant and soil scientist, breeder, or soil microbiologist, you?ll want to read Nutrient Use in Crop Production to find everything you need to know about judicious nutrient management and maximizing nutrient utilization in the agricultural landscape. In this book, you?ll discover ways to minimize undesirable nutrient losses and techniques for preserving the environment while meeting the challenges of providing the earth?s increasing population with sufficient food, feed, and fiber to sustain life. Your existing knowledge base concerning this vital area of science will expand and grow as you become more open to the new ideas and applications contained in Nutrient Use in Crop Production. Most importantly, you?ll avoid the narrow scope found in most crop nutrition books and take a broader, more globally minded view of how to maximize nutrient use and minimize nutrient losses in the soil of agricultural systems. Specifically, you?ll find these and other areas covered: population growth, food production, and nutrient requirements managing soil fertility decline the role of nitrogen fixation in crop production delivering fertilizers through seed coatings micronutrient fertilizers the role of nutrient-efficient crops in modern agricultureFeeding the world without depleting the world?s viable soil nutrients is a monumental task--but one that can be achieved, as evidenced in the pages of Nutrient Use in Crop Production. You and your circle of students, professionals, and administrators will benefit greatly from this in-depth view of nutrient use in both developed and non-industrialized counties to give you a better sense of how to allow both the world and the world?s crops to grow.

This proceeding covers all the collected research data and presentations from the 8th International Symposium on the Molecular Breeding of Forage and Turf. The book explores themes in molecular breeding of forage and turf, including abiotic and biotic stresses, bioenergy and biorenewables, comparative genomics, emerging tools for forage and turf research, functional genetics and genomics and genetic mapping germplasm, diversity and its impact on breeding, herbage quality, plant-microbe interactions and transgenic and risk assessment. Written by renowned researchers in plant genomics, Molecular Breeding of Forage and Turf: The Proceedings of the 8th International Symposium on the Molecular Breeding of Forage and Turf is a valuable resource for researchers and students in the field of plant genomics.

This important reference book is the first comprehensive resource worldwide that reflects research achievements in date palm biotechnology, documenting research events during the last four decades, current status, and future outlook. This book is essential for researchers, policy makers, and commercial entrepreneurs concerned with date palm. The book is invaluable for date palm biotechnology students and specialists. This monument is written by an international team of experienced researchers from both academia and industry. It consists of five sections covering all aspects of date palm biotechnology including A) Micropropagation, B) Somaclonal Variation, Mutation and Selection, C) Germplasm Biodiversity and Conservation, D) Genetics and Genetic Improvement, and E) Metabolites and Industrial Biotechnology. The book brings together the principles and practices of contemporary date palm biotechnology. Each chapter contains background knowledge related to the topic, followed by a comprehensive literature review of research methodology and results including the authors own experience including illustrative tables and photographs."

Presents innovative approaches to weeds and weed management. Expanding the Context of Weed Management is your key to the latest economically and environmentally friendly methods of managing weeds. You will explore the biological, cultural, mechanical, and preventive tools and techniques that are necessary to successfully manage weeds. Expanding the Context of Weed Management teaches you how to optimize your crop production and profit by integrating preventive techniques, scientific knowledge, and management skills into your current farming routine. This practical volume contains a series of review articles and original research that present innovative approaches to weeds and weed management. In its pages you will discover valuable and practical information about: how weeds can be considered a part of the cropping system instead of an isolated pest to beeliminated why weeds behave as they do short and long term approaches to changing weed management standard breeding methods for weed competitive crops how to improve soil quality to manage weeds how to integrate pest management for weeds how to avoid propagule production how to reduce weed emergence in crops how to minimize weed competition with the cropThe costliness of weeds and weed control is more than $15 billion a year in the United States.Expanding the Context of Weed Management will help you cut this cost with the latest methods of effective weed control. Intended for agronomists, weed scientists, crop advisors, environmentalists, students, and crop ecologists,this book provides a successful and environmentally sound perspective on weeds and their control.

Handbook of Plant Virus Diseases presents basic information about viral-caused and viral-like diseases in many cultivated crops. The editors, internationally known plant pathologists, provide authoritative descriptive symptomatic signatures of virus diseases, to aid in the diagnosis and possible control of viruses. This handbook organizes cultivated plants into groups according to their final destinations and uses after harvest-a useful grouping system that indicates that some diseases, their resultant epidemiology, and control measures are characteristic within different groups.

It has been reported that up to 95% of all flowering plants require the services of other organisms to move pollen from male to female flower parts during the pollination process. These organisms, including bees, are collectively known as pollinators. However, in light of the growing evidence of global declines in pollinator species, the management, ecology and conservation of wild and managed pollinators is a subject of growing importance and research activity. Promoting pollination and pollinators in farming reviews the wealth of research on our current understanding of existing pollination processes and their importance to our global ecosystems. The book considers how pollinators interact with plants, as well as the major threats to pollinator species, including climate change, diseases and pesticide exposure. Through its comprehensive exploration of the current status of pollinators in farming, the book provides its readers with the knowledge required to promote pollination by protecting the world's pollinators species and the ecosystem services they deliver using techniques such as habitat conservation.

Development of Techniques for the Transformation of Cereals: An Assessment of Methods for the Genetic Transformation of Wheat (R.I.S. Brettell et al.). Genetic Engineering of Wheat and Barley (K. Katha et al.). Genetic Engineering of Cereal Protein Quality: Improvement of Barley and Wheat Quality by Genetic Engineering (P.R. Shrewry et al.). Progress Towards Genetic Engineering of Wheat with Improved Quality (O. Anderson et al.). Genetic Engineering of Cereal Starch Quality: Prospects for the Production of Cereals with Improved Starch Properties (J. Priess et al.). Genetic Engineering of Resistance to Starch Hydrolysis Caused by PreHarvest Sprouting (R.J. Henry et al.). Improvement of Barley Quality by Genetic Engineering: Potential for the Improvement of Malting Quality of Barley by Genetic Engineering (G. Fincher). Regulation of Cereal Genetic Engineering: S. BrookeTaylor et al.). 10 additional articles. Index.

The title 'Phosphorus in Agriculture: 100 % Zero' is synonymous for make-or-break. And it stands up to the promise. This book sends an important message as it delivers background information, intrinsic hypotheses, validation approaches and legal frameworks, all for balanced phosphorus fertilization in agriculture. This implies firstly that the phosphorus requirement of crop is fully satisfied by applying exclusively fertilizers which contain the nutrient in completely available form. Secondly, environmental demands through eutrophication and hazardous contaminants must not be compromised. The book identifies equally knowledge gaps and deficits in the transformation and implementation of research into practice. Bottom line is that research delivers the tools for a sustainable phosphorus management while legal frameworks are insufficient.