eChapters

2.1. Solar energy

States like Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, and West Bengal have greater potential for tapping solar energy due to their location.

2.1.1. Advantages

Inexhaustible source of energy.

Environment friendly and inexpensive.

Variety of purposes like heating, drying, cooking and electricity.

3.1. Concept of farm mechanization

To apply the principles of engineering and technology to do the agricultural operations in a better way to increase crop yield.

Development, application and management of all mechanical aids for field operation, water control, material handling, storage and processing.

Mechanical aids include hand tools, animal drawn implements, power tillers, tractors, engines, electric motors, grain processing and hauling equipments.

4.1. Tractor

Self propelled power unit having wheels or tracks for operating agricultural implements and machines including trailers.

Tractor engine is used as a prime mover for active tools and stationary farm machinery through power-take off (pto) or belt pulley.

5.1. Farm machinery implements

5.1.1. Tillage

1.1. Livestock breeds

Denotes and established group of animals / birds having the similar general body shape, colour, structure and characters which produced offspring with same characters.

1.1. Cattle

1. Indigenous breeds

Milch: Sindhi, Sahiwal, Gir and Deoni

Dual: Hariana, Ongole, Tharparkar, Kankrej

Draught: Kangayam, Umblachery, Amritmahal, Hallikar

2.1. Breeds of poultry

1.1. Plant breeding

An art and science, deals with ways and means to change the genetic architecture of plants so as to attain a particular objective.

For ensuring food security, it is important to breed and develop new varieties that are high-yielding, pests diseases and drought resistant or regionally adapted to different environments and growing conditions.

2. 1. Plant domestication

Process of bringing wild species under human management.

2.1.1. Changes in plant species under domestication

Elimination or reduction in shattering of pods, spikes, etc.

Elimination of dormancy

Decrease in toxins of other undesirable substances. Eg. Bitter principle of cucurbits.

Cultivated plants show altered tillering, branching, leaf characters.

Decrease in plant height. Eg. Cereals and millets.

3.1. Selection

To isolate desirable plant types from a population.

3.1.1 Progeny test

Evaluation of growth of plants on the basis of performance of their progenies

Real value of plant could be known by studying the progeny.

4.1. Synthetic varieties

Produced by crossing in all combinations, a number of lines that combine well with each other.

5.1. Characteristics of asexually propagated crops

Majority of them are perennials

Many of them show reduced flowering and seed set.

Invariably cross pollinated.

Mostly polyploids.

Many species are inter specific hybrids.

Agriculture is the science and art of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization. The history of agriculture began thousands of years ago. After gathering wild grains began 105,000 years ago, nascent farmers began to plant them around 11,500 years ago. Pigs, sheep and cattle were domesticated over 10,000 years ago. Plants were independently cultivated in at least 11 regions of the world. Industrial agriculture based on large-scale monoculture in the twentieth century came to dominate agricultural output, though about 2 billion people still depended on subsistence agriculture. This chapter discusses about the agriculture and robotics in agricultural field.

1.1 Introduction to Agriculture

The word agriculture is derived from a Latin word- “agri” means soil, and “culture” means cultivation of the soil. In modern terms, agriculture comprises “the art and science of cultivating the soil, growing crops and rearing livestock.”

Farming is a complete system which includes inputs, processing, and outputs. The inputs are seeds, fertilizers, machinery, which undergoes operations like ploughing, sowing, irrigation, weeding, and harvesting. The final outputs are like crops, dairy and poultry products.

The Internet of things connects the devices over Internet. The devices can communicate with each other and can be monitored and controlled remotely. The IoT is a system with interrelated computing devices, digital and mechanical machines, objects, animals or people each with an unique identifiers (UIDs ). It has the ability to transfer data over a network without human intervention. The Internet of Things is simply a network with Internet connecting the objects to collect and exchange the data. This chapter covers the basics of Internet of Things and its components.

