eChapters

A. Diseases

1. Anthracnose

Hemp anthracnose is caused by two different fungi, viz., Colletotrichum coccodes (=C. atramentarium) and Colletotrichum dematium (Saccardo, 1882; Cavara, 1889).

i) Anthracnose (Colletotrichum coccodes)

Occurrence & severity status

The anthracnose disease occurs on many plants, including hemp (Cannabis sativa). The disease causing fungus is well-studied and it is an important pathogen responsible for black dot disease on potato. The fungus is an unspecialized pathogen, infecting a wide range of host families. It is most common in Canada and commonly regarded as a minor pathogen or secondary invader, but the fungus may seriously affect yield where intensive cropping without rotation occurs. It primarily affects the growth rate of plants and diminishes harvest. Moreover, it becomes fatal occasionally. Hoffman (1958, 1959) reported heavy hemp losses in central Europe. Conversely, Gitman (1968b) considered the pathogen was of little importance in the USSR.

Horticulture word derived from Latin word: Hortus meaning ‘Garden’ and cultura means ‘cultivation’.

Father of horticulture: Thomas Andrew Knight, John Lindley, Liberty Hyde Bailey.

1^st artificial hybridization in fruit crop in world: T. A. Knight.

Father of vegetables: L. H. Bailey.

1^st book in horticulture: Fruit growing in India: W.B. Hayes (1945) & related to litchi.

Export growth of fresh fruits and vegetables in term of value is 14% and of processed fruits and vegetables is 16.27%.

Contribution of horticulture sector to agriculture GDP (2013-14): 29%.

India is largest producer of Coconut, Cashew, Tea and Spices.

India is bestowed with a wide range of agro-climatic and soil conditions. Therefore, almost all types of fruits can be grown in one or the other parts of the country. India is the second largest producer of fruits next to China. In India, fruit crops occupied 6.5 million hectares and it produces 96.75 million metric tonnes of fruits. India has exported fruits worth Rs. 4817.35 crores (692.01 USD Millions) (National Horticulture Board).

Improvement of fruit crops is difficult because of long gestation period, high heterozygosity, scanty information on inheritance pattern, often cross pollination, excessive fruit drop, parthenocarpy and less number of seeds restricting the availability of hybrid seedlings for evaluation. Even though, planned hybridization and clonal selections have been attempted in a number of fruit crops and these efforts have resulted in the development of promising varieties (mango, grape, guava, papaya, sapota, banana, etc). However, systematic and dedicated efforts are still required for the development of ideal varieties through modern tools in fruit crops.

In future, search for desired gene, critical study of inheritance pattern and use of biotechnological tools require due attention in combining ideal characteristics in varietal improvement programme of fruit crops.

The greenhouse technology is all about the controlling of ambient climatic factors to create a favourable ‘micro-climate’ for the crop growth. The magnitude of such control may differ from minimal to maximum. It may control single (like rain) to multiple aspects (like rain, temperature, humidity, sun-light, wind, carbon-di-oxide, etc in combination). It can simply be done by manipulating natural factors using the suitable/appropriate design of the greenhouse or can be done in complex form by using/installing different devices and packages (may be software) with necessary automation in a specifically designed greenhouse.

It is a vast subject and very difficult to have a thumb-rule for such climate control mechanism due to seasonal climatic variations and most importantly due to the inter-relation effect between each and every climatic factors. Thus, it should be given sufficient space to maneuver the mechanism designed for a specific greenhouse targeting a specific crop.

Ways to control these climatic factors in a greenhouse

There are two basic ways to control the climate inside greenhouse.

Primarily, through a suitable design of the greenhouse itself, the inside microclimate can be controlled, obviously up to a certain level. Through manipulation of the design, particularly the naturally ventilated system, the rain water, temperature, humidity, CO_2, wind, etc can be controlled up to a certain level in favour of the crop.

Secondarily, by introducing equipments, tools, devices, etc we can control the micro-climate of a greenhouse. In most cases, it can take care of a number of climatic factors, like temperature and humidity, sun-light and temperature, etc simultaneously to provide a crop-wise micro-climate inside.

Frequently we use both the basic controlling methods, in combination, to achieve the required climate control system in a particular greenhouse.

We have already discussed about the different climatic factors that affect the crop micro-climate. Now we will discuss the basic control mechanism of each and every climatic factors and the related technology that can be utilized for greenhouse.

