eChapters

SUMMARY

Abiotic stress can be reduced by choosing the most appropriate pulse species and adjusting agronomy (sowing time, plant density, soil management) to ensure sensitive crop stages occur at the most favourable time in the season. For example choosing the optimum sowing time, species and cultivars with appropriate phenology can reduce the effect of frost and drought in pulse crops in dry land environments, which termed stress.

             Most appropriate approach of dealing with stresses caused by extremes in the abiotic environment is to develop cultivars resistant to specific stresses. However, breeding and selection for resistance to these stresses is often considerable difficult because of the unpredictability of climatic conditions. Drought and heat escape through earliness in flowering and maturity is probably the characteristic most widely used by breeders for pulses and other crops to escape drought especially in low rainfall, terminal drought environment. Lack of simple and accurate screening procedures to screen parental genotypes and breeding population for various abiotic stresses is the major bottlenecks in the development of stress tolerant cool season pulse crops.

SUMMARY

Multiplicity of cropping systems has been one of the main features of Indian agriculture and it is attributed to rain-fed agriculture and prevailing socio-economic situations of farming community. It has been estimated that more than 250 double cropping systems are followed throughout the country and based on rationale of spread of crops in each district in the country, 30 important cropping systems have been identified. Cropping systems of a region are decided by and large, by a number of soil and climatic parameters which deter mine overall agro ecological setting for nourishment and appropriateness of a crop or set of crops for cultivation. Much of the Madhya Pradesh area also coincides with the rainfed semi-arid agro-ecological region and sub-regions which are upland, forested with low agricultural productivity and predominately tribal population. It would appear that over the centuries – including in recent history tribals have been inexorably moved off the better lands, into areas which from an agricultural perspective have low productive capacity and little potential for growth. Low agricultural productivity is one of the main causes of persistently high poverty rates in the state and the poor masses not only depends upon the farming system but also chosen different alternatives for their sustanability.

In 1882, Robert Koch first isolated the organism, stained with alkaline methylene blue and vesuvin as counter stain and proved its etiologic relationship with Tuberculosis.  Ehrlich first developed acid fast stain in 1882 and used for better staining of the bacteria which was adopted by Robert Koch. Later this staining technique was modified by Ziehl-Neelsen, accordingly it is now a day known as Z-N staining. In 1890, Koch prepared a glycerine broth extract of the tubercle bacillus, known as ‘tuberculin’.

      He tried to prepare it as a curative agent; however, it was used later in diagnosis. In 1895, Johne and Frothingham described the first case of paratuberculosis in cattle, later known as ‘Johne’s disease’. Although, the causative agent was first isolated by Twort and Ingram in 1910.

            In India, bovine Tuberculosis was reported from several states since 1959 (Dhanda and Lal, 1959). Whereas bovine paratuberculosis was first reported by Nanda and Singh (1940) in Hissar, Haryana.

Leptospira 

Antony Van Leeuwenhoek (1681) first observed the Spirochaetes under the microscope and described them. In 1833, Ehrenberg used the name Spirochaeta for free living spiral shaped organisms. Obermeir (1873) first described a Spirochaete of pathogenic significance isolated from human patients of relapsing fever. Inada et al. (1916) first isolated Leptospira icterohaemorrhagiae from human patients of Weil’s disease. In 1980, Nogochi proposed the name Leptospira.

      In India, Taylor and Goyale (1931) first reported Leptospira from human patients suffering from jaundice in Andaman Islands (Srivastava, 2006). Ayyar (1932) first reported Leptospira from dogs in Chennai city. 

Properties of genus

1. Morphology : Leptospira are gram negative, spiral shaped organisms with hooked ends. Length varies from 6-20 µm with 0.1-0.2 μm diameter (Fig.1). They have a typical double membrane covering. The cytoplasmic membrane and peptidoglycan cell wall are closely associated and are surrounded by an outer membrane. Two periplasmic flagella (endoflagella) are found within the cell and are responsible for the motility. No flagella are present as extracellular appendages. One end of the flagella is attached with the pole of the bacterial cell by insertion disc. Other end extends towards the centre of the cell and may overlap the flagella coming from the opposite end. The endoflagella consists of a solid inner core surrounded by tubular sheaths. The FlaA and FlaB proteins constitute these flagellar sheath and core, respectively.

Swine Marketing

The animal population in India is nearly 14 millions which is increasing day by day. The importance of animals in Indian Economy cannot be neglected. The economic benefit from animals is 26% of the total benefit from agriculture. Agricultural farming is not possible without animals. In agricultural profession, animals have an important role. In our country, crores of small and marginal farmers and agricultural labourers depend for their life on animals for their livelihood. Poor animal wealth is not a good symptom for a country.

Till today the work which is done on animal wealth by economists and marketing specialists is only limited. Economic and marketing studies on meat producing animals in our country is very less. Pigs are normally reared for meat purposes. Pigs are mostly untouched from this type of research on economic and marketing aspects. Pig population in our country is nearly 12 millions, which is 2.5% of total animal population in India.

Due to lack of studies, it is not possible to give any statement about correct situation of marketing and capacity of pigs.

Antirrhinum is a genus commonly known as snapdragon belongs to family Scrophulariaceae. Snapdragon is one of the flowering plant present with vast genetic diversity in India. The term Antirrhinum is derived from the Greek word “anti” means like and “rhin” means a nose, referring to the snout like shape of the flower. The cultivated Antirrhinum majus is grown in tropical, subtropical and temperate countries. The common name snapdragon, originates from the flowers reaction to having their throats squeezed, which causes the mouth of the flower to snap open like a dragon’s mouth. Flowers are borne on terminal long spikes of many colours except blue and with numerous shades. It is one of the excellent cut flowers which have long lasting qualities. These are also used as garden plants, bedding plants, in rockeries or herbaceous borders and as potted plants. Plants can be grown for cut flowers in an open field or under protection depending on the climate. The leaves and flowers are antiphlogistic, bitter, resolvent and stimulant (Chiej, 1984).

ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION

The garden snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus) has emerged as a model organism during early studies of inheritance and mutation (Darwin, 1868) because of its diploid inheritance, ease of cultivation and variation in morphology and flower colour. The genus Antirrhinum includes 15 New World species in the section Saerorhinum and 21 Old World species in the sections Antirrhinum and Orontium. A. majus (Snapdragon) is a species of Antirrhinum native to the Mediterranean region, from Morocco and Portugal north to southern France and East to Turkey and Syria. Most species are found around the Mediterranean Sea and in North America (Stubbe, 1966). The progenitor of the modern snapdragon is from the Mediterranean region and more specifically, it is native to southern France. It was believed that the snapdragon reached Britain with the Romans at an early date, where it has been naturalized on mountainous regions. Thereafter, it spread to different parts of the world from Britain.

