This book presents various aspects of agroforestry research and development, as well as the latest trends in degraded landscape management. Over the last four decades, agroforestry research (particularly on degraded landscapes) has evolved into an essential problem-solving science, e.g. in terms of sustaining agricultural productivity, improving soil health and biodiversity, enhancing ecosystem services, supporting carbon sequestration and mitigating climate change. This book examines temperate and tropical agroforestry systems around the world, focusing on traditional and modern practices and technologies used to rehabilitate degraded lands. It covers the latest research advances, trends and challenges in the utilization and reclamation of degraded lands, e.g. urban and peri-urban agroforestry, reclamation of degraded landscapes, tree-based multi-enterprise agriculture, domestication of high-value halophytes, afforestation of coastal areas, preserving mangroves and much more. Given its scope, the book offers a valuable asset for a broad range of stakeholders including farmers, scientists, researchers, educators, students, development/extension agents, environmentalists, policy/decision makers, and government and non-government organizations.

Coupled with biomechanical data, organic geochemistry and cladistic analyses utilizing abundant genetic data, scientific studies are revealing new facets of how plants have evolved over time. This collection of papers examines these early stages of plant physiology evolution by describing the initial physiological adaptations necessary for survival as upright structures in a dry, terrestrial environment. The Evolution of Plant Physiology also encompasses physiology in its broadest sense to include biochemistry, histology, mechanics, development, growth, reproduction and with an emphasis on the interplay between physiology, development and plant evolution.
* Contributions from leading neo- and palaeo-botanists from the Linnean Society
* Focus on how evolution shaped photosynthesis, respiration, reproduction and metabolism.
* Coverage of the effects of specific evolutionary forces -- variations in water and nutrient availability, grazing pressure, and other environmental variables

Edited by J.A. Callow and supported by an international Editorial Board, Advances in Botanical Research publishes in-depth and up-to-date reviews on a wide range of topics in plant sciences. Currently in its 40th volume, the series features a wide range of reviews by recognized experts on all aspects of plant genetics, biochemistry, cell biology, molecular biology, physiology and ecology. This eclectic volume features six reviews on cutting-edge topics of interest to post-graduates and researchers alike.
* Multidisciplinary reviews written from a broad range of scientific perspectives
* For over 30 years, series has enjoyed a reputation for excellent
* Contributors internationally recognized authorities in their respective fields

Achieving zero hunger and food security is a top priority in the United Nations Development Goals (UNDGs). In an era characterized by high population growth and increasing pressure on agricultural systems, efficiency in the use of natural resources has become central to sustainable agricultural practices. Fundamentally speaking, eco-efficiency is about maximizing agricultural outputs, in terms of quantity and quality, using less land, water, nutrients, energy, labor, or capital. The concept of eco-efficiency involves both the ecological and economic aspects of sustainable agriculture. It is therefore essential to understand the interaction of ecosystem constituents within the extensive agricultural landscape, as well as farmers' economic needs. This book examines the latest eco-efficient practices used in agro-systems. Drawing upon research and examples from around the world, it offers an up-to-date overview, together with insights into directly applicable approaches for poly-cropping systems and landscape-scale management to improve the stability of agricultural production systems, helping achieve food security. The book will be of interest to educators, researchers, climate change scientists, capacity builders and policymakers alike. It can also be used as additional reading material for undergraduate and graduate courses on agriculture, forestry, soil science, and the environmental sciences.

Written primarily for mid- to upper-level undergraduates, this title the mechanisms of photosynthesis, its role in the evolution of plant-related organisms, from cyanobacteria to flowering plants, and its wider ecological and climatic significance. The primer brings together the latest research to show how the process of photosynthesis has evolved over the last three to four billion years - from its beginnings in bacteria to the various refinements now present in modern land plants. The authors explain how repeated endosymbiotic and gene gain/loss events have led to the evolution of the various algal groups and related non-photosynthetic groups, and how photosynthesis was modified as plants evolved and diversified into different ecological niches around the world. The role of photosynthesis in the alteration of the geology and biology of the earth, which enabled the colonisation of the land by plants and animals, is also explored. Finally, this title examines the limitations of photosynthesis and the emerging biotechnological improvements that could make this vital process even more attractive as a source of clean energy, food and other industrial products. Photosynthetic Life is available for students and institutions to purchase in a variety of formats, and is supported by online resources. The ebook offers a mobile experience and convenient access: www.oxfordtextbooks.co.uk/ebooks. The online resources include: For students: - Self-test questions For registered adopters of the book: * Figures from the book, available to download

