Advances in Agronomy continues to be recognized as a leading reference and a first-rate source for the latest research in agronomy. Each volume contains an eclectic group of reviews by leading scientists throughout the world. Five volumes are published yearly which ensures that authors' contributions are disseminated to the readership in a timely manner. As always, the subjects covered are varied and exemplary of the myriad of subject matter dealt with by this long-running serial.

Bioenergy and biofuels are generated from a wide variety of feedstock. Fuels have been converted from a wide range of sources from vegetable oils to grains and sugarcane. Second generation biofuels are being developed around dedicated, non-food energy crops, such as switchgrass and Miscanthus, with an eye toward bioenergy sustainability. "Bioenergy Feedstocks: Breeding and Genetics "looks at advances in our understanding of the genetics and breeding practices across this diverse range of crops and provides readers with a valuable tool to improve cultivars and increase energy crop yields.

"Bioenergy Feedstocks: Breeding and Genetics "opens with chapters focusing primarily on advances in the genetics and molecular biology of dedicated energy crops. These chapters provide in-depth coverage of new, high-potential feedstocks. The remaining chapters provide valuable overview of breeding efforts of current feedstocks with specific attention paid to the development of bioenergy traits. Coverage in these chapters includes crops such as sorghum, energy canes, corn, and other grasses and forages.

The final chapters explore the role of transgenics in bioenergy feedstock production and the development of low-input strategies for producing bioenergy crops. A timely collection of work from a global team of bioenergy researchers and crop scientists, "Bioenergy Feedstocks: Breeding and Genetics "is an essential reference on cultivar improvement of biomass feedstock crops.

Advances in Agronomy continues to be recognized as a leading reference and a first-rate source for the latest research in agronomy. As always, the subjects covered are varied and exemplary of the myriad of subject matter dealt with by this long-running serial. Six volumes are published yearly which ensures that authors' contributions are disseminated to the readership in a timely manner.

Methods of Soil Enzymology provides the first comprehensive set of vetted methods for studying enzymes in soils. Readers will especially benefit from the step-by-step explanation of the lab procedures, as well as background information for using these methods effectively and analyzing data. Main topics include activity assays, enzyme extraction, and synthetic enzyme complexes. Each method covered includes background informaton, step-by-step descriptions of the procedure, and special comments regarding nuances, pitfalls, and interpretation of the method. This books includes the latest research methods, including enzyme extraction methods and procedures for creating synthetic enzyme complexes, as well as the newest ways to use small-scale and high-throughput methods for enzyme activity assays.

This book in its 20 chapters elaborates the latest scientific knowledge and technological achievements for development of potato in sub-tropics and also suggests the future strategies for likely adoption. It is our sincere belief that it would act as a compendium of potato research in the country and similar regions and researchers, students and other stakeholders will benefit from the compiled information in a big way. Note: T&F does not sell or distribute the Hardback in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. This title is co-published with New India Publishing Agency.

Hazardous and Trace Materials in Soil and Plants: Sources, Effects and Management explores the latest advancements in reducing, avoiding and eliminating soil contaminants that challenge the health and safety of agricultural plants. With a focus on minimizing the production of those hazardous substances, controlling their distribution and ensuring safe utilization, the book explores each contributing area and provides insights toward improved, sustainable and secure production. This is an excellent reference resource on both current research and future directions from laboratory research to field applications. The combined impacts of climate change and industrialization have led to increased and diversified threats to the health of the soil in which our food crops are grown, as well as in the plants themselves. This dual-hazard scenario is increasingly recognized as a threat to not just the environment, but to global food security as agricultural soils contaminated with pollutants alter plant metabolism, thus resulting in reduced crop quality and production quantity.

Reproductive biology is the basis of species improvement and a thorough understanding of this is needed for plant improvement, whether by conventional or biotechnological methods. This book presents an up to date and comprehensive description of reproduction in lower plants, gymnosperms and higher plants. It covers general plant biology, pollination, pollen-pistil interaction, post-fertilization changes, and seed dormancy.

