Genomic Selection for Crop Improvement serves as handbook for users by providing basic as well as advanced understandings of genomic selection. This useful review explains germplasm use, phenotyping evaluation, marker genotyping methods, and statistical models involved in genomic selection. It also includes examples of ongoing activities of genomic selection for crop improvement and efforts initiated to deploy the genomic selection in some important crops. In order to understand t...

This new edition of the universally acclaimed and widely-used textbook on fungal biology has been completely re-written, drawing directly on the authors' research and teaching experience. The text takes account of the rapid and exciting progress that has been made in the taxonomy, cell and molecular biology, biochemistry, pathology and ecology of the fungi. Features of taxonomic relevance are integrated with natural functions, including their relevance to human affairs. Special emphasis is...

From climate change to farming systems to genetic modification of organisms, Crop Physiology, Second Edition provides a practical tool for understanding the relationships and challenges of successful cropping. With a focus on genetic improvement and agronomy, this book addresses the challenges of environmentally sound production of bulk and quality food, fodder, fiber, and energy which are of ongoing international concern. The second edition of Crop Physiology continues to provide a unique...

The theme of the book is highly relevant to the current emphasis on environment conservation, with focus on native biodiversity conservation in agro-ecosystems. The current impetus being given to organic farming and export oriented agri-hortculture in the country calls for access to relevant scientific knowledge base among the stakeholders. Research on biological pest control is more than a century old in India. Egg parasitoids, which are mainly tiny wasps, led by the family Trichogrammati...

Stored products of agriculture and animal origin are attacked by more than 600 species of beetles, 70 species of moths, and about 355 species of mites, causing huge quantitative and qualitative losses and insect contamination in food commodities. This is an important quality control problem. This book, Insect Pests of Stored Grain: Biology, Behavior, and Management Strategies, provides comprehensive coverage of stored product entomology for the sustainable management of in...

Soils into which crop plants root and from which they obtain essential minerals and water contain huge arrays of microbes. Many have highly beneficial effects on crop growth and productivity, others are pathogens causing diseases and losses to yield and quality, a few microbes offer protection from these pathogenic forms and others have little or no effect. These intimate and often complex inter-relationships are being explored with increasing success providing exciting opportunities for i...

This book provides a comprehensive overview of the wild relatives of crops and cultivated species found in India, covering their distribution, phylogenetic relationships with cultivated species, traits that are of economic and breeding value, and the perceived threats. It highlights the opportunities the wild relatives of cultivated species offer in terms of new genes and allelic variability, as well as several other exploitable economic and environmental benefits that can be harnessed wit...

This book provides an introduction to the genetics, genomics, and breeding of the olive tree, a multi-functional long-lived crop plant that is relevant not only for culinary olive and oil production, but also for shaping the landscape and history of many rural areas for centuries. Today, the recognized health benefits of extra-virgin olive oil provide new impulses for introducing innovation in olive crop management and olive breeding for a deeper understanding of the biological processes u...

This book continues as volume 4 of a multi-compendium on Edible Medicinal and Non-Medicinal Plants. It covers edible fruits/seeds used fresh or processed, as vegetables, spices, stimulants, edible oils and beverages. It encompasses selected species from the following families: Fagaceae, Grossulariaceae, Hypoxidaxeae, Myrsinaceae Olacaceae, Oleaceae, Orchidaceae, Oxalidaceae, Pandanaceae, Passifloraceae, Pedaliaceae, Phyllanthaceae, Pinaceae, Piperaceae, Rosaceae and Rutaceae . This work wi...

This book focuses on pests (insect and mite) and diseases (fungal, bacterial, viral and nematode) in protected horticulture (fruits, vegetables and ornamentals) using physical, cultural, chemical, biological, host resistance, and integrated methods. It opens with chapters describing the setting in which integrated pest and disease control operates, i.e., the greenhouse and its environment. Subsequent chapters present the basic strategies and tactics of different control methods including i...

This book focuses on early germination, one of maize germplasm most important strategies for adapting to drought-induced stress. Some genotypes have the ability to adapt by either reducing water losses or by increasing water uptake. Drought tolerance is also an adaptive strategy that enables crop plants to maintain their normal physiological processes and deliver higher economical yield despite drought stress. Several processes are involved in conferring drought tolerance in maize: the acc...

This volume summarizes recent technological advances in the design and engineering of Solanaceae and Cucurbitaceae crops. It begins with contributions on the tomato and melon genome sequence, databases for Solanaceae and Cucurbitaceae research, DNA markers in the breeding of the two families, and mutant resources and TILLING platforms in tomato research. Subsequent chapters address the use of molecular techniques for the modification of important breeding traits, such as tomato fruit set, ...