This is the third edition of an established and successful university textbook. The original structure and philosophy of the book continue in this new edition, providing a genuine synthesis of modern ecological and physiological thinking, while entirely updating the detailed content. New features include a fresh, unified treatment of toxicity, emphasizing common features of plant response to ionic, gaseous, and other toxins, explicit treatment of issues relating to global change, and a section on the role of fire in plant physiology and communities. The illustrations in the text are improved over previous editions, including color plates for the first time, and the authors' continuing commitment to providing wide citation of the relevant literature has further improved the reference list. This revision of Environmental Physiology of Plants will ensure the reputation of this title as a useful and relevant text well into the 21st century.
Key Features
* Includes enhanced illustrations, now with color plates
* Examines new molecular approaches which can be harnessed to solve problems in physiology
* Features new topics such as the unified treatment of toxicity, an explicit treatment of the issues relating to global change, and a section on the role of fire

While information on the roles and regulation of transporters for all major nutrients and metabolites in plants has increased significantly, a synthesis of this research has been lacking. Based on current research in genomics and proteomics, this book clarifies the identification and characterization of plant membrane and vacuolar transporters. Transporter functions such as mineral nutrition, cell homeostasis, storage and stress responses are examined with a focus on enhancing nutrient use efficiency in crops, and increasing crops' ability to withstand nutrient stresses and improve nutrient storage.

The use of microbial plant protection products is growing and their importance will strongly increase due to political and public pressure. World population is growing and the amount of food needed by 2050 will be double of what is produced now whereas the area of agricultural land is decreasing. We must increase crop yield in a sustainable way. Chemical plant growth promoters must be replaced by microbiological products. Also here, the use of microbial products is growing and their importance will strongly increase. A growing area of agricultural land is salinated. Global warming will increase this process. Plants growth is inhibited by salt or even made impossible and farmers tend to disuse the most salinated lands. Microbes have been very successfully used to alleviate salt stress of plants. Chemical pollution of land can make plant growth difficult and crops grown are often polluted and not suitable for consumption. Microbes have been used to degrade these chemical pollutants.

Carbohydrate reserves constitute the major part of edible portion of the plants. Latest researches in major crops like wheat, rice, maize, barley, potato, sugarcane, sugarbeet, Jerusalem artichoke, chicory and carbohydrates in trees have been included in this book. The book will be of great value to the basic plant biochemists, molecular biologists, biotechnologists, and genetic crop engineers and to the agricultural scientists working in different disciplines related to crop productivity. This compilation may act as a medium to initiate discussions among these scientists leading to new researches in the area of crop productivity and reserve carbohydrate metabolism.

The past decade has seen major advances in the cloning of genes encoding enzymes of plant secondary metabolism. This has been further enhanced by the recent project on the sequencing of the "Arabidopsis" genome. These developments provide the molecular genetic basis to address the question of the "Evolution of Metabolic Pathways." This volume provides in-depth reviews of our current knowledge on the evolutionary origin of plant secondary metabolites and the enzymes involved in their biosynthesis. The chapters cover five major topics: 1. Role of secondary metabolites in evolution; 2. Evolutionary origins of polyketides and terpenes; 3. Roles of oxidative reactions in the evolution of secondary metabolism; 4. Evolutionary origin of substitution reactions: acylation, glycosylation and methylation; and 5. Biochemistry and molecular biology of brassinosteroids.

The aerial surfaces of many plant species are covered in hairs (trichomes). Their utility as model systems to understand cell-to-cell movement and cell differentiation, as well as their potential utility in biotechnology, has generated renewed interest in these structures. In this volume, plant scientists from diverse backgrounds present reviews which summarise current understanding of these structures. Their ultrastructure, biochemistry, differentiation and development, as well as their physiological and ecological roles, are discussed.

Introduction to Plant Physiology became the best-selling first edition plant physiology text of the 1990's! Now, we're building on the success of prior editions to provide an even more effective fourth edition. Plant Physiology has been praised for its excellent balance of traditional and modern topics, presented in a straightforward style, without overwhelming undergraduates with excessive detail. Its focus is on the ideas and experimental approaches in plant physiology. This is a one-semester course. It assumes that the student has had introductory biology or botany as a pre-requisite.

A fully revised review of the latest research in molecular basis of plant abiotic stress response and adaptation Abiotic stressors are non-living environmental stressors that can have a negative impact on a plants ability to grow and thrive in a given environment. Stressors can range from temperature stress (both extreme heat and extreme cold) water stress, aridity, salinity among others. This book explores the full gamut of plant abiotic stressors and plants molecular responses and adaptations to adverse environmental conditions. The new edition of Plant Abiotic Stress provides up-to-date coverage of the latest research advances in plant abiotic stress adaptation, with special emphasis on the associated and integrative aspects of physiology, signaling, and molecular-genetics. Since the last edition, major advances in whole genome analysis have revealed previously unknown linkages between genes, genomes, and phenotypes, and new biological and omics approaches have elucidated previously unknown cellular mechanisms underlying stress tolerance. Chapters are organized by topic, but highlight processes that are integrative among diverse stress responses. As with the first edition, Plant Abiotic Stress will have broad appeal to scientists in fields of applied agriculture, ecology, plant sciences, and biology.

