Soil organic carbon (SOC), a key component of the global carbon (C) pool, plays an important role in C cycling, regulating climate, water supplies and biodiversity, and therefore in providing the ecosystem services that are essential to human well-being. Most agricultural soils in temperate regions have now lost as much as 60% of their SOC, and as much as 75% in tropical regions, due to conversion from natural ecosystems to agricultural uses and mainly due to continuous soil degradation. Sequestering C can help to offset C emissions from fossil fuel combustion and other C-emitting activities, while also enhancing soil quality and long-term agronomic productivity. However, developing effective policies for creating terrestrial C sinks is a serious challenge in tropical and subtropical soils, due to the high average annual temperatures in these regions. It can be accomplished by implementing improved land management practices that add substantial amounts of biomass to soil, cause minimal soil disturbance, conserve soil and water, improve soil structure, and enhance soil fauna activity. Continuous no-till crop production is arguably the best example. These soils need technically sound and economically feasible strategies to sustainably enhance their SOC pools. Hence, this book provides comprehensive information on SOC and its management in different land-use systems, with a focus on preserving soils and their ecosystem services. The only book of its kind, it offers a valuable asset for students, researchers, policymakers and other stakeholders involved in the sustainable development and management of natural resources at the global level.

The book brings out an encyclopaedic picture of the potential areas of transformative Indian agriculture through innovations in science, technology, institutional and policy affairs directed in building a self-reliant India (Atmanirbhar Bharat). The book has addressed the challenges to make India free from hunger, poverty and undernutrition, and suggested interventions with focus on all-inclusiveness and sustainability, peace and prosperity, and resilience to climate and other volatilities. Most of these propositions are analogous to the Sustainable Development Goals - Agenda 2030, which India has committed to achieve. The book especially covers critical needs for development on different fragile ecosystems such as coastal, desert, hill, ravine and other marginal ecosystems. The book will act as very useful guidance for the policy makers, and development communities, and a reference document to academicians as well. 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 NIPA.

The book deals with the pricing of ecosystem services provided by agriculture. All provisioning, regulating, supporting and cultural services are being covered in this title. Chapters in this contributed volume cover topics such as pricing of services from the soil, water, and nutrient management. Quantified monetary values of carbon sequestration and renewable energy applications in agriculture are covered with clear-cut methodologies. This book also links ecosystem service-based pricing with crop insurance. Improving the farmers' livelihood is the central goal of the agricultural production system throughout the world. Under the climate change context, farms' produce is now climate-vulnerable and heavily dependent on weather conditions. Moreover, we often neglect the contribution of several positive impacts of agricultural practices on ecosystems and natural resources. Therefore, there is a need to quantify and value these ecosystem services in agriculture. However, valuation and pricing the services in agriculture both tangible and intangible is a challenge. It is necessary to have clear-cut methodologies for pricing ecosystem services of agriculture in terms of net monetary benefits. The ecosystem service-based pricing could be a solid basis for calculating the insurance to farmers in case of occurrence of natural hazard and associated crop damage. This book is of interest to scholars, teachers, researchers, environmental scientists, watershed managers, capacity builders, and policymakers. The book also serves as effective reading material for undergraduate and graduate students of agriculture economics, ecology, agronomy, and environmental sciences. National and international agricultural scientists, policymakers will also find this to be useful.

Sustainable Horticulture, Volume 1: Diversity, Production, and Crop Improvements is part of a two-volume compendium that addresses the most important topics facing horticulture around the world today. Volume 1, on Diversity, Production, and Crop Improvement, outlines the contemporary trends in sustainable horticulture research, covering such topics as crop diversity, species variability and conservation strategies, production technology, tree architecture management, plant propagation and nutrition management, organic farming, and new dynamics in breeding and marketing of horticulture crops. Sections include: Genetic Resources & Biodiversity Conservation Production & Marketing of Horticulture Crops Crop Improvement & Biotechnology Together with Volume 2: Food, Health, and Nutrition, this two-volume compendium presents an abundance of new research on sustainable horticulture that will be valuable for a broad audience, including students of horticulture, faculty and instructors, scientists, agriculturists, government and nongovernment organizations, and other industry professionals.

Sustainable Horticulture, Volume 2: Food, Health, and Nutrition addresses some of the most important topics facing horticulture around the world today. This volume, part of the two-volume compendium, focuses on research trends in sustainable horticulture that include postharvest management and processed food production from horticulture crops, crop protection and plant health management, and horticulture for human health and nutrition. Global food demand is expected to be double by 2050, while at the same time the production environment and natural resources are continually shrinking and deteriorating due to many complex factors. Horticulture, a major sector of agriculture, is vital to enhancing crop production and productivity in parity with agricultural crops to meet the emerging food demand. Implementing sustainable models of crop production is really an enormous endeavor. Promising technologies and management options are needed to increase productivity to meet the growing food demand despite deteriorating production environments.

This volume, Temperate Fruits: Production, Processing, and Marketing, presents the latest pomological research on the production, postharvest handling, processing and storage, and information on marketing for a selection of temperate fruits. These include apple, pear, quince, peach, plum, sweet cherry, kiwifruit, strawberry, mulberry, and chestnut. With chapters from fruit experts from different countries of the world, the book provides the latest information on the effect of climate change on fruit production, organic fruit growing and advanced fruit breeding, the nutraceutical value and bioactive compounds in fruits and their role in human health, and new and advanced methods of fruit production. Topics include microirrigation, sustainable nutrient management, crop protection and plant health management, and farm mechanization.