Improved Varieties of Tuber Vegetables

A. POTATO

The basic philosophy of nutrient management should be to apply fertilizers at rates to ensure high fertilizer use efficiency so that the amount of unutilized fertilizers is reduced to environmentally acceptable levels. Leaching of nitrate into public drinking water supplies has become a national problem. There is no realistic alternative but to use increasing quantities of inorganic fertilizers for maintaining food supplies in order to feed the increasing population. Used properly, fertilizers can, in fact, lead to better environment because greater vegetative growth and higher crop yields leave large quantities of residues in the soil, thus reducing erosion; absorb more carbon dioxide, a major source of green house effect and lessen the need to bring marginal and forest land into cultivation. The declining or stagnating yield trend in India has been attributed to multiple nutrient deficiencies and imbalance of nutrients. Therefore, the most widely recognized alternative is integrated nutrient management (Trehan et al., 2008).

Soil test based fertilizers is the maintenance of soil fertility and plant nutrient supply to an optimum level for sustaining the desired productivity through optimization of the benefits from fertilizers, organic manures, green manures, bio-fertilizers, non-conventional sources and crop residues. Soil test based fertilizers  aims at maximization of the use efficiency and minimization of the avoidable losses of nutrients from all the sources such that triple objective of maximization of crop yields, sustenance of soil, water and air quality and improvement of socio-economic conditions of farming community is accomplished.

The association of weeds with field crops was started when ancient man started cultivating plants as crops commercially. However, type of weed flora went on shifting with the passage of time, due to changing climatic conditions, cropping pattern, agronomic practices, crop cultivars etc. When crops are cultivated invariably a variety of volunteer undesirable vegetation come up simultaneously which competes with the crop for all growth factors viz., nutrients, soil moisture light, space etc.

Definition of Weed

Weed is a plant that originates under a natural environment and in response to imposed and natural environments, evolved and continues to do so as an interfering associate with our desired plant and activities.

Weed is a plant growing out of place. They are unwanted not useful, persistent and prolific, effectively competing with the beneficial and desirable crop plants for space, nutrients, sunlight, and water, interfere with agricultural operations and thereby reducing the yield and quality of produce.

Weeds are unwanted and undeserved plants that interfere with the utilization of the land and water resources and thus adversely affect crop production and human welfare. Thus a plant out of its place or a plant growing where it is not desired is a weed. This definition was given by Buchholtz in 1967. E.g. Bajra is a weed in pulse, pulse is a weed in bajra, tomato is a weed in brinjal field. Weed is defined as the unwanted, undesirable plant growing out of their proper place which interfere with the utilization of natural resources, prolific, persistent, competitive, harmful and even poisonous in nature and can grow in adverse climatic conditions (Jethro Tull: Father of Weed Science).

Weediness: Weediness is defined as the state or condition of a field, flower beds, lawns and so forth in which there is an abundance of weeds.

Weeds are plants that are unwanted in a given situation and may be harmful, dangerous or economically detrimental. Weeds are a serious threat to primary production and biodiversity. They reduce farm and forest productivity, displace native species and contribute significantly to land and water degradation. The costs of weeds to the natural environment are also high, with weed invasion being ranked second only to habitat loss in causing biodiversity decline.

Introduction

Recent advances in food technology have made our lives virtually easier and efficient. Changing lifestyle has led to the emergence of packaged food that provides convenience to the consumers. The authentic packaging of food implements consumers with the role of communication, containment, convenience, and protection. Any typical food package provides us with the information about the product and its nutritional fact, thus an efficient way of marketing/ branding. It protects the food product from the external environment and adulteration, thus keeps it safe. It allows the consumers to relish the food as per their convenience (reheating and direct consumption) and holds the product of any size, shape and restrains during handling and transportation (Robertson, 2006).

Food packages can be altered or modified according to one’s requirement with features like single-serving dishes and portability. However, traditional packaging is lacking adequacy to meet unending consumer demands and product intricacies. Therefore, a contemporary concept of packaging with higher proficiency is needed to meet various consumer requirements. For instance, a packaging that can - enhance product’s shelf-life with lesser or no preservatives, that maintains freshness, that meets permissible regulatory requisites and enables tracking throughout the product life-cycle. Emerging technologies like smart packaging have the expertise to invigilate a product and its milieu and pursue any modifications into these. Moreover, smart packaging helps in gaining global market recognition, and meets international food safety standards. In recent years, there has been rapid development in food packaging that includes active packaging, intelligent packaging, or smart packaging. These are the technologies that deal with the packaging of food, beverages, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical products. Moreover, these terminologies are apparently identical but, each has a different function to deal with and is as follows:

A. Multiple Choice Questions

1. While studying the history of domestication of various cultivated plants were recognized earlier:
   1. Centers of origin
   2. Centers of domestication
   3. Centres of hybrid
   4. Centres of variation
2. The quickest method of plant breeding is:
   1. Mutation breeding
   2. Hybridization
   3. Selection
   4. Introduction

The fungi are present everywhere. They are in the soil and soil crust, in atmospheric air, in sea and pond water, rivers and water streams, and on the surfaces of almost all the material ,whether living or otherwise, on affected food stuff , vegetables and food grains, on body of human beings, animals, birds and fishes, on plant surfaces, on leathers and clothes in damp weather, on house walls and ceiling in damp conditions, on railway coaches and buses roofs having water leakage and dampness, in caves, on garbage and decomposing material etc. The fungal spores are present everywhere, however the fungal growth occurs where the congenial conditions for their growth is available.

Wheat also known as bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L. em. Thell, 2n = 6x = 42, family Poaceae formerly Gramineae or grass family, a self-pollinated crop), second only to rice as source of calorie has been grown on 218 million ha with production of 765 million tons globally during 2019-20. Top five countries, namely, China (135 million tons), India (103 million tons), Russia (77 million tons), USA (51 million tons) and Canada (34 million tons) account for 65% of the global production. Other major countries growing wheat are Ukraine (28 million tons), Pakistan (26 million tons), Australia (24 million tons), Argentina (21 million tons) and Turkey (18 million tons). Wheat is eaten by 2.5 billion people in 89 countries and distributed from Scandinavia to South America and across Asia. Global annual wheat trade is worth USD 50 billion.

Biological diagnostic methods rely on the transmission and amplification of the pathogen in indicator hosts that develop symptoms. These methods test the biological properties of pathogens and early successes in the control of intracellular pathogens were largely due to the diagnosis of the causal agents by biological tests. The sensitivity of biological/serological tests is usually determined by the minimum number of pathogen propagules required to initiate infection. Inoculation with fewer particles could lead to false negative results. Biological techniques for disease diagnosis and pathogen detection are usually highly accurate but too slow and not amenable to large-scale application. 

3.1 Introduction

A Massive increase in population, urbanization and industrialization have led to an increase in the quantity and composition of waste. The waste is increasing day by day and is estimated to reach up to 2.2 billion tonnes by 2025, according to the reports by World Bank. It becomes a necessity for every nation to fore look upon the waste management system for their respective countries. From the collection, segregation, transportation, disposal all have become an important criterion to deal with. Among the available disposal options; the easiest and environment friendly is “Recycling”. 

Pongamia pinnata or Mellettia pinnata or Pongamia glabra or Derris indica (2n=2x=22) is a tropical ever green fast growing leguminous tree, with glabrous, glossy and deciduous leaves. The tree is native to India and South Asia and also found in Oceania.

Sonograms of animals suffering from different diseases are presented along with other investigations as case studies to provide a comprehensive picture of the disease.

2.1 Introduction in Plant Breeding

A. Define/Explain the followings

1. Plant breeding: Plant breeding is defined as the art, science and technology of improving the genetic make-up of crop plants in relation to their economic use for mankind.

Q. 1 Which type of gully is formed on flat land?
(A) U-shaped  (B) V-shaped
(C) L-shaped   (D) T-shaped

Paeonia emodi Royle. (Paeoniaceae): Eng.- Himalayan Paeony; HindiUdsalap; Kash.- Mamekh [W]. A shurby perennial, found in W. Himalayas from Kashmir to Kumoan at 2400- 3300 m altitudes. Flowers yellowish white with a bunch of orange-yellow stamens.

1. Genus - Pythium (Type species - Pythium aphanidermatum)

‘Pythium’ is a large genus comprising of more than 200 species. Species of Pythium are either terrestrial or aquatic. They are found world wide and most of them are plant pathogens on many economically important cultivated crops, as well as wild plants. They are facultative saprophytes and can live saprophytically in the soil and plant debris for indefinite periods in the absence of suitable hosts. Pre-emergence and post-emergence damping off of seedlings of numerous angiospermic plants, root rot, rhizome rot and fruit rot are the most common diseases caused by species of Pythium.

Pythium debaryanum, Pythium aphanidermatum, Pythium myriotylum, Pythium indicum, Pythium vexans and Pythium graminicolum are some of the most important plant pathogens, that cause damping off, seed decay, soft rots and root rots of many economically important crops, such as chillies, eggplant, tobacco, tomato, castor, potato, ginger etc.

Life cycle of Pythium

The mycelium of the fungi consists of slender, hyaline, coenocytic hyphae. The hyphae grow both inter- and intra-cellularly. No haustoria are produced.