2.1 Characteristics of IoT

Internet of Things can be used to design products for businesses. The added value to the businesses over IoT is created by the information which is collected by connected devices. The process has five phases of lifecycle, first phase is ‘create phase’, where sensors collects the data from environment. This data can generate the information. Second is ‘communicate phase’ where data generated in first phase is communicated to the required destination. Third is ‘aggregate phase’ where collected data over network is aggregated by device itself. Fourth is ‘analyse phase’ where aggregated data is used to generate patterns and use it to control and optimize the process. Fifth is ‘act phase’ where actions are taken on the basis of information extracted from the aggregated data.

The characteristics of IoT may vary from one domain to other. Few characteristics are listed as follows-

This chapter describes the components to design the mobile platform. The UN estimates the world population will rise from 7.3 billion today to 9.7 billion in 2050. The world will need a lot more food, and farmers will face serious pressure to keep up with demand. Agricultural robots can be used to increase the production yields for farmers in various ways.

3.1 Role of Robots in Agriculture

A challenging problem in Mechanical Engineering and robotics is the design of a mobile robot. The robot must successfully traverse through its environment, including rough terrain, grass, hills, etc. For correct positioning of the robot, the wheels of the robot must have good traction and never lose contact with the ground. For improved manoeuvrability the robot must also be able to rotate around a centre point as close to its centre of mass as possible. All of these factors have been considered in the design of a second generation outdoor de- mining robot.

A rectangular frame for the robot allows the easier positioning and accessibility of parts within the robot, which is useful in the development phase. Having the wheels up front helps the robot drive onto a slope. A circular frame for the robot would allow the robot to rotate around its true centre, such a frame, with the wheel axle running along the diameter of the frame would need support at the front and back of the robot.

Sensor is a device which converts environmental parameters into electrical signals. In the broad definition, it is a device, module, machine, or subsystem which is designed to detect events or changes in the environment and send the information to other electronics components. An actuator is a component of a machine which is responsible for moving and controlling a system. A microcontroller is a small computer on a single metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) integrated circuit (IC) chip. This chapter explains the microcontroller development boards and their components along with the classifications of sensors and actuators.

4.1 Classification of Sensors

The sensors can be classified on the basis of different areas as follows-

i. Classification based on Application

Sensors are chosen on the basis of application where they need to be implemented like Industrial process control, measurement and automation, Automobiles, Consumer electronics, Aircraft, Medical products etc. As with change in application the selection criteria changes, so application needs to be considered.

Ornamental horticulture consists of floriculture and landscape horticulture. Each is concerned with growing and marketing of plants used to beautify the outdoor environment and with the associated activities of flower arrangements and landscape designs. Ornamental plants provide comfort and peace in our everyday lives. Floriculture is a dynamic, global, fast growing industry comprises of cultivation and trade of cut flowers, loose flowers, potted plants, foliage plants, dried flowers and value added products etc and is becoming popular in both domestic and export markets (Rikken, 2010). In the recent years, ornamental horticulture has emerged as a profitable agri-business in India due to improved living standards and growing consciousness among the citizens to live in environment friendly ambiance. Now-a- days this activity has assumed the commercial status with great potential for generating gainful self-employment among small and marginal farmers. Globalization of the Indian economy and subsequent liberalization of the Seed Act paved the way for the advent of protected cultivation of flowers in the country resulting in increase the production of quality floricultural products witnessing their presence in the international flower markets. The production and trade of floriculture has exhibited considerable increase consistently over the last decade in the country.

Flowers and ornamental plants have been associated with mankind since time immemorial, as they have been used for religious offerings and other social ceremonies. Loose flowers are mostly grown for worship, garland making and decoration. Cut flowers like rose, chrysanthemum, carnation, gerbera, anthurium, orchids and lily are mostly grown for export purposes. Some of the flowers are also edible with their nutritional value e.g. Dahlia tubers, lily, tapioca etc., mainly their roots are rich in starch and even dahlia roots are considered good to cure the cancer.

A garden is a place where ornamental plants are grown to put on display various forms of plant life which are purposely intended for ornamental or practical use or both. Now days we often use the term landscape gardening, Landscape architecture and Landscape design. Landscape gardening can be defined as arrangements of trees, shrubs, climbers and variety of other plants in concert with the building, walks, drives, artificial and natural features for the use of humanity while Landscape architecture is the art of arranging land and landscape for human use convenience and enjoyment. A good landscape design determines the characters of objectsto serve a certain purpose known in advance.