The scientific name of the genus Antirrhinum was first defined by Carl von Linne in the year 1753. In the year 1914 Professor Erwin Baur the founder of the MaxPalnck-Institut für Züchtungsforschung in Cologne published a volume called ‘Einführung in die experimentelle Vererbungslehre’ (Introduction to Experimental Genetics) 2nd edition. This book contained several plates with reproductions of water colour paintings of snapdragons as examples. He crossed a white line with a red line resulting in a pink flower. This pink flower then was selfed and the offspring showed the typical distribution of 1 white, 2 pink and 1 red as a demonstration of Mendelian inheritance. Antirrhinum glandulous is native of California. In United States of America, winter flowering cultivars were introduced in 1926 by Frank Volz of Cheviot, Ohio. In 1959, snapdragon were included in the Agricultural Censuses of Horticulturally Special Crops and ranked seventh as a cut flower crop.

The genus Antirrhinum offers an inexhaustible resource for genetics-based studies in developmental biology, biochemistry and evolution (Stubbe, 1966). Wide diversity of Antirrhinum species, combined with classical and molecular genetics, the two traditional strengths of Antirrhinum provides an opportunity for developmental, evolutionary and ecological approaches (Schwarz-Sommer et al., 2003). Transposons responsible for flower variegation were identified in the 1980s. The Max-Planck-Institute in Cologne, Germany, allowing genes involved in flower and leaf development and in pigmentation to be isolated by transposon tagging. Population genetic studies that have been applied to Antirrhinum species show different population sizes, geographic distributions and breeding systems, from self-fertility to obligate out-crossing (Jimenez et al., 2002 and Mateu-Andres and de Paco, 2006). It was introduced to India with the advent of British. Among them, only A. majus has been domesticated as an ornamental.

Gerbera (Gerbera jamesonii), a tender, stemless, perennial flowering plant, belongs to family Asteraceae. Gerbera was named in honour of the German botanist and naturalist “Traugott Gerber” who was a friend of Carolus Linnaeus. Gerbera is very popular and widely used as cut flower or as a decorative garden plant. It was discovered in 1878 near Barberton, eastern Transvaal (South Africa), therefore, referred as the Barberton daisy or Transvaal daisy. It is ideal for beds, borders and pots and is the fifth most important cut flower in the world.

ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION

Gerbera is originated from South Africa. The native distribution of genus Gerbera comprising 30 species, extends to Africa, Madagascar, tropical Asia and South America (Hansen, 1985 and Bremer, 1994). Whereas, it was also reported that gerbera is found in the temperate and tropical parts of Asia and Africa and about 7 species are recorded in India. This plant is distributed in the temperate Himalayas from Kashmir to Nepal. Gerbera is commonly seen on the dry slopes near Shimla and on hillsides above Gulmarg in Kashmir (Anon., 1956). The G. jamesonii is found naturally in grassland in sandy soils in Mpumalanga and Barberton district. The genus Gerbera has approximately 14 southern African species, some of which are found only in Western Cape. G. aurantica is endemic to the mist belt grassland region of KwaZulu-Natal and is known from approximately 9 scattered populations from Helahela in the south to Babanango in the north. This species is under threat of extinction due to habitat fragmentation and degradation. In India they are distributed in temperate Himalayas at altitudes of 1300-3200 metres and observed from Kashmir to Nepal.

The genus Gerbera is named in honour of German naturalist Traugott Gerber who travelled in Russia in 1743 and started first botanical garden in Moscow. However, for species i.e. jamesonii, it is a matter of different opinion. The jamesonii was named for Dr. L. S. Jameson, a British colonial statesman in South Africa who was one of the discoverers of this species, whereas in some literature, the species was named after Robert Jameson who collected live specimens while on a prospecting expedition to the Barberton district in 1884, even though the species collected on three earlier occasions by other people. In 1888, Medley Wood, the curator of the Durban Botanical Garden sent plants to Kew, which subsequently flowered. This is native to South Africa, Madagascar, Asia, South America and Indonesia.

The first official description of South African species G. jamesonii was made by J.D. Hooker in Curtis Botanical magazine with coloured illustration in 1889. An active society on this subject is to be found in Australia under the name W.A. Gerbera Society. The society has used a classification system of gerbera. The breeding of gerbera started at the end of the nineteenth century in Cambridge, England, when two South African sp. were crossed. G. jamesonii native to Natal and Transvaal and G. viridifolia from western Cape were crossed together by R. Irwin Lynch in 1887, after both these species were introduced to Cambridge Botanic Gardens by Jameson and the hybrid was named as G. x cantabrigensis.

Heliconia belongs to family Heliconiaceae is popular as ornamental plants and cut flowers because of their brilliant colours and exotic appearance. The genus name “Heliconia” is derived from “Helicon”, a mountain in southern Greece regarded by the ancient Greeks as the home of the Muses, thus suggesting the relationship between these plants and the bananas, genus Musa (Berry and Kress, 1991). Unique features of the Heliconiaceae are (1) medium to large erect herbs rising from underground rhizomes;(2) each erect shoot is composed of a stem and leaves, whereas the stem is made up of an axis covered by overlapping sheathing leaf bases, technically called a pseudostem;(3) inverted flowers and (4) the presence of a single staminode. Heliconia has long been popular horticulturally because of their showy inflorescences. It was so attractive that early explorers of the tropics returned to Europe with several species that became prized green house specimens. Heliconia, grown in nearly all of the tropical regions of the world, including Africa and Asia. In India, heliconia is grown in North-East region and Kerala.

ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION

Heliconias are native only to Central and South America and some of the islands of the South Pacific, for horticultural and commercial popularity. Berry and Kress (1991) stated that they are native from Tropical America and found at different altitudes, from sea level up to 2,000 meters in Central and South America, and up to 500 meters in the South Pacific Islands (Criley and Broschat, 1992).

Most of the Heliconia species are distributed primarily in Neotropical areas from the North of Mexico to the South of Brazil (Santos, 1978, Dahlgren et al., 1985 and Kress, 1990). A small Paleotropical group, about eight species, occurs in islands of the South Pacific (Tomlinson, 1969 and Kress, 1985). There are approximately 40 Brazilian species with two primary areas of distribution: the Amazon basin and the Atlantic coastal forest (Kress, 1990). About 100 or more species, native mainly to tropical and subtropical South and Central America (Cronquist, 1981).

Several attempts have been made over the years to sort out the taxonomy of the Old World Heliconia. Baker (1893), followed by Schumann (1900) and Winkler (1930), dealt with the problem of identity and origin of these taxa by assigning them to the neotropical species Heliconia bihai L. Others such as Ridley (1908a, b), Backer (1920) and Green (1969) recognized the distinctive and endemic features of the paleotropical taxa that separated them from the neotropical species. This ornamental rhizomatous herbaceous plant from the Heliconia genus, belongs to the Musaceae family, now constitutes the Heliconiaceae family in the Zingiberales order. The various species of Heliconia are subdivided into five subgenera: Heliconia, Taeniostrobus, Stenochlamys, Heliconiopsis and Griggisia; and 28 sections (Kress et al., 1993).