Pearl millet is mainly used for animal and poultry feed. It is the principal source of energy, protein, vitamins, minerals and contains many phenolic compounds, which are a good source of natural antioxidants. Pearl millet is a rich source of bioactive compounds and contains phytates and polyphenols. Owing to high nutritional and phytochemical properties, it has gained considerable attention as a botanical dietary supplement in many functional foods. Pearl Millet: Properties, Functionality and Its Applications provides comprehensive knowledge on nutritional and non-nutritional aspects of pearl millet. It covers recent research on pearl millet and provides information to improve the property and shelf life of flour, as well as the starch, and their uses in various food products. Features: Reviews structure, functional and antioxidant properties in pearl millet flour Deals with the latest developments in modification of native starch Provides information in enhancing shelf life and its utilization in phytochemical-rich product development Covers updated information for grain science professionals and food technologists

In recent decades, livestock producers have moved away from open grazing for a number of reasons, none having to do with the health of consumers. Genetic Resources, Chromosome Engineering, and Crop Improvement: Forage Crops demonstrates how state-of-the-art technology can encourage the raising of livestock in open pastures where they can be fed grasses grown in nature rather than meals enriched with hormones and other by-products. The volume brings together the world's leading innovators in crop science who furnish information on the availability of germplasm resources that breeders can exploit for the improvement of major forage crop varieties including alfalfa, wheatgrass and wildrye grasses, Bahiagrass, birdsfoot trefoil, clover, Bermudagrass, and ryegrass. An introductory chapter outlines the cytogenetic architecture of forage crops, describes the principles and strategies of cytogenetic and breeding manipulations, and summarizes landmark research. Ensuing chapters provide a comprehensive account of each crop: its origin; wild relatives; exploitation of genetic resources in the primary, secondary, and tertiary, and, where feasible, quarternary gene pools through breeding and cytogenetic manipulation; and genetic enrichment using the tools of molecular genetics and biotechnology. . Certain to become the standard reference, this volume- Discusses taxonomy, genomic and chromosomal constitution, and the geographical distribution Stresses the role of germplasm exploration, maintenance, and assimilation for increasing yield Presents practical improvement methodologies including conventional, cytogenetic, mutation, molecular, cell and tissue cultures, and genetic transformation In addition to serving as fodder, forage crops provide ground cover, aid in abetting erosions, yield a number of pharmaceuti

The term "soil health" refers to the functionality of a soil as a living ecosystem capable of sustaining plants, animals, and humans while also improving the environment. In addition to soil health, the environment also comprises the quality of air, water, vegetation, and biota. The health of soil, plants, animals, people, and the environment is an indivisible continuum. One of the notable ramifications of the Anthropocene is the growing risks of decline in soil health by anthropogenic activities. Important among these activities are deforestation, biomass burning, excessive soil tillage, indiscriminate use of agrochemicals, excessive irrigation by flooding or inundation, and extractive farming practices. Soil pollution, by industrial effluents and urban waste adversely impacts human health. Degradation of soil health impacts nutritional quality of food, such as the uptake of heavy metals or deficit of essential micro-nutrients, and contamination by pests and pathogens. Indirectly, soil health may impact human health through contamination of water and pollution of air. This book aims to: Present relationships of soil health to human health and soil health to human nutrition. Discuss the nexus between soil degradation and malnourishment as well as the important links between soil, plant, animal and human health. Detail reasons oil is a cause of infectious diseases and source of remedial measures. Part of the Advances in Soil Sciences series, this informative volume covering various aspects of soil health appeals to soil scientists, environmental scientists and public health workers.