Digestion is the process by which food is converted into substances that can be absorbed and assimilated by a living organism. In most animals it is accomplished in the digestive tract by the mechanical and enzymatic breakdown of foods into simpler chemical compounds. Digestion usually consists of two elements: a mechanical/ physical stage, e.g. mastication, churning, emulsification, in which no chemical bonds are broken and no enzymes are required; and a chemical stage requiring enzymes in which complex food molecules are broken down by hydrolysis into a state in which they can be absorbed.

Pulses are edible seeds of the family Leguminosae, sub family papilionaceae, and are integral part of Indian diet. Indians consume 30 per cent of the world’s pulses, but domestic production of pulses has not kept pace with population growth. Pulses are called “poor man’s meat” as pulses are rich in protein, which is double the protein content of wheat and three times that of rice. Globally, 190 mha of pulses contributes to 5-7 mt of nitrogen in soils.

Pulse means

P = PEOPLE (major source of dietary protein)

U = UMBRELLA

L = LIVESTOCK (green nutritious fodder and feed)

S = SOIL (builder and restorer of soil fertility through biological nitrogen fixation and green manuring). E = ENERGY.

Vegetables are the largest important constituent of our daily diet as well as high value cash crops for small, marginal and large scale growers. These are rich in proteins, vitamins, minerals and dietary fibre which are essential for our normal body functions, prevention of malnutrition and deficiency diseases. Vegetables also play key role in neutralizing the acids produced during digestion of fatty foods and also provide valuable roughages which help in movement of food in intestine.

Small amplitude wave theory was based on the premise that motions are sufficiently small to allow the free surface boundary condition to be linearized. Finite amplitude wave theories or Stokes’ higher order theories are similar as per the concept in which additional higher order terms that were neglected in the Airy’s theory are included. In general, the higher the order of the wave theory, higher will be the limiting wave height for which it would be valid.

A few months back when Sharad Deshpande was talking about some processing tomatoes, I said that there is a lot of history behind processing tomatoes. He said then why don’t you speak on the subject and I said why not. So that is how this talk happened. First, I thought I will speak on breeding tomatoes as its history is even more interesting than what has happened later. I had heard a story when I went to USA for the first time in 1982. I was with Dr Charlie Rick, the father of tomato genetics, in his lab in USDA, UC, Davis, California. He talked about how the processing industry happened, who bred the types suitable for processing, how 80 percent of processing tomatoes of the USA came from California, where we are today and what could be done in this area.

Salt affected soils can be defined as the soils containing excess amount soluble salts in their profiles in a proportion that adversely affect to soil properties and ultimately on crop growth. The soluble salts present in these soils are composed primarily with calcium, magnesium and sodium as cationic and chlorides sulfates and carbonates as anionic constituents along with the presence of potassium, nitrate and others as minor quantities. All soils invariably contain some soluble salts, but they cause harmful effects on crop growth only when accumulates in excess amount in soil solution or increase their concentration in exchange complex of the soil. Based on the presence of sodium salts and the predominance of sodium in the exchange complex, salt affected soils are classified into main categories of 1) Saline soils – contain excess soluble sodium in soil solution with little or no sodium content in exchange complex, 2) Alkaline (Sodic) soils – contain appreciable quantity of sodium adsorbed in exchange complex of soil but may or may not contain soluble sodium salts in soil solution. These soils are also divided into following types –

Multipurpose trees and shrubs are defined as all woody perennials that are purposefully grown to provide more than one significant contribution to the production and/or service functions of a land-use system that they occupy. In agroforestry systems, different species of trees and shrubs can be planted with many types of crops in a variety of patterns. Thus, it is required to know about the methods of propagation and nursery raising, planting and other silvicultural management practices along with the diverse uses of multipurpose trees and shrubs of tropical and subtropical areas before their selection for forestry and agroforestry activities. It is important to select the most suitable tree species since it is not easy to replace them once they have been planted.

Soil and water are the basic resources in drylands. Soil supports plant life by providing a medium for their growth and development. It is a non-renewable natural resource and susceptible to rapid degradation through various forms of erosion processes. Worldwide, around 52% of total productive land has been degraded by various kinds of degradation processes and almost 80% of the terrestrial land is affected by water erosion .Further, annually ~10 million hectares (Mha) of cropland becomes an unproductive at the global level due to soil erosion with an average rate of 30 t ha−1 year−1 soil erosion .In India, out of 328 million hectares of geographical area, 68 million hectares are critically degraded while 107 million hectares are severely eroded. Soil degradation in India is estimated to be occurring on 147 million hectares (Mha) of land, including 94 Mha from water erosion, 16 Mha from acidification, 14 Mha from flooding, 9 Mha from wind erosion, 6 Mha from salinity, and 7 Mha from a combination of factors (Battacharya et al., 2015).