Kangaroo Paws (Anigozanthos spp.) belongs to family Haemodoraceae. It is commonly known as Sword-like or Iris-like. The word Anigozanthos was coined by French botanist Jacques de La Billardiere. This is derived from Greek words “anoigo” meaning to “expand or unequal” and “anthos” meaning “flower or irregular corolla”. It can be used as cut flower, pot plant, landscape plants or dry flower (Gui et al., 2005). The kangaroo paws is gaining popularity among gardeners, horticulturists, nursery man also in world market due to its beautiful, unique, colourful pattern of flowers and also being perennial in nature.

ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION

It is originated in Australia. Louden’s Hortus Britanicus, A Catalog of a Plants Endemic, Cultivated or Introduced to Britain, written in 1830, states that in 1808 Anigozanthos manglesii was introduced by Robert Mangles who had possibly received seed from his brothers in New Holland. Anigozanthos rufus was introduced into cultivation in 1824. The Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening dates of the Botanical Magazine Plates are listed as A. flavida 1808 (BM 1151), A. manglesii 1833 BR, A. pulcherrimus 1844 (BM 4507). The first report of introduction of 8-10 species of Anigozanthos under green house from Australia in USA was reported in 1902 edition of Bailey’s Cyclopedia of American Horticulture. The first hybrid Bush Gems was introduced from Australia by Mr. Meyer, he had also made good selection of A. rufus and A. pulcherrimus these were propagated by Oglesby tissue culture lab. Many of them were released for sale at the Huntington Gardens annual plant sale in 1985.

All species of Kangaroo paw are restricted in distribution to the southern areas of Western Australia. Anigozanthos flavidus occurs in the extreme south west of Western Australia growing from Augusta east to Two Peoples Bay and north to Waroona. It can be found on roadsides, river banks, swamps, shallow water and in eucalypt forests, tolerating light shade. The species A. manglesii is widely distributed throughout the Southwest Australian bio geographic regions, preferring white, yellow or grey sand or sandy loam. The occurrence is confirmed in the northernmost part of its range in the Geraldton Sandplains and the Swan Coastal Plain near Perth. Extensive records also exist of occurrence in Jarrah Forest and Warren region to the south but not reaching the southern coasts. It extends inland to the Avon Wheatbelt.

Lisianthus is among top ten cut flower crop of the world. In short duration of 20-30 years it become top ranking flower crop of world due to its beautiful flowers which bears beauty of different top ranking old commercial flower crops with variation in flower colours, shape, size with long vase life. It looks like tulips as they began to open and as poppies when fully opened, gaps between the petals appears like daisy, ruffled petals resemble carnations and the most important one is the flower buds and opened double type lisianthus resemble rose buds and open flower respectively and there is no doubt that this is a primary reason for consumer acceptance. Double flowered lisianthus are more demanded in U.S. as cut flower about 80% of lisianthus market whereas, single flowered are more dominant in Japanese and European markets. In Japan over 129 million cut stems were sold in 2001 placing it on number one position in Europe, over 122 million cut stems were sold in 2001 and placing it in top ten ranking and in the United States over 14 million cut stems were sold in 2002, it is not only popular as a cut flower but also as a bedding plant and a pot plant in market (Grueber et al., 1985, Halevy and Kofranek, 1984, Roh and Lawson, 1987, Tjia and Sheehan, 1984, Tija and Sheehan 1986, Skrzypczak et al., 1993 and Harbaugh, 2007), a plant bears 20-30 flowers per plant (Skrzypczak et al., 1993).

Lisianthus (Eustoma) is herbaceous perennial in some cases annual and biennial (Farina, 1989, Halevy and Kofranek, 1984, Wilkins and Grueber, 1983 and Harbaugh, 2007) belongs to family Gentianaceae (Oren-shamir et al., 1999) and genus “Lisianthus”, which is also used as the common name for Eustoma grandiflorum, the plant was commonly known as Lisianthus russellianus when first listed in seed catalogues in the early 1980’s in the United State, later it was given scientific name Eustoma grandiflorum (Raf.) Shinn. (synonyms Eustoma andrewsii; E. russellianum; Lisianthus russellianus) (Bailey and Baily, 1976, Everett, 1981 and Harbaugh, 2007). However, Lisianthus is also known as the Prairie gentian or Texas bluebell (Markham, 1996 and Harbaugh, 2007) and Prairie Rose (Harbaugh, 2007). Eustoma is named after the two Greek words Eu (beautiful, good, well) and stoma (mouth) (Uddin et al., 2013). It is a self compatible (Harbaugh, 2007 and Markham, 1996), diploid crop (Markham, 1996). The buds are colourless is a great disadvantage as an ornamental growth. The range of flower colours available in commercial lines is limited to white and purple, shades of cream, pink, mauve and purple (Markham, 1996 and Harbaugh, 2007).

E. grandiflorum has a set of pharmacologically active compounds and therefore can be a valuable therapeutic material, or can serve as a source of pure chemical compound, apart from its strictly ornamental uses (Skrzypczak et al., 1993).

Gypsophila is herbacaeous annual or perennial flowering plant belongs to family Caryophyllaceae. It contains several ornamental species of which Gypsophila paniculataL. is the only species used as a cut flower (Zvi et al., 2008) and it is applied as filler in flower arrangements (Jones, 1995 and Rehman, 2002). Gypsophila derived from “gypson” meaning chalk and “phylos” meaning lover, an etymology which alludes to its preference for calcareous soils (Vettory et al., 2013). Mainly found in temperate or warm-temperate regions in the Northern Hemisphere, best developed in the Mediterranean region and Near East (Ataslar et al., 2009 and Cronquist, 1981). It is a perennial plant often grown commercially as an annual crop. Root is rich source of triterpine saponins (Henry, 1993, Hostettmann, 1995 and Gevrenova et al., 2010) which are used for commercially in medicines, detergents, adjuvents and cosmetics (Hostettmann, 1995, Tschesche and Wulff, 1973 and Gevrenova et al., 2010). G. paniculata is one of the ten best selling cut flower species worldwide and thus becomes for the genetic improvement and selection of new varieties of commercial interest. Main regions of gypsophila production are Italy, Israel, Belgium, Germany and Holland while currently its cultivation is spreading across to other countries such as Ecuador, Egypt and Kenya due to lower labour costs. Infact, Gypsophila is among one of the most important varieties of cut flowers in Israel, where it is grown in more than 200 hectares of greenhouses and is almost entirely exported. For these reasons, the competition has increased dramatically, making the world market increasingly difficult for companies which feel the need to introduce new varieties that respond better to characteristics desired by consumers and florists.