"Advances in Agronomy" continues to be recognized as a leading reference and a first-rate source for the latest research in agronomy. As always, the subjects covered are varied and exemplary of the myriad of subject matter dealt with by this long-running serial.
Maintains the highest impact factor among serial publications in agriculture Presents timely reviews on important agronomy issues Enjoys a long-standing reputation for excellence in the field

Crop water use can be increased by management of surface runoff, groundwater, irrigation, and soil water. Technological innovations to enhance availability of water for agricultural crops depend on soil and site-specific conditions. Devoted to the principles and practices of enhancing water use efficiency, Soil Water and Agronomic Productivity addresses current problems associated with water supplies required for agricultural purposes and food production.

Written for professionals and students in agricultural fields, the book focuses on innovative technologies for improving soil water availability, enhancing water use efficiency, and using productive irrigation systems. It also presents techniques to conserve water in the root zone as well as remote sensing techniques to assess soil water regime and predict drought on a regional scale.

Soil water management is crucial to reducing the vulnerability to agronomic drought. There are numerous examples of aquifers that have been severely depleted by misuse and mismanagement. Soil Water and Agronomic Productivity explains the factors and causes of the mismanagement of soil water and proposes options for sustainable and efficient use of scarce water resources. Meeting the global food demand will require careful worldwide management of soil and water resources, and this can only be done by sharing information and knowledge.

Part of the Advances in Soil Science Series

Summarizing landmark research, Volume 2 of this essential series furnishes information on the availability of germplasm resources that breeders can exploit for producing high-yielding cereal crop varieties. Written by leading international experts, this volume offers the most comprehensive and up-to-date information on employing genetic resources to increase the yield of those cereal crops that provide the main source of nutrition for two-thirds of the world. In thirteen succinct chapters, Genetic Resources, Chromosome Engineering, and Crop Improvement: Cereals, Volume 2 focuses on wheat, rice, maize, oats, barley, millet, sorghum, and rye, as well as triticale: a wheat and rye hybrid with great potential. An introductory chapter outlines the cytogenetic architecture of cereal crops, describes the principles and strategies of cytogenetics and breeding, and summarizes landmarks in current research. This sets the stage for the ensuing crop-specific chapters. Each chapter generally provides a comprehensive account of the crop, its origin, wild relatives, exploitation of genetic resources in the primary, secondary, and tertiary gene pools through breeding and cytogenetic manipulation, and genetic enrichment using the tools of molecular genetics and biotechnology. Certain to become the standard reference for improving the yields of these critical grains, this book is the definitive source of information for plant breeders, agronomists, cytogeneticists, taxonomists, molecular biologists, biotechnologists, and graduate students and researchers in these fields.

This new 2-volume set, Diseases of Field Crops: Diagnosis and Management, helps to fill the need for research on plant diseases, their effects, how they spread, and effective management measures to mitigate their harmful effects. The volumes in this set showcase recent advances in molecular plant pathology and discuss appropriate diagnostic techniques for identification of causal agents and diseases, providing the information necessary to establish management strategies. The chapters in these two volumes include detailed description of symptoms, causal organisms, disease cycles, epidemiology, and management techniques of economically important diseases. The volumes explore existing strategies and offer new methods that can be used in an integrated manner and with a comprehensive approach for the management of major diseases of the field crops. Also taken into consideration is the impact of global climate change on the spread and severity of plant diseases.

Known as the "King" of spices, black pepper (Piper nigrum L.) and the "Queen" of spices, cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum M.), both perennial crops of the tropics, are the most important and most widely sought after spice crops of the world. They both have many uses, for example, both are used as flavourings and as a medicine. This book provides a comprehensive review of these two very important spice crops, covering origin, history, geographical distribution, production, economy and their uses.

The book describes the history of Brassica oilseed crops, introduces the Brassica genome, its evolution, diversity, classical genetic studies and breeding. It also delves into molecular genetic linkage and physical maps, progress with genome sequencing initiatives, mutagenesis approaches for trait improvement, proteomics, metabolomics and bioinformatics. The concluding of portion provides detailed methods for whole genome marker assisted breeding, the genetics and genomics of important traits including disease resistance, herbivory, insect and abiotic stress resistance, and discusses the future prospects for Brassica improvement through genomics. This volume provides a state of the moment view of current Brassica genetics, genomics and breeding research which is the foundation for the continued understanding of oilseed Brassica species, their genomes, evolution and further potential as important food and biofuel crops.