Dryland agriculture limits the crop growth to a part of the year due to lack of sufficient moisture (Peterson et al., 2006). According to the Fourth five-year plan of India, dry lands are defined as areas which receive rainfall ranging from 375 mm to 1125 mm and with very limited irrigation facilities. Dry lands are economically fragile regions which are highly vulnerable to environmental stress and shocks. Degraded soils with low water holding capacities along with multiple nutrient deficiencies and depleting ground water table contribute to low crop yields and further leading to land degradation. In a country like India, 44 per cent of the total food production is supported by dryland agriculture, thereby playing a critical role in nation’s food security. With the increasing population, food production has to be increased. A real need to second green revolution has been envisioned, which can be achieved by improving the dryland agriculture.

Marginal and sub marginal lands are being brought under cultivation to meet the demand of human and livestock in terms of rising demand of 6F viz., food, fodder, fuel wood, fibre and fertilizer. These in lands are unable to sustain productivity. Cultivation on such lands leads to imbalance in the ecosystem. In order to meet the above said demands and to conserve the natural resources, a diversified land use system needs to be adopted in different agro-ecological regions of the country as an alternative to conventional cropping systems. Through this approach, the biological productivity and quality of resource base of degraded lands can be significantly enhanced. Land use systems which are alternatives to crop production are called by the term ‘Alternate Land Use Systems’.

9.1 General

This chapter provides a comprehensive overview of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of biochar production, focusing on the environmental impacts of its production and utilization. LCA is a systematic approach used to evaluate the environmental burdens and benefits of a product or process throughout its entire life cycle. Biochar, a carbon-rich material derived from the pyrolysis or gasification of biomass such as agricultural crop residue, forest waste, unusual wood waste, etc., has gained significant attention as a potential sustainable solid waste management, carbon sequestration, greenhouse gas mitigation, and soil amendment solution. However, understanding the environmental implications of biochar production is crucial for its sustainable implementation. The LCA approach is employed to evaluate biochar production’s different system boundaries and environmental performance, encompassing various stages such as biomass feedstock cultivation, the biochar production process, transportation, application, and end-of-life scenarios. This chapter explores the key elements of LCA, examines the methodologies employed in biochar LCA studies, and critically analyzes the environmental impacts associated with different biochar production pathways.

Solid wastes, the unavoidable consequences of civilization, are the useless and unwanted heterogeneous solid materials discarded by human being. Human greed is the major factor in creation of unwanted solid wastes. With increase in human population and its demands, there is an increase in production of various types of wastes. When human being did not come to the earth there was very little wastes like tree leaves, animal excreta or dead parts which nature used to digest and produces something beautiful every time. Still there are certain remote areas free from wastes where human being could not reach due to inaccessible condition of terrain, forests and islands. Now–a-days wastes are found even in the top of Mt. Everest or in the interior of Antarctica.

• General considerations

 • Agglutination

 • Slide agglutination test

 • Tube agglutination test

 • Capillary tube agglutination test

 • Plate agglutination test

 • Hemagglutination test

 • Hemagglutination-inhibition test

 • Coagglutination test

• Nutritional diseases

 • Viral diseases

 • Prion, Mycoplasmal, Rickettsial, Chlamydial, Spirochaetal and Bacterial

diseases

 • Fungal diseases

 • Parasitic diseases

 • Toxic conditions

 • Miscellaneous conditions

A. Novel Dehydration Technologies

Dehydration, the process of removing moisture from food products, is crucial for enhancing shelf life, reducing weight and volume for transportation, and preserving nutritional value. Traditional dehydration methods, such as sun drying, air drying, and freeze drying, have been widely used for centuries. However, advancements in food technology have led to the development of novel dehydration technologies that offer improved efficiency, quality retention, and sustainability.1. Vacuum Microwave Dehydration

Vacuum microwave dehydration is a cutting-edge dehydration technique that combines the advantages of removing moisture from food products while preserving their color, flavor, texture, and nutritional content (fig 1).

In the context of a thesis, theoretical orientation refers to the conceptual or theoretical framework or perspective that informs and shapes the overall approach and analysis of the research (Natalie, 2022). It involves selecting and adopting a specific set of theories, concepts, or models that provide a foundation for understanding and interpreting the research topic. The theoretical orientation helps to guide the methodology, and provide a coherent framework for organizing and analysing the data.