Jasmine (Jasminum spp.) belongs to the family Oleaceae, order Oleales are climbing, trailing or erect shrubby plants and there are both deciduous and evergreen species. The generic name Jasminum is derived from Arabic word “Jassamine”, “Jasmin” and “Jasminum” (Bailey, 1963). Flowers are white, yellow or rarely reddish. Flowers are used for making garlands and Veni. Jamine oil extracted from the flower is highly valued in perfumery industry. France, The Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, Algeria, Turkey, Morocco and Tunisia are major jasmine oil producing countries (Singh, 2006).

ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION

Jasmine is native to tropical and subtropical regions; a large number of species are centred on the regions comprising India, China and Malaysia. Jasmines distributed in warm parts of Europe, Asia, Africa and Pacific region, nearly absent from America (Bailey, 1963).

Jasmines have adorned the gardens of central Asia, Afghanistan, Iran, Nepal and many other tropical and sub tropical countries. The distribution patterns of nearly 72 species in India, Malaysia and China provide a strong base to claim that India is one of the principal centers of origin of Jasminum species. Among these, about 40 species are reported to occur in India and mostly cultivated in South India (Bhattacharjee, 1980). Large number of species are however, centered to the region comprising of The Himalayas, China and Malaysia. Other countries where jasmine is cultivated are France, Italy, Morocco, Algeria, North Africa, Spain and Egypt. The cultivated jasmines fall into four species viz., Jasminum sambac, Jasminum auriculatum, Jasminum grandiflorum, and Jasminum multiflorum (Kakada).

In India, the three species Jasminum sambac, Jasminum auriculatum and Jasminum grandiflorum have been mentioned in the ancient Tamil Literature of ‘Sangam’ period (500 B.C. to 200 A.D.). Jasmines are commercially grown in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. Other growing states are Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Marigold (Tagetes spp.) an annual flowering plant belongs to family Asteraceae, alternately known as Compositae. The word “marigold” means “Mary’s Gold” and refers to the “Virgin Mary”. However, word “Tagetes” named after the Etruscan God “Tages” who supposedly emerged from the earth as it was being ploughed and was imbued with the power of divination. Cultivated species include Tagetes erecta commonly referred as African marigold and Tagetes patula as French marigold. Marigold commonly propagated by seed and cutting is a leading loose flower of India. Selection of variety is favoured by a higher proportion of double inflorescences.

ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION

Origin of marigold is central and South America especially Mexico (Kaplan, 1960). Bailey (1951, 1963 and 1976) reported that marigold is a native to Arizona and Mexico to Argentina.

During early 16^th century it spread to various parts of world from Mexico. African marigold (Tagetes erecta) first reached Spain and from there it become popular as rose of Indies in Southern Europe. Major work on improvement and cultural practices on marigold have been done in USA, Switzerland, France and Germany. In India, marigold was introduced by Portuguese and it became popular and spread quickly because of its wide adaptability to varying climatic and soil conditions. Marigold is well distributed in different states and union territories of India (Singh, 2006).

SPECIES

Earlier, Rydberg (1915) reported that genus Tagetes comprises about 33 species and Bailey (1951 and 1976) mentioned over 30 species, however, Turner and Nesom (1993) reported that Tagetes is made up of nearly 55 species distributed in the American continent, most of them located in Mexico. The two species Tagetes erecta and Tagetes patula are commercially important. Details of these species are given below.

Vanda is a genus in the orchid belongs to family Orchidaceae. The name Vanda is derived from the Sanskrit name for the species Vanda tessellate. The name Vandas will be used here to cover all vandaceous orchids including Vanda, Ascocentum, Aerides, Renanthera, Rhynchostylis, etc. and hybrids between them. Although there are some vandaceous orchids that originate in mountainous areas most are low-level plants that love warm temperatures. This has contributed much to the work of hybridists producing flowers for the cut flower market. It is one of the five most horticulturally important orchid genera because it has some of the most magnificent flowers to be found in the entire orchid family. It is highly prized in horticulture for its showy, fragrant, long lasting and intensely colourful flowers.

ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION

Vanda was discovered in 1613 by Alvin Semedo, who called it ‘tiao hua’ or ‘air plant’. It is originated from the warm islands of the South Pacific. Places like Malaysia, Thailand, Borneo and the Philippines are natural home to these orchid species. These are mostly epiphytic but sometimes lithophytic or terrestrial orchids. These orchids were distributed in India, Himalaya, S.E. Asia, Indonesia, the Philippines, New Guinea, southern China and northern Australia. About 7 species of Vanda exist in the forest of Nagaland (Changkija et al., 1992). These species are described in Table 1.

The genus Hydrangea is the best-known member of family Hydrangeaceae tribe Hydrangeae from the Asterid order Cornales. With more than two centuries of horticultural trade, Hydrangea cultivars are among the most popular ornamental shrubs worldwide (McClintock, 1957 and Kardos et al., 2009). Hydrangea (Hortensia) is a very popular ornamental plant for gardens. Hydrangeas occur most often on partly shaded but open slopes, rock edges, cliffs, roadside banks, edges of woods, or in moist open woods. Usually, restricted to the more moist, protected slopes. Recently it is commercialized for the production of cut flowers (Sacco et al., 2012). In India is widely grown in hilly areas.

ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION

The species of genus Hydrangea L. grow naturally in temperate areas of Eastern Asia, including some Pacific islands adjacent to Eastern Asia (Philippines, Taiwan, etc.), in temperate Northeastern America, in subtropical Middle and South America (McClintock, 1957). Throughout the eastern United States, ranging from the middle Atlantic States southward through the Southern Appalachians, and westward into the Ozarks and lower Midwest, numerous populations of shrubs with large, ovate, opposite leaves and compound cymes of small white flowers are en-countered. These are the wild hydrangeas.

SPECIES

Hydrangea is a genus of about 75 species of flowering plants native to southern and eastern Asia and North and South America. Most are shrubs 1-3 tall, but some are small trees and others lianas (Sacco et al., 2012). Species differ qualitatively in flavonoid constituents.

Phlox is a perennial and annual flowering plant belongs to family Polemoniaceae. “Phlox” is a Greek word meaning “flame” and was most likely named thusly due to its bright and vivid colours. Phlox originally came from North America and was available in England by the early 1800s. It quickly grew in popularity and today it is still found growing wild in gardens across the world. Among perennials, Phlox paniculata, Phlox divariecata, Phlox glaberrima are earliest species to be cultivated and reached to England and France from Virginia (USA) in the early 18^th century. Among annuals, Phlox drummondii is commonly grown in India. Annual phlox is propagated by seeds, whereas, cutting is used as propagating material for perennial species. Phlox is grown in the garden as bedding and border plant for its dramatic, fragrant, showy and long blooming flowers. The colour range includes white, rose, pink, purple, lavender, violet, pale blue, bright red and magenta. Some flowers are bicoloured.

ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION

Phlox is native to North America except one species i.e. Phlox sibirica which originated from Siberia (Meyer, 1944). They are found mostly in North America in diverse habitats from alpine Tundra to open woodland and prairie. Some flower in spring, others in summer and fall. Many are fragrant.

The diversity of species and genera is particularly high in California, USA, where 17 genera and over 170 species occur. Significant diversity also exists elsewhere in the world. A principle lineage consisting of Cantua, Cobaea, and Bonplandia is distributed natively only in Mexico, central America and northwestern South America. In Eastern North America, the genus Phlox is unusually diverse compared to the rest of the family. Other than members of Phlox, only a few species occur natively east of the Mississippi river in the United States, such as Ipomopsis rubra, Collomia linearis and a few Polemonium. A few Phlox and Polemonium species are also found natively in Eurasia. Central and South America, particularly the western regions of South America, are also home to some members of the phlox family. A small number of species from several genera that are most abundant in North America, such as Collomia, Gilia, Navarretia and Leptosiphon are found only in western South America, indicating multiple instances of long distance dispersal (Grant, 1959 and Morrell et al., 2000). Occasional species, such as skunkweed (Navarretia squarrosa) and Collomia grandiflora, have become weedy in parts of Europe and Australia and some cultivated species, such as members of Cobaea, have become naturalized outside their native range (Grant, 1959, Hussey et al., 1997, Pysek et al., 2002 and Anon., 2003).

Sweet pea (Lathyrus odoratus) is the only species in the genus Lathyrus and family Fabaceae which is widely cultivated as an ornamental plant. Lathyrus comes from the Greek word “Lathyros” in which the prefix “la” means “very” and suffix “thyros” means “passionate”. The “Odoratus” is derived from Latin word which means “fragrant” (Fernald, 1950). It is mainly grown for its beautiful flower colour forms. It is an annual climbing plant growing to a height of 1-2 m with the support of a terminal tendril which twines around the plants and helps to climb. The illness caused by the ingestion of sweet pea is known as odoratism or sweet pea lathyrism. Sweet pea was used to verify Mendel’s work with the garden pea (Pisum sativum L.) in the early 1900s (Bateson, 1902). The genetical phenomenon of linkage was first demonstrated in the sweet pea. It is used prominently as a model organism to study flower development due to its large, colourful and fragrant flowers. The essential oils extracted from the sweet pea can be used in perfume blends.

ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION

Sweet pea (Lathyrus odoratus L.) was discovered in Sicily in 1695 (Rice, 2002). Its species are found both in the Old World and the New World. The main centres of diversity are the Mediterranean region, Asia Minor and North America as well as temperate South America and East Africa (Kupicha, 1977, Jackson and Yunus, 1984, Yamamoto et al., 1984 and Simola, 1986). It generally grows in temperate regions and has been found on all continents except Antarctica (Kenicer et al., 2009 and Kenicer et al., 2005). Its cultivation is popular not only in the United Kingdom and the United States but also in Europe, Russia, Egypt, New Zealand, Australia and Japan (Hambidge,

1996, Inoue, 1981, 2007 and Rice, 2002). There are some reports of commercial sweet pea cut flower production (Hammett, 2006, Inoue, 1981 and Parsons, 2004). A seed bank at the Chichester Collection was started in 1998 and stores around 900 cultivars and around 100 accessions of other species.

1. Introduction

Dairy industry size and demand precede all other segments of food industry. Reporting milk production of 146.3 million tonnes in 2014-15, India is currently occupying first position in world scenario (NDDB, 2015). In spite of limited shelf-life, milk offers various opportunities of product diversification, processing optimisation and convenient packaging solutions. All categories of dairy products are unique and vary in market value. The operating margins in value-added dairy products are almost twice of liquid milk business due to reduced need of refrigeration and added shelf-life. The appeal and satiety it offers makes them ambrosia for consumers. Baked and fried dairy products (BFDP) are those class of dairy products in which main processing operation is either baking or frying. In addition to preservation of milk solids for longer time at room temperature, manufacture of baked and fried dairy products add value to milk and also provide considerable employment opportunity (Pal and Raju, 2007;Patil, 2011). The characteristic flavour and colour development of the product rely on this unit operation or cooking method and it cannot be replaced. The unique difference in baked and fried dairy products is that in baking dough is prepared and for frying batter is prepared which vary significantly in characteristics (Table 1). The quality of the finished product greatly depends on how the dough or batter is handled.

1. Introduction

Product development is a basic activity in the food industry. Each company has a product mix, often including hundreds of products, which are constantly evolving - old products dying, products reaching maturity, products contributing to rapid growth and new products being introduced.

In the food industry, just as any other industry, product and process development is considered a vital part – indeed the lifeblood – of smart business strategy. Failure to develop new and improved products relegates firms to competing solely on price which favours the players with access to the lowest cost inputs (land, labour etc). Product and process development (commonly referred to as product development) is systematic, commercially oriented research to develop products and processes satisfying a known or suspected consumer need. Product development is a method of industrial research in its own right. There are essentially four basic stages in the model product development process.

Food security, nutritional security, sustainability and profitability are the main foci ofpresent agricultural scenario in India. In the absence of additional land for bringing under plough vertical growth in agriculture through intensive cropping and enhanced productivity becomes inevitable. Intensification of agriculture to meet the growing needs of the burgeoning population has brought with it numerous productivity related constraints. It has triggered multiple nutrient deficiencies in soil and this has raised doubts on the soils capacity to sustain anticipated production levels. One of the key inputs in enhancing and maintaining the productivity ofintensified agricultural systems is chemical fertilizer which provides nutrients in readily available form. But long term experiments on various cropping systems at various agroecological regions and soil types revealed that continuous use of chemical fertilizers in unbalanced and indiscriminate manner deteriorates the soil health and leads to deleterious effect on long term soil fertility and yield sustainability. Apart from the soil productivity issue, the use of chemical fertilizer is also becoming more and more costly due to scarcity during peak demand. The excessive use of chemical fertilizers is not only costly but they pollute the production environment (Singh et al., 2005; Dwivedi et al., 2003).

In the coming decades, a major issue in designing sustainable agriculture system will be the management and rational use of organic inputs such as animal manure, green manure, crop residues and biofertilizers etc. (Powlson, 1994). Long term studies indicated that current fertilizer recommendations are inadequate for maintaining yields (Bhandari et al., 2000; Singh and Mishra, 2010; Tiwari et al., 2006). It is, therefore, to sustain high crop yield without deterioration of soil fertility it is important to apply required amount of plant nutrients through fertilizers in combination with organic sources, crop residues, biofertilizers etc.