This new volume is a rich and comprehensive resource of the basic information and latest developments and research efforts on tropical and subtropical fruits. It presents an extensive overview of crop production techniques, processing, marketing, breeding efforts, harvesting, and postharvest handling, as well as pest and disease management of banana, citrus, durian, grapes, guava, jackfruit, litchi, mango, and papaya. Each chapter in Tropical and Subtropical Fruit Crops: Production, Processing, and Marketing focuses on a specific fruit and provides a general introduction along with an overview of these areas: Area and production Marketing and trade Composition and uses Origin and distribution Botany and taxonomy Varieties and cultivars Breeding and crop improvement Soil and climate Propagation and rootstock Layout and planting Irrigation Nutrient management Training and pruning Intercropping and intercultural operation Flowering and fruit set Fruit growth, development, and ripening Harvesting and yield Packaging and transport Postharvest handling and storage Processing and value addition Pests, diseases, and physiological disorders Fruits are delicious eating and attractive horticultural crops that are rich in vitamins, antioxidants, and other nutraceuticals and are considered necessary for a healthy diet. Past decades witnessed a notable increase in the production of fruit crops, which has been facilitated in part by advancements in agro-techniques, timely harvests, and proper postharvest handling and care. Even though production has increased, demand continues to grow, and consistent improvement of fruit production of fruit crops is needed. This volume arms professionals, scientists, researchers, and students involved with the cultivation, production, and processing of tropical and subtropical fruits with the important and up-to-date information they need for continued improvement in this area. It will also be helpful for breeding programs to develop varieties with improved fruit characteristics, shelf life, and the ability to withstand the adverse effects of climate change.

Soil organic carbon (SOC), a key component of the global carbon (C) pool, plays an important role in C cycling, regulating climate, water supplies and biodiversity, and therefore in providing the ecosystem services that are essential to human well-being. Most agricultural soils in temperate regions have now lost as much as 60% of their SOC, and as much as 75% in tropical regions, due to conversion from natural ecosystems to agricultural uses and mainly due to continuous soil degradation. Sequestering C can help to offset C emissions from fossil fuel combustion and other C-emitting activities, while also enhancing soil quality and long-term agronomic productivity. However, developing effective policies for creating terrestrial C sinks is a serious challenge in tropical and subtropical soils, due to the high average annual temperatures in these regions. It can be accomplished by implementing improved land management practices that add substantial amounts of biomass to soil, cause minimal soil disturbance, conserve soil and water, improve soil structure, and enhance soil fauna activity. Continuous no-till crop production is arguably the best example. These soils need technically sound and economically feasible strategies to sustainably enhance their SOC pools. Hence, this book provides comprehensive information on SOC and its management in different land-use systems, with a focus on preserving soils and their ecosystem services. The only book of its kind, it offers a valuable asset for students, researchers, policymakers and other stakeholders involved in the sustainable development and management of natural resources at the global level.

Cotton is one of the most important fiber and cash crops throughout the world, and it plays a dominant role in the industrial and agricultural economies of many countries. Here is a rich resource of information on the cultivation and production of cotton. This volume provides an overview of the origin and evolution of cotton and its physiological basis and characterization, and goes on to discuss methods of cultivation, biotic stresses, and harvesting and postharvest technology. The volume addresses new advances in research for best cultivation methods, effective utilization of resources, and operations for achieving higher yields, thus achieving higher productivity. The authors take an interdisciplinary approach, providing valuable information necessary to increase cotton productivity to meet the world's growing demands.

Sustainable Horticulture, Volume 2: Food, Health, and Nutrition addresses some of the most important topics facing horticulture around the world today. This volume, part of the two-volume compendium, focuses on research trends in sustainable horticulture that include postharvest management and processed food production from horticulture crops, crop protection and plant health management, and horticulture for human health and nutrition. Global food demand is expected to be double by 2050, while at the same time the production environment and natural resources are continually shrinking and deteriorating due to many complex factors. Horticulture, a major sector of agriculture, is vital to enhancing crop production and productivity in parity with agricultural crops to meet the emerging food demand. Implementing sustainable models of crop production is really an enormous endeavor. Promising technologies and management options are needed to increase productivity to meet the growing food demand despite deteriorating production environments.

Sustainable Horticulture, Volume 1: Diversity, Production, and Crop Improvements is part of a two-volume compendium that addresses the most important topics facing horticulture around the world today. Volume 1, on Diversity, Production, and Crop Improvement, outlines the contemporary trends in sustainable horticulture research, covering such topics as crop diversity, species variability and conservation strategies, production technology, tree architecture management, plant propagation and nutrition management, organic farming, and new dynamics in breeding and marketing of horticulture crops. Sections include: Genetic Resources & Biodiversity Conservation Production & Marketing of Horticulture Crops Crop Improvement & Biotechnology Together with Volume 2: Food, Health, and Nutrition, this two-volume compendium presents an abundance of new research on sustainable horticulture that will be valuable for a broad audience, including students of horticulture, faculty and instructors, scientists, agriculturists, government and nongovernment organizations, and other industry professionals.