This book provides students and researchers in plant sciences with a concise general account of plant biochemistry. The edited format allows recognized experts in plant biochemistry to contribute chapters on their special topics. Up-to-date surveys are divided into four sections: the cell, primary metabolism, special metabolism, and the plant and the environment. There is a strong emphasis on plant metabolism as well as enzymological, methodological, molecular, biological, functional, and regulatory aspects of plant biochemistry. Illustrations of metabolic pathways are used extensively, and further reading lists are also included.
Key Features
The coverage of the subject is divided into four sections:
* The plant cell-describing both molecular components and function
* Primary metabolism-including the pathways of carbohydrate, lipid, nitrogen, nucleic acid and protein metabolism as well as gene regulation
* Special metabolism-chapters on phenolics, isoprenoids and secondary nitrogen compounds
* The plant and the environment-discussions of pathology, ecology and biotechnology at the molecular level

With the clear writing and accessible approach that have made it the authoritative introduction to the field of molecular photosynthesis, this fully revised and updated edition now offers students and researchers cutting-edge topical coverage of bioenergy applications and artificial photosynthesis; advances in biochemical and genetic methods; as well as new analytical techniques. Chapters cover the origins and evolution of photosynthesis; carbon metabolism; photosynthetic organisms and organelles; and the basic principles of photosynthetic energy storage. The book's website includes downloadable PowerPoint slides.

Wood is the most versatile raw material available to man. It is burned as fuel, shaped into utensils, used as a structural engineering material, converted into fibres for paper production, and put to newer uses as a source of industrial chemicals. Its quality results largely from the chemical and physical structure of the cell walls of its component fibres, which can be modified in nature as the tree responds to physical environmental stresses. Internal stresses can accumulate, which are released catastrophically when the tree is felled, often rendering the timber useless. The quality of timber as an engineering material also depends on the structure of the wood and the way in which it has developed in the living tree. Tree improvement for quality cannot be carried out without an understanding of the biological basis underlying wood formation and structure. This volume brings together the viewpoints of both biologists and physical scientists, covering the spectrum from the formation of wood to its structure and properties, and relating these properties to industrial use. This is a volume for researchers and professionals in plant physiology, molecular biology and biochemistry.

Although the term redox covers an important number of chemical reactions, biochemists are more familiar with reactions involving the reactions mediated by electron transfer chains associated with respiration, the thiol-disulfide exchanges and the reactions occurring in the presence of free radicals. More recently, the importance of these reactions in the living world and in medicine has been recognized by biochemists, biologists, physiologists, physicians, etc. The importance of the subject in both fundamental and is reflected by the abundance of interesting reviews applied science concerning the subject (Cadenas, 1989, Del Maestro, 1991) and books (Dreosti, 1991; Rice-Evans and Burdon, 1994; Armstrong, 1994) The aim of this chapter is to describe basic reactions known with references to reviews covering special subjects related to redox reactions. Transformation of energy in living organisms is mediated by complex biological systems such as electron transfer chains where the succession of redox reactions provides energy to the organisms. Molecular oxygen or dioxygen is an essential molecule and is the terminal acceptor of electrons during respiration in eukaryotes. In these organisms, the electron transfer chain is located in the mitochondrial membranes and produces adenosine triphosphate (ATP). In anaerobes, the electron acceptor is C0 , S, sulphate or nitrate ions 2 instead of 02.

Usually authors write introductions for their books, although they know that not many readers will read it. Despite this, authors insist on writing an introduction and no publisher will publish a book without one. I would like to inform my dear readers that I have spent almost all of the first quarter of my life in a village in the Nile Delta, 65 km north of Cairo. The everyday scenery there was the beautiful green landscape dissected with canals full of running water. All of these were bordered with the huge sycamore, mulberry and acacia trees. The desert was something unknown to me at that time, except for the very basic information given in geography books, which explained that the desert is a place without water or cultiva tion. Some of my ideas about the desert came to me from the stories in the history of Islam and the desert lands where Islam originated. My real attraction to the desert developed in the last year of my under graduate studies. This was during the field courses in Ecology (Prof. A.M."