1. Introduction

Vedic system of medicine, also called Hindu medicine, Aryan median, Indian system of medicine and in modern era as science of life (Ayurveda). It traces origin from mythical, through a semi-mythical, to historical beginning. Clues on uses of medicine are although obtainable since Indus civilization, it was propounded more in the Vedic period and also in post Vedic era. It is claimed to be the oldest medicinal system and heritage of India. The ancient Indians were first to cultivate astronomical science, mathematics, chemistry, grammar, lexicography, architecture and Dhanur-veda. Another compartment of human life is medicine, in which Indians never lagged behind. Vedic medicine is not born within four walls of a laboratory. It is nurtured in nature, human minds and hearts. The Vedic wisdom is engendered by trial and errors, experimentation, natural observations and timely criticism by the learned exponents. Obviously, there is no denial to the fact that the torch of learning was handed down to the other civilizations by the ancient Indians. Vedic medicine is not confined to the boundary of Indian nation but percolated in other cultures. Careful and critical examination of such a great heritage is a task of not of ordinary men. Still I took interest to review it, although almost impossible to justify it within the limits of few pages and time. The title of my paper amply suggests that Vedic medicine is a mine of information but I have tried to put on record it, in a nutshell. To tap down information in historical perspective, relevant literature has been borrowed and consulted to pinpoint the events, concepts wisdom of ancient Indians. These literary sources are enlisted under references.

1. Introduction

Plant is probably the greatest gift of nature. Plants provide us with food, cloth, house, papers and many others. Some of the plants have medicinal values and are known as ‘medicinal plants’. Our ancestors used these plants not only for protection from diseases but also for the treatment of several ailments. China has the highest number of the medicinal plants used (about 11,500 species) followed by India (about 7500 species). People of other countries also use medicinal plants in varying amount (Rafieian-Kopaei, 2013). Tradition is still going on. It is reported that even today 80% of the world population relies on medicinal plants in their medication (Hamilton, 2004). Few plants secrete essential oils full of aroma and are called ‘aromatic plants’. These plants are being utilized in industry for the production of essence and many other products. Medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs), therefore, are in continuous use from past to present. In future also there will be tremendous scope of utilization of MAPs in drug discovery, aromatherapy, as cosmeceuticals, nutraceuticals as well as in animal husbandry. Present review will focus utilization of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (MAPs) in past and present and its possible prospect in future.

For the first time, the Quality Planting Material (QPM) production from aerial stem node cutting and its comprehensive growth parameters are being reported in Valeriana jatamansi (Jones) (family: Valerianaceae), a highly endangered medicinal plant and a natural habitat in North Eastern Himalayan Region in the high altitude ranging from 1000 to 8000m Above Sea Level (ASL). The present communication identified a novel avenue exploring the unused plant part, aerial node cutting for producing QPM in a continuous and exponential rate without scarifying the rhizome and root, enriched with active ingredients like Valerenic acid and Valepotriates. This method also assures 100% plant emergence and more than 91±5.56% plant survival in the different field conditions without requiring hardening process as an additional merit. This first-time report for QPM production of an endangered medicinal plant, Valeriana jatamansi through aerial node cutting without following the hormone supplemented MS based tissue culture, a high cost process required sophisticated instruments and aseptic environment. This present process will have potentiality to explore commercially for mass clonal-propagation even at farmer level.

Starter cultures were unknown until 1878, when Lister isolated pure cultures of the lactic acid bacteria responsible for milk acidification. In the 1980s, improvements to standardization and ripening of butter were made by introducing pure starter cultures. During the period 1910-20, Orla-Jensen, von Freudenreich, Sherman, Hammer and other dairy microbiologists prepared pure cultures for fermented milks. Commercial production and use of starter cultures grew rapidly and was widespread at the beginning of the 20^th century.

Dairy starters are the ‘heart’ of fermented milk products, the most crucial component in the manufacture of high-quality fermented milks. The cultures are harmless food-grade microorganisms, active bacteria intentionally grown in milk or whey or other formulated media which impart desirable and predictable flavour and texture to fermented dairy products.

The dairy microorganisms employed in milk fermentation are single-strain or multiple-strain cultures of lactic acid bacteria, producing different types of fermented milk products. Usually, one or two strains dominate the milk environment. Individual strains can be selected in advance for their resistance to both bacteriophages and antibiotics. Mixed starter cultures are used to ensure that fermentation will continue after a bacteriophage attack. Bacteriophages are highly strain-specific, and if the dominant strain in a mixed-strain starter culture succumbs to an attack, the phage-resistant mutant or the next dominant culture maintains a satisfactory rate of lactic acid production.

Cleaning and sanitizing of dairy plants is essential for providing safe milk products to the consumers as well as for ensuring the good shelf life of these products. It ensures cleanliness, hygiene of the equipments and surroundings and also ensures that the products meet the safety standards. Cleaning of dairy plant consists of broadly of removing the soil from the surface of the equipment by dissolving or suspending the soil in a warm solution of suitable cleaning agents. In the dairy industry, the soil is primarily milk and milk product residues which may be more or less modified by processing treatment. 
Milk and milk product residues are complex mixtures of milk sugar, fat, proteins and mineral salts. Some of these solids are present in emulsion, some are in a colloidal state, and others are in true solution. When milk products are heated in vats or pumped through sanitary pipe lines or over coolers, the metal or glass surfaces become coated with milk remains, which, if allowed to dry, may be difficult to remove.

    1.    Technical support
    2.    Financial support

1. Technical support

A. Institutes for Professional skills in dairy based enterprises:

Several institutions offer training programmes in dairy based enterprises:

I. Society for Innovation & Entrepreneurship in Dairying (SINED)

Society for Innovation & Entrepreneurship in Dairying (SINED) is registered under society regulation act 1860, hosted by National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal for promotion of entrepreneurship in dairying. The major activity of the society is to administer a Technology Business Incubator which provides support for technology based entrepreneurship in Dairying.

Interest Rate : Provisional Interest rate @ 14.50% p.a. has been taken for evaluation of the project report. However, the sanctioning authority may consider the exact rate of interest applicable, on the date of sanction. Development of farm should be completed within 3 months from first disbursement.
 
Repayment of loan : A five-year repayment programme has been drawn with six months moratorium period, the installments will be monthly starting from 6th month onwards. The applicant has to make tie-up with the local MPCS and the repayment should be routed through the MPCS.

Need to know Physiological maturity (PM), Harvestable maturity (HM) and harvesting method

·    If these factors are considered, the harvest produce will have the maximum seed quality characters in terms of germination, vigour and storability.

 The maturity is of two types depending on the purpose. If the crop is for grain production it is enough to harvest the crop during harvestable maturity. But when the crop is meant for seed purpose it is advisable to harvest the crop during physiological maturity.

Seed Storage is an essential process during seed production programme. The purpose of seed storage is to preserve planting stocks from one season to next planting season.Seed storage starts from the moment of maturity and extend until its planting, in the next season.
 
PRINCIPLES OF STORAGE

Primary aim of storage is simply to prevent deterioration of quality seed. The management objective during the storage period is to reduce metabolic activity to such a low level that the seed is sufficiently stable with minimal deterioration. The two alternative methods are

1.    Reduction of moisture content to a safe level and cooling of the seed.
2.    Modification of atmospheric condition of the storage system.