Theoretical orientation in a thesis serves several purposes. It helps to establish a theoretical basis for the study, providing a context for the research and connecting it to existing knowledge and theories in the field. It also helps to guide the selection of appropriate research methods and data analysis techniques. The theoretical orientation shapes the overall structure and content of the thesis, ensuring that the study is grounded in relevant theories and concepts and contributes to the existing body of knowledge. By adopting a specific theoretical orientation, the researcher can provide a clear and systematic framework for understanding and interpreting the findings of the study. This orientation also helps to establish credibility and validity for the research, as it demonstrates the researcher’s awareness of and engagement with the existing theoretical perspectives in the field.

This chapter addresses crucial terminology and concepts essential for effectively communicating the ideas of the current study. It lays the groundwork for empirical investigation and aids in the selection of predictor variables. Additionally, this section involves a scholarly and theoretical exercise that influences the operational definition and content of the research. It combines conceptual inputs, axiomatic inputs, logical discussions, and the pursuit of knowledge to construct a theory that aligns with the research objectives and designs.

In the context of a thesis, theoretical orientation refers to the conceptual or theoretical framework or perspective that informs and shapes the overall approach and analysis of the research (Natalie, 2022). It involves selecting and adopting a specific set of theories, concepts, or models that provide a foundation for understanding and interpreting the research topic. The theoretical orientation helps to guide the methodology, and provide a coherent framework for organizing and analysing the data.

Theoretical orientation in a thesis serves several purposes. It helps to establish a theoretical basis for the study, providing a context for the research and connecting it to existing knowledge and theories in the field. It also helps to guide the selection of appropriate research methods and data analysis techniques. The theoretical orientation shapes the overall structure and content of the thesis, ensuring that the study is grounded in relevant theories and concepts and contributes to the existing body of knowledge. By adopting a specific theoretical orientation, the researcher can provide a clear and systematic framework for understanding and interpreting the findings of the study. This orientation also helps to establish credibility and validity for the research, as it demonstrates the researcher’s awareness of and engagement with the existing theoretical perspectives in the field.

This chapter addresses crucial terminology and concepts essential for effectively communicating the ideas of the current study. It lays the groundwork for empirical investigation and aids in the selection of predictor variables. Additionally, this section involves a scholarly and theoretical exercise that influences the operational definition and content of the research. It combines conceptual inputs, axiomatic inputs, logical discussions, and the pursuit of knowledge to construct a theory that aligns with the research objectives and designs.

Alimentary canal of an insect is a tubular structure passing through the body that provides the special internal environment for the food to be mechanically and chemically disintegrated and brought to the vicinity of absorbent cells. Hence, it is involved in the transport of nutrients to the individual cells. It is concerned with ingestion, trituration (chewing), digestion, absorption of nutrient material into haemolymph and egestion of unused food materials. It is tubular structure, which extends from mouth to the anus. It is divided into three distinct regions, namely fore-gut (stomodaeum), mid-gut (mesenteron) and hind-gut (proctodaeum). The fore- and hind-guts are ectodermal in origin and the mid-gut is endodermal.

Longitudinal and circular (intrinsic) muscles are usually associated with each of these three regions and by means peristaltic contractions move the food along the alimentary canal. The functional stomach is the mesenteron usually a circular valve-like fold separates the cavities between stomodaeum and mesenteron is known as stomodael or cardiac valve, and the one closing the entrance to the proctodaeum as the proctodaeum or pyloric valve.

Fore-gut

An insect’s mouth, located centrally at the base of the mouthparts, is a muscular valve (sphincter) that marks the “front” of the foregut. Food in the buccal cavity is sucked through the mouth opening and into the pharynx by contractile action of cibarial muscles. These muscles, located between the head capsule and the anterior wall of the pharynx, create suction by enlarging the volume of the pharynx (like opening a bellows). This “suction pump” mechanism is called the cibarial pump. It is especially well-developed in insects with piercing/sucking mouthparts.

Order: Diptera
Sub Order: Orthorrhapha
Series: Nematocera
Family: Ceratopogonidae
Genus: Culicoides
Species: Culicoides oxystoma, C. imicola 
Common name: Biting midges or Biting gnats or punkies or No see-ums.
Hosts: Animals and man 
Distribution: Worldwide 
Morphology of fly

1. Size is 1-3 mm in length. They are the smallest blood sucking flies. They can easily pass through mosquito nets.

Ring Porous

• having vessels more numerous and usually larger in cross section in the springwood with a resulting more or less distinct line between the springwood and the last season’s wood— compare diffuse-porous.

• In some species (e.g. Oak (Red Oak, White Oak) Teak and ash elm, hickory), the largest pores are in the earlywood while those in the latewood are more evenly distributed and uniform in size.