The problems engendered by the conflicting imperatives of development and ecology show no sign of ending, and every day more locations are added to the list of landscapes poisoned by human activity. This vital book, featuring an international set of authors, is a key reference for researchers and environmental managers, as well as anyone involved in the mining industry or landscape remediation. The comprehensive coverage of current approaches to phytoremediation begins by examining the problem. It looks at natural and human-induced toxins, and their effects on natural vegetation as well as agricultural crops. Particular attention is paid to the two largest challenges to remediation -- heavy metals, and the salt stress that is impeding agricultural productivity worldwide. The text moves on to focus on the efficacy of different plant species in removing toxic pollutants from the environment. Along with analysis of a number of case studies, this section includes new and updated information on the mechanism of toxin-tolerance in plants.

In an important new contribution to the literature of chaos, two distinguished researchers in the field of physiology probe central theoretical questions about physiological rhythms. Topics discussed include: How are rhythms generated? How do they start and stop? What are the effects of perturbation of the rhythms? How are oscillations organized in space? Leon Glass and Michael Mackey address an audience of biological scientists, physicians, physical scientists, and mathematicians, but the work assumes no knowledge of advanced mathematics.

Variation of rhythms outside normal limits, or appearance of new rhythms where none existed previously, are associated with disease. One of the most interesting features of the book is that it makes a start at explaining "dynamical diseases" that are not the result of infection by pathogens but that stem from abnormalities in the timing of essential functions. From Clocks to Chaos provides a firm foundation for understanding dynamic processes in physiology.

"Signal Crosstalk in Plant Stress Responses" focuses on current findings on signal crosstalk between abiotic and biotic stresses, including information on drought, cold, and salt stress and pathogen infection. Divided into seven chapters on critical topics in the field, the book is written by an international team of expert authors. The book is aimed at plant scientists, agronomists, and horticulturalists, as well as students.

Contributors to this volume discuss advances in Arabidopsis research, including construction of the physical map, sequencing of the genome, and strategies for structure-function analysis. The power of mutagenesis as a tool to gain insights into plant developmental processes is illustrated in a range of stages in the life cycle of Arabidopsis, including embryogenesis, vegetative development, flowering, reproduction and cell death. In addition, the control of metabolism, secretion and biological rhythms is examined and the ways in which development is regulated by such stimuli as plant hormones and light are evaluated. The book should be useful to researchers and postgraduates in plant physiology, development, biochemistry, molecular biology, genetics and crop biotechnology.

Since 1994, the Phytochemical Society of North America has devoted its annual symposia to topics with biological perspectives. Our last four volumes have dealt with medicinal plants (1994), plant/insect interactions (1995), food phytochemicals (1996), and plant/microbe interactions (1997), respectively. The Symposium held in Pullman, Washington, July 26-31, 1998 brought many aspects of these previous symposia once again to the forefront. This time, however, there was greater emphasis on the potential applications of phytochemistry to the diverse topics of human health and nutrition and plant defense. As we learned about innovative uses of molecular biology as it is being applied to these topics, we were reminded once again of the biochemical th foundation on which these advances rest. On the occasion of the 75 birthday of G.H. Neal Towers, which we were privileged to celebrate, a perspective of where we began and how far we have advanced was made patently real for those in attendance. The papers assembled in this volume were presented during the Sympo- sium. Roughly grouped under three broad topics, they include: I. Drug Discov- ery and Pathway Engineering toward New MedicinallNutriceutical Targets (papers by Cragg, Croteau, Thompson, Costa, McLaughlin, Dixon, and Matern), 2. Roles for Polyphenols-Biosynthesis and Applications (Gross, Hillis, Haslam, and Ferreira), 3. New Chemical Prospects and Plant Defense (Asakawa, Selmar, Houghton, and Mizutani).

Annual Plant Reviews, Volume 12
A fundamental feature of developmental biology is that of the establishment of polarity. It can be described at different levels - polarity of the organism, polarity in tissue patterning and organ development, and polarity of the cell.
This volume provides an account of current research into the mechanisms by which polarity is generated at the level of the cell, organ and organism in plants, drawing especially on recent work with model organisms.The emphasis is on the use of the techniques of molecular genetics to dissect molecular mechanisms.
This is the first volume to bring together the diverse aspects of polarity in plant development. It is directed at researchers and professionals in plant developmental biology, cell biology and molecular biology.
Visit www.blackwellplantsci.com the plant science site from Blackwell Publishing.

In this comprehensive and stimulating text and reference, the authors have succeeded in combining experimental data with current hypotheses and theories to explain the complex physiological functions of plants. For every student, teacher and researcher in the plant sciences it offers a solid basis for an in-depth understanding of the entire subject area, underpinning up-to-date research in plant physiology. The authors vividly explain current research by references to experiments, they cite original literature in figures and tables, and, at the end of each chapter, list recent references that are relevant for a deeper analysis of the topic. In addition, an abundance of detailed and informative illustrations complement the text.