Types of storage

There are four types

1.    Storage of commercial,  truthfully labelled and certified seed.

2.    Storage of carry-over seeds.

3.    Storage of foundation seed stocks and enforcement seed samples.

4.    Storage for germplasm seeds.

India is the largest producer and consumer of pulses in the world, accounting for 33 per cent area and 25 percent production. Pulses are mostly grown under rainfed conditions in marginal to sub-marginal lands. Once a net exporter it is presently one of the largest importer of pulses as our demand outstrips domestic production. While the traditional cropping pattern almost always included a pulse crop either as a mixed crop or in rotation, the commercialization of agriculture has encouraged the practice of sole-cropping. As a result, the annual import has increased from 0.50 million tonnes to 1.80 million tonnes during the last five years and contribution of pulses in the national food basket reduced from 17% to 7%. Pulses are generally grown on marginal and sub-marginal lands under rainfed conditions with low inputs and suffer heavily due to biotic and abiotic stresses, resulting into low productivity. Challenges for pulses in India are decline in area of pulses, low genetic yield potential, low realized yield, instability in production, climate change, biotic and abiotic stresses, poor seed replacement rate, post harvest losses, wide fluctuation in price, no regular MSP/procurement policy, poor availability of critical inputs in productivity zone and poor transfer of technology.

• Defining GIS
• Fundamentals of GIS
• Mapping Concepts, Features and Properties
• Geographical Data Sets
• Spatial & Non-spatial Data
• Attribute Data
• Remote Sensing in Agriculture
• Remote Sensing in Farm
• Principles of Remote Sensing
• How Does Remote Sensing Work?
• Global Positioning System
• Components of a GPS
• GPS Positioning Types
• GPS Applications
• Remote Sensing and GIS
• Use of GPS in Agriculture
• General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Network 
• The GPRS Network
• Benefits

Abstract: Shifting cultivation locally called Jhuming is a part and parcel of tribal life of the North Eastern Hill Region of India and it has direct bearing with their socio-cultural system. It is a boon to the farmers as long as the jhuming cycle is sufficiently longer (10-15 years) as this would not only produce a good crop but also gives sufficient time for ecological restoration and biophysical balance. However, with the increase in population pressure on land the jhuming cycle is getting drastically reduced (3-6 years). As a result of this, soil health is getting degraded and overall ecosystem is in threat. Many important flora and fauna are in the verge of extinction. As we cannot run away from the problem at least thinking about posterity, we have to find a decisive solution immediately. Developing improved methods of jhum cultivation like proper bunding, residue recycling, use of high yielding varieties etc. are few short term options. However long term viable options would be proper land configuration like terraces, water harvesting, agroforestry, adoption of integrated farming system approach and above all education and awareness among the tribal farmers which would help in sustaining the ecosystem of the region.

11.1 Section-A : Write True / False

Q.1 Some assumptions or guesses made about the unknown population parameters, is know as "Statistical hypothesis".

Q.2 For the normal distribution N(μ, σ²), the statement (1) μ = 25.0 and (ii) σ² = 37.0, are known as statistical hypotheses.

Q.3 Let p = 0.5 is the probability of getting a head in single throw of a coin. Ten, this statement is not a statistical hypothesis.

Q.4 The statistical hypothesis under consideration (under test), is known as "Null hypothesis".

Q.5 The null hypothesis is denoted by "Ho".

12.1 Section-A : Write True / False

Q.1 Almost all biological data e.g. crop yield, plant height, seed weight, seed size, protein content in pulse, oil content in oil seed etc. are assumed to be normaly distributed.

Q.2 Let X be a normal variable with N(μ, σ²). The random variable Z def ned as Z = (x - μ)/σ, is known as standard normal variable.

Q.3 The standard normal variable Z is denoted as Z ~ N (0, 1).

Q.4 The p.d.f. of random variable Z is given as

14.1 Section-A : Write True / False

Q.1 If sample size n is small ie n < 30, then the small sample test is applicable.

Q.2 The exact sample test (small sample test) can be applied to large sample test but the converse is not plaussible.

Q.3 If (x²1 , x²2 ) are two independent chi-square variates with (V1, V₂) degree of freedom then F statistic is def ned as

Accent : It is created in the garden to avoid the monotonous view. Mostly unusual objects like tall fountain, tree, statue etc are used to create the effect.

Acre: A unit of measurement of land area equivalent to 4000 sq.met or 0.4047 hectare.

Acrylic: It is a glassy thermoplastic that is incorporated in rigid plastic to enhance wither ability.

Aging: Refers to the processes acquiring maturity with the passage of time or normally an increment of time, which may or may not be accompanied by physiological changes including senescence. Aging thus includes a much ‘wider span’ of physiological processes, which may either “weaken the organism or to be neutral”.

Agmark: It is Agriculture Produce, Grading & Marketing Act, 1937 & voluntary in nature.

Anaerobic respiration: An incomplete oxidation of food to release partial energy takes place in the absence of atmospheric oxygen and occurs in cytoplasm.

Analytical chemistry: Deals with detection and estimation of elements and compounds.

ABSTRACT
Recent challenges for fossil fuels, associated environmental issues with disposal of organic garbage, and the rising costs for energy has encouraged researchers to search for alternate energy sources. Massive uncontrolled biogas from landfills, sludge and organic material degradation under anoxic conditions is an environmental management issue. Methane emission to atmosphere has a tremendous green house effect, but this can also be a valuable renewable energy resource. Biogas from kitchen wastes through anaerobic digestion by methanogens is such an alternate technology. Kitchen wastes are considered one of the best raw materials for biogasification. Biogas is mainly composed of 50-74% methane (CH₄), 25-28% carbon-di-oxide (CO₂), other volatile compounds including hydrogen sulphide (H₂S), water vapour and other trace gas compounds. The impurities in it, like Hydrogen sulphide (H₂S) which is corrosive, downgrade its quality. Purified biogas of higher calorific value attracts attention as a substitute fuel for additional applications. Its purification using various suitable scalable and economically-viable scrubbing technologies to enhance its quality and performance as an alternate fuel is an important step in this direction. Thus, a technology to generate and purify biogas from kitchen waste has significant prospects in the energy sector, and also as a promising enterprise to employ the youth.

1.1. INTRODUCTION

In this chapter, we will know how to classify raw data. The purpose of classifying raw data is to bring order in them so that they can be statistically analysed easily. Classification of objects or things saves our valuable time and effort. It is done in a logical manner and similar things are arranged into a group or class.

3.1. INTRODUCTION

In this chapter, we will study the measures of central tendency which is a numerical method to explain the data in brief. We can see examples of summarizing a large set of data in day to day life like average marks obtained by students of a class in a test, average rainfall in an area, average production in a factory, average income of persons living in a locality or working in a firm etc.