• These woods typically have distinct figures and patterns, and the uneven uptake of stain (the large pores soak up more colour) make the figure more pronounced.

• These are also known as open-grain woods

Semi-ring porous or Semi-diffuse porous

• In some species (e.g. Butternut, Black Cherry, Black Walnut, Pecan, Tanoak), pores are large in the earlywood and smaller toward the latewood, but without the distinct zoning seen in ring-porous woods.

• Also, some species that are usually ring-porous (e.g. Cottonwood) occasionally tend toward semi-ring porous.

A. History, Principles, and Scope of Biological Control

Biological Control

Biological control, defined as the use of living organisms to reduce the population of pest species, stands out as one of the most successful, cost effective, and environmentally friendly methods of pest management. This natural process is intrinsic to maintaining ecological balance and supporting the greenery of our planet by enabling plants to produce the necessary biomass to sustain diverse forms of life.

The Essence and Impact of Biological Control

Biological control is an omnipresent force in both natural and human-made ecosystems, constantly active without any human intervention. Its origins trace back over 500 million years with the evolution of the first ecosystems. The process involves naturally occurring reductions in pest populations, which historically, have allowed for the flourishing of plant life critical to the earth’s ecological systems. Without these biological control mechanisms, the amount of energy produced by plants would be a fraction of current levels, drastically reducing the earth’s capacity to support life.

Before trying to understand Hypothesis Testing and Experimental Designs, we should be conversant with the concept of Probability Distribution.

5.1 PROBABILITY DISTRIBUTIONS

Let us look at an example to grasp the essence of a probability distribution. Let us rotate a pair of dice and observe the sum by totalling the numbers that turn upon in both the dice. Let us call this sum by a random variable X. When the first dice shows up number 1, the second dice could show 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6. Likewise, when the first dice shows up number 2, the second dice could show 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6. If we continue the experiment this way until all the possibilities are exhausted, the sample space will contain 36 elements. The distribution that can be observed will contain a sum = 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, or 12. The starting sum will be = 2, because when both the dice show the number 1, the sum 1 + 1 = 2. Likewise, the maximum sum in the distribution will be 12, when both the dice show up a number 6. If we write the values of the random variable (sum) with associated probabilities, it is called a probability distribution.

Supply is the amount of a good or service sellers are willing to offer for sale at a specific price, in a specific market, over a specific time.
Stock vs. Supply
• Stock: All the milk a farmer has—say, 1,000L in tanks.
• Supply: What he sells—500L at Rs 50/L today. Supply is different from stock, as stock refers to the total quantity of a commodity that exists in the market, while supply is the quantity that is usually offered for sale at a particular price.
Law of Supply
The law of supply explains the functional relationship between the price of a good and its supply. When all other factors remain constant, an increase in price leads to an increase in supply. This means there is a direct proportional relationship between price and supply.
Exceptions
1. Land, rare goods, and labour supply in certain cases do not follow the law of supply.
2. The supply of rare goods cannot be changed with price fluctuations.

Food is a vital requirement for all living beings, as it provides the essential nutrients necessary for growth, development, and recovery. Humans depend on both plants and animals for nourishment, which we acquire through agricultural practices and animal farming. With the increasing global demand for food, crop yields have risen, which has led to a greater reliance on warehouses for grain storage. However, merely increasing food production is insufficient to combat hunger and malnutrition, as food security also heavily depends on ensuring that food is accessible to everyone. Crops, however, are exposed to various threats, such as pests, weeds, and diseases, which can drastically reduce yields if not managed adequately.
A significant issue is storage losses, which are driven by both biological elements (such as fungi, insects, and rodents) and environmental factors (such as unsuitable storage conditions or extreme temperatures). These losses result in various negative consequences, including:
• Reduced food quality
• Lower seed germination rates
• Loss of weight in crops
• Discolored produce
These problems can impede the marketing of harvested crops, leading to unsold goods and considerable losses for farmers and distributors.
To reduce these losses, it’s crucial to adopt proper measures like efficient treatments and continuous monitoring of storage conditions. Grains should be stored in environments that prevent deterioration. This can be achieved by ensuring thorough cleaning before storage, drying grains thoroughly (both under the sun and in the shade), and taking steps to control pests, including fumigation.