It is predicted that the world population will reach about 9.7 billion by the year 2050 and to feed this population the food production has to be increased proportionately. Further we are all concerned about climate which in turn results in abiotic stresses like drought, salinity, etc. These abiotic stresses will seriously affect crop productivity. This approach has gained popularity in the recent years and seems to be a potential option for the future. The present book brings out the role of different groups of microorganisms in alleviating abiotic stress in crop plants. Please note: This volume is Co-published with New India Publishing Agency, New Delhi. Taylor & Francis does not sell or distribute the Hardback in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka

Global climate change affects crop production through altered weather patterns and increased environmental stresses. Such stresses include soil salinity, drought, flooding, metal/metalloid toxicity, pollution, and extreme temperatures. The variability of these environmental conditions pared with the sessile lifestyle of plants contribute to high exposure to these stress factors. Increasing tolerance of crop plants to abiotic stresses is needed to fulfill increased food needs of the population. This book focuses on methods of improving plants tolerance to abiotic stresses. It provides information on how protective agents, including exogenous phytoprotectants, can mitigate abiotic stressors affecting plants. The application of various phytoprotectants has become one of the most effective approaches in enhancing the tolerance of plants to these stresses. Phytoprotectants are discussed in detail including information on osmoprotectants, antioxidants, phytohormones, nitric oxide, polyamines, amino acids, and nutrient elements of plants. Providing a valuable resource of information on phytoprotectants, this book is useful in diverse areas of life sciences including agronomy, plant physiology, cell biology, environmental sciences, and biotechnology.

Until recently, breeding efforts in mass produced food crops centered on high yield production while sacrificing flavor, taste and other quality traits. Now, more emphasis is being placed on the enhancement of nutritional and medicinal properties of the food crops. Aside from merely being considered a source of food, crops are today being looked from a health benefit perspective and even from an environmental standpoint. This volume looks at the use of crops for a myriad of purposes, including the prevention and/or mitigation of various diseases, vaccine and antigen production, biofuel production, and the suppression of weeds.

By the year 2050, the world's population is expected to reach nine billion. To feed and sustain this projected population, world food production must increase by at least 50 percent on much of the same land that we farm today. To meet this staggering challenge, scientists must develop the technology required to achieve an "evergreen" revolution--one that increases crop productivity without degrading natural resources. With 30 percent new material, the updated and revised third edition of Growth and Mineral Nutrition of Field Crops covers all aspects of crop growth and mineral nutrition that contribute to sustainable, high-yield agriculture. Bringing together international scientific knowledge of crop production and the impacts of agriculture on the environment, this book: * Includes two new chapters on remediation of heavy-metal contaminated soils and cover crops * Covers theoretical and practical aspects of mineral nutrition of field crops * Provides recommendations for judicious use of fertilizers, which will reduce cost of crop production and enhance high crop yields without risking environmental pollution * Provides growth patterns for annual crops and forages * Includes a handful of color pictures of nutrient deficiencies for easy diagnostic purposes To make the book as practical as possible, each chapter is supported by experimental results and extensive references. A large number of figures and tables are also included to save readers time when researching. The overall emphasis of this reference is on the soil's ability to sustain high crop yields and a healthy human population.

The fast-growing sugarcane plant is a major source of sugar (sucrose) in tropical and sub-tropical regions. The high productivity of the plant also makes it a key target for use as an energy crop. The fiber of the plant is used to generate electricity and produce ethanol as a fuel. Sugarcane is a hybrid of two species, each of which is genetically complex. The high level of genetic complexity in sugarcane creates challenges in the application of both conventional and molecular breeding to the genetic improvement of sugarcane as a sugar and energy crop. This book describes technologies that support the continued use and improvement of sugarcane as source of food and energy. Recent technology developments indicate the potential to greatly increase our understanding of the sugarcane plant by application of emerging genomic technologies. This should result in an increased rate of improvement of sugarcane for human uses.