One of the most important objectives of statistical analysis is to get one single value that describes the characteristic of the entire mass of data. Such a value is called the central value or an ‘average’ or the expected value of the variable. This single value is the point of location around which individual values cluster and, therefore, called the measure of location. Since this single value has a tendency to be somewhere at the center and within the range of all values it is also known as the measure of central tendency. The purpose of computing an average value for a set of observations is to obtain a single value which is representative of all the items.

Knowledge of male reproductive system and its physiological functions is essential for understanding male reproductive behavior and for effective reproductive management of breeding bulls. Therefore, personnel involved in management of breeding bulls, semen collection, handling and artificial insemination must have sound knowledge of male reproductive anatomy and physiology of breeding bulls. This section provides a recapitulation of the basic physiology and anatomy of male genitalia.
 

Functions of Male Genital System

    (a)    Primary function of the male genital system is to monitor reproduction by providing cutaneous and glandular system of male gonads

    (b)    Secondary function of male genital organs is to provide glandular, ductular, copulatory and auxillary system associated with male reproduction.

Success of AI programme depends on fertility of bulls used for semen production. If infertile bulls are selected in semen station for production of semen doses, large population of cows inseminated with such doses is affected. Therefore, the breeding bulls or bulls to be used for frozen semen production should be selected carefully keeping in view genetic potential, disease condition, reproductive health, libido and semen production potential of the bull. The emphasis should not only be on elimination of bulls with questionable or unsatisfactory potential, but also on induction of bulls with good semen production potential into the semen station. 

The following aspects should be taken into consideration while performing a breeding soundness examination of bulls:

Biology is in the middle of a major paradigm shift driven by computing technology. Due to the impact of information technology, biological sciences have been rapidly becoming much more computational and analytical. Rapid progress in research in the field of genetics and related field combined with the tools provided by modern biotechnology has generated massive volumes of genetic and protein sequence data over last two decades. Compilation, storage, analysis for extraction of information and knowledge from this data becomes a challenging task as usual analytical procedures are not directly applicable to these data sets.
 
Bioinformatics has been defined as a means for analysing, comparing, graphically displaying, modeling, storing, systemising, searching, and ultimately distributing biological information, which includes sequences, structures, functions, and phylogeny. Thus, bioinformatics may be defined as a discipline that generates computational tools, databases, and methods to support genomic and post-genomic research. It comprises the study of DNA structure and function, gene and protein expression, protein production, structure and function, genetic regulatory systems, and clinical applications. Bioinformatics applications need knowledge from computer science, mathematics, statistics, medicine, chemistry and biology.

Natural Gene Flow in Plants

More than 70% of plant species, for example potato, oat, rape-seed, wheat, and kiwifruit have come from spontaneous interspecific or intergeneric hybridization although the extent of natural hybridization differs among the plant genera and families. It creates genetic variation and produce recombinant genotypes that may exhibit heterosis.The stabilization of these hybrids often through polyploidy (autopolyploidy or allopolyploidy) can result in the formation of new biological species (Masterson, 1994), thereby, having impact on both ecological and evolutionary processes (Martinsen et al., 2001). In addition, species genomes are often differentially permeable to introgression if they are under simple genetic control (unlike many genes contribute to hybrid fitness with linkages) and certain portion of the genome can readily incorporate alien alleles. Introgression is a selective process of gene flow that filters deleterious genes and takes only beneficial genes (incorporating the alleles from one taxon into other).

8.1    Climatic Conditions
    
8.2    Water
    
8.3    Spacing
    
8.4    Crop Nutrition
    
8.5    Pests and Diseases
    
8.6    Bunch Covering
    
8.7    Maturity and Maturity Indices
    
8.8    Maturity vs Shelf life and Quality
    
8.9    Pre-Harvest Sprays
    
8.10    Harvesting

Method of Maximum Likelihood Estimation (M.L.E.)
    
Method of Moments
    
Method of Minimum X²
    
Interval Estimation

A. PLANNING OF AN ORCHARD

Orchard is a long-term investment and needs proper planning and layout before establishment. Mistakes committed during planning and planting of fruit trees cannot be rectified. While planning and planting a new orchard, it is very important to carefully assess all the factors that will ultimately affect fruit yield and orchard sustainability. The aspects like location and site selection, suitability of soil and subsoil, suitability of fruit crop and varieties, plant spacing, market potential and source of nursery plants must be taken care of seriously. Thus, one should avail of expert advice on the establishment of new orchards and their proper maintenance.

INTRODUCTION

The planning of new orchard is very important aspect of fruit glowing which needs special attention and care to make it more profitable venture. The climate and soil of particular area are the major chief natural factors in the orchard establishment. The proper combination of this governs the success of fruit growing
 
A. SUITABILTY OF CLIMATE FOR FRUIT PLANTS

Climate refers to an average condition of the atmosphere over a long period, whereas, the term weather refers to the current and temporary atmospheric conditions of an area. Climate is the principal factor for optimum vegetative and reproductive growth of plants. The success or failure of crop in a particular locality depends upon the prevailing climatic conditions. In our environment it is fundamental force which includes various components of climate like temperature, humidity, wind, light, rainfall, hail and frost. These factors should be taken care of for successful fruit production. All cultivated crops including fruit crops have certain natural threshold limits of the climatic parameters for their normal growth. The important climatic components which affect fruit crop production are given below:

SEED GERMINATION

Germination is the growth of a plant contained within a seed; it results in the formation of the seedling, it is also the process of reactivation of metabolic machinery of the seed resulting in the emergence of radicle and plumule. The seed of a vascular plant is a small package produced in a fruit or cone after the union of male and female reproductive cells. All fully developed seeds contain an embryo and, in most plant species some store of food reserves, wrapped in a seed coat. Some plants produce varying numbers of seeds that lack embryos; these are called empty seeds and never germinate. Dormant seeds are ripe seeds that do not germinate because they are subject to external environmental conditions that prevent the initiation of metabolic processes and cell growth. Under proper conditions, the seed begins to germinate and the embryonic tissues resume growth, developing towards a seedling.

6.1. INTRODUCTION

The word hypothesis is made up of two words Hypo + thesis = Hypothesis. ‘Hypo’ means tentative or subject to the verification and ‘Thesis’ means statement about solution of a problem.

The world meaning of the term hypothesis is a tentative statement about the solution of the problem. Hypothesis offers a solution of the problem that is to be verified empirically and based on some rationale. Hypothesis is the composition of some variables which have some specific position or role of the variables i.e. to be verified empirically. It is a proposition about the factual and conceptual elements. Hypothesis is called a leap into the dark. It is a brilliant guess about the solution of a problem. A tentative generalization or theory formulated about the character of phenomena under observation are called hypothesis. It is a statement temporarily accepted as true in the light of what is known at the time about the phenomena. It is the basis for planning and action in the research for new truth.