1.1. Introduction
The terms ‘counselling’ and ‘health promotion’ complement each other when it becomes a matter of an individual’s health. Health promotion is a part of behavioural social science that aims to change the systemic strategies adopted by the individual or group or by the mass community for the betterment of their health which can be achieved by talk therapy known as counselling. In the 21st century, from childhood to adulthood, all people are in a ‘rat race’ for their careers and necessities, which is one of the main reasons for stress generation. Not only that, chemical substances consumed by different food ingredients as food additives, preservatives, etc. but also induce oxidative stress and damage the functional activity of cells, tissues, organs, and systems. This ‘stress’ is a major culprit not only for the deterioration of physical health but also psychological health. Such stress imposition in daily life impairs normal physiological functions, skills, performance, and productivity. Unhealthy food, life, and work styles are also linked to the onset of pathophysiological complications that counselling and health promotion are required to overcome. Besides this, for sportsmen, pregnant women, lactating mothers, and growing children, nutritional counselling and health promotion are indisputable. For disease prevention and early recovery from disease, dietary counselling plays an immense role.
1.2. Counselling
Counselling is an intermittent, interpersonal interviewing process where the counsellor gives advice or suggestions to the client but never gives any direction. Counsellors assist the client in thinking, analysing, and acting to improve their insight power. The counsellor focuses on both the positive and negative sides of a particular event and allows the client to think and rethink its acceptability and unacceptability.

Policy influence requires credible evidence, a clear understanding of decision-making processes and communication tailored to relevant audiences. This chapter explains how extension research, programme experience and stakeholder knowledge can be converted into evidence for policy change. It discusses identifying policy problems, assessing alternatives, setting advocacy objectives, recognizing policy champions, building coalitions and selecting appropriate routes of influence. Policy briefs, research reports, dialogue platforms, advisory committees, social media and ICT-based communication are examined as practical tools. The chapter also reviews global extension-policy experiences, helping readers understand how institutional, political and socioeconomic contexts shape policy decisions and how evidence-based engagement can support effective agricultural reforms.

10.1 Different practices for different purposes

There are so many different practices used in erosion control that to describe them needs some form of grouping. For a long time mechanical protection was used to describe all the methods which involved earth moving, such as digging drains, building banks, levelling sloping land, and so on. Anything else was lumped together under biological methods for want of a better title.

This is appropriate for large mechanized farms where the approach is to use machines to do the earth-moving and follow up with improved farming methods. But this division does not suit the concept of erosion control through better land husbandry supported by mechanical protection, and the division is artificial when we start talking about progressive terracing using grass strips or live hedges.

An approach more suited to today’s thinking is to group methods and techniques according to their main objective. All have an element of saving soil loss, but an important difference is the handling of surface runoff. This chapter identifies three kinds of water management objective and two types of soil management on sloping land.

4H: An agricultural club for children that features hands-on learning

Abiota: The nonliving component of an ecosystem, including the soil, water,

and air.

Aborigines: The original or native inhabitants of a country or region.

Absorption Losses: Loss of water from a canal or a reservoir by capillary

action and percolation and in case of canal during the process of delivery.

Absorptive capacity: The maximum amount of waste that can be absorbed

by the environment.

Acclimation: Adaptation to changing or new conditions.

Acid precipitation: Rain, snow, fog, or dew containing sulfuric and nitric acids

produced by fossil fuel combustion.

Acid soil: A soil which is deficient in available bases, particularly Ca and which

give an acid reaction when tested by a standard method.

Acre foot water: The amount of water that would cover an area of land to a

depth of one foot assuming no seepage evaporation and run off.

Acre inch day: Term used principally in irrigated section of united state for

measuring quantity of flow of water. It is equal to a flow which will cover

one acre to a depth of one inch in a 24 hours period or 0.042 cubic feet per

second.

Acre inch: It is a measure of quantity of flow of water and is equal to the flow

which will cover one acre to a depth of one inch.

Acre: (43560 sq. ft) an area of land about 220 feet long and 198 feet wide.

Active solar heating: The use of solar panels to collect and concentrate the

sun’s energy for heating.

Adaptation: Biological modification that allows species to better exist in a

specific environment.

Additives: Chemicals added to food, often con- sidered to represent a threat

to human health.

Nematoda, a diverse animal phylum that comprises an estimated million species, inhabit very broad ranges of ecological niches throughout earth. These animals, ranging from microscopic to a meter in size, are extremely successful in adapting different environments and have different lifestyles as free-living or parasitic to plants, animals and humans. As a result, nematodes have evolved to communicate with a wide variety of organisms that they live and interact with, including microbes, plants, insects, other animals, and nematodes of the same and different species. These communications play a key role in the mutualism, parasitism, predatory and prey, host and pathogen relationships between nematodes and other organisms and are critical to the ecological fitness of nematodes (Hsueh et al., 2014)