A transgenic organism is a plant, animal, bacterium, or other living organism that has had a foreign gene added to it by means of genetic engineering. Transgenic plants can arise by natural movement of genes between species, by cross-pollination based hybridization between different plant species (which is a common event in flowering plant evolution), or by laboratory manipulations by artificial insertion of genes from another species. Methods used in traditional breeding that generate transgenic plants by non-recombinant methods are widely familiar to professional plant scientists, and serve important roles in securing a sustainable future for agriculture by protecting crops from pest and helping land and water to be used more efficiently.
There is worldwide interest in the biosafety issues related to transgenic crops because of issues such as increased pesticide use, increased crop and weed resistance to pesticides, gene flow to related plant species, negative effects on nontarget organisms, and reduced crop and ecosystem diversity. This book is intended to provide the basic information for a wide range of people involved in the release of transgenic crops. These will include scientists and researchers in the initial stage of developing transgenic products, industrialists, and decision makers. It will be of particular interest to plant scientists taking up biotechnological approaches to agricultural improvement for developing nations.
* Discusses traditional and future technology for genetic modification
* Compares conventional non-GM approaches and genetic modification
* Presents a risk assessment methodology for GM techniques
* Details mitigation techniques for human and environmental effects

Interest in the postharvest behavior of fruits and vegetables has a history as long as mankind?s. Once we moved past mere survival, the goal of postharvest preservation research became learning how to balance consumer satisfaction with quantity and quality while also preserving nutritional quality. A comprehensive overview of new postharvest technologies, Postharvest Biology and Technology for Preserving Fruit Quality examines the physical, chemical, and nutritional changes that occur during the ripening process.

The book chronicles the changes in postharvest technology during the past three decades, highlighting the advances made possible through a deeper understanding of the postharvest physiology of raw produce. It focuses on how to maintain both sensorial and nutritional fruit quality parameters while also extending shelf life. The authors present a wide range of technological applications for postharvest strategies, including heat treatments, naturally-occurring compounds, modified atmosphere packaging, non-toxic chemical compounds, and active packaging. The text also discusses the advantages and disadvantages of using cold temperatures during handling, packaging, and storage. Although each chapter constitutes a separate unit, which could be used in a stand-alone fashion, the order and continuity of the chapters provide a more complete understanding of the subject.

Exploring future directions, the book concludes with coverage of emerging technologies such as atmospheres with high O2, biological control, and the use of UV-light. It offers a firm grounding in the basic knowledge of postharvest research, technology, and applications. The text illustrates a broad range of approaches, based on years of research, and brings them together in a convenient, easily accessible resource.

Abiotic stresses such as drought, flooding, high or low temperatures, metal toxicity and salinity can hamper plant growth and development. Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants explains the physiological and molecular mechanisms plants naturally exhibit to withstand abiotic stresses and outlines the potential approaches to enhance plant abiotic stress tolerance to extreme conditions. Synthesising developments in plant stress biology, the book offers strategies that can be used in breeding, genomic, molecular, physiological and biotechnological approaches that hold the potential to develop resilient plants and improve crop productivity worldwide. Features * Comprehensively explains molecular and physiological mechanism of multiple abiotic stress tolerance in plants * Discusses recent advancements in crop abiotic stress tolerance mechanism and highlights strategies to develop abiotic stress tolerant genotypes for sustainability * Stimulates synthesis of information for plant stress biology for biotechnological applications * Presents essential information for large scale breeding and agricultural biotechnological programs for crop improvement Written by a team of expert scientists, this book benefits researchers in the field of plant stress biology and is essential reading for graduate students and researchers generating stress tolerant crops through genetic engineering and plant breeding. It appeals to individuals developing sustainable agriculture through physiological and biotechnological applications.