The subject garden planning is diverse and complex and very difficult to symbolize all ideas of wholeness. In modern living consciousness of interior decoration including furniture,woodwork,wall furnishing, carpets painting also needs careful setting and the services of specialist are considered necessary for this purpose. In order to achieve a rewarding result a garden should be designed carefully as it is semi-permanent feature and frequent change in design is not possible.

Principles of design steer designers to organize elements for a visually pleasant landscape. A melodious composition can be achieved through the principles of proportion, repetition, order and unity which are alllinked and application of one principle assists to achieve the others. By using these principles, two important concepts in garden design i.e. physical and psychological comfort can be achieved. Landscape that has order and repetition creates more psychologically comfortable feeling. Psychological comfort is also affected by the sense of satisfaction that a spectator perceives from a harmonious landscape. Users feel more physically comfortable and secure in a landscape with proportions compatible to human scale. Garden design combines the aesthetic beauty, artistic knowledge and at least the principles of gardening. In order to layout good garden some fundamental principles to be followed

Garden lover has to invent their own styles of gardening commensurate with their climate of site, budget and taste. Gardens fall under three categories when it comes to style - formal, informal and wild.

1. Formal style gardens

Formal style gardens are beautiful in the view and have been popular for thousands of years. Granted, it is not to everyone’s taste but it creates a certain magnificence and persistence that will probably have meaning and importance in garden design for many more years in the future. A formal garden is laid out in a symmetrical or a geometrical pattern. Symmetry is the main characteristic of this style of gardening. Geometrically designed landscapes with trimmed hedges, paired flower beds, straight line planting and equal length of the sides of the area are the main features of formal or symmetrical gardening. The formal design is stiff as all garden features in a straight and narrow way. In the formal design, the land is forced to fit in the plan. In this type, an axis is drawn in the centre of the garden which divide whole of the garden in two equal halves, one half being the exact replica of the other, for every feature, element or adornment. The outline of the whole garden as well as the outline of different parts like flower beds, paths, hedges and lawns are of geometrical shape. These shapes are normally square, rectangular,oval or circular.

The Persian gardens, Mughal gardens and Italian gardens were formal in design. Geometrical formalism also influenced the French and British gardens of the pre- Industrial Revolution.

Turf is an English word, which traces its origin to India from the Sanskrit word “Darbha” means “tuft of grass” or “Kusha” in hindi. Kusha has been mentioned numerous ties even in Hind mythologies (Turgeon, 1985). Turf, is a grass which is smooth, has quality texture and a soothing colour surface that is used in the golf courses, lawns, fields, nurseries, gardens, etc. Turf is a piece of earth of about 5 cm thickness with grass thickly grown over it. Turfgrass has become increasingly important in today’s society as people’s needs increase for recreation, comfort and aesthetics. Turfgrasses are considered as major component of landscape industry which provides aesthetic value. They provide arena for various functional, recreational and social activities.

Turfgrasses enhance the appearance of land and increase the utility of sports fields, lawns, parks, golf courses and other greenbelt areas in and around urban as well as sub urban centres. They improve the environment of urban centres by reducing erosion, temperatures, noise, dust and glare. And, turfgrasses improve the safety of sports fields and playgrounds by adding resiliency to the playing surface. Turfgrasses are increasingly being used by National Highway Authority of India for reducing dust pollution and decreasing vehicle glare by planting on central verge and sides. Only turfgrasses are used by airport authorities for planting besides runway. The grasses being of perennial nature also help in carbon sequestration thus helping combat climate change. The grasses which grow well on sandy soil will help to reduce the dust and control erosion and dust pollution on river banks.

The turfgrass industry is growing rapidly due to strong demand for residential and commercial property development, rising affluence, and the environmental and aesthetic benefits of turfgrass in the urban landscape. Increased area under aesthetic and utility turfs is mainly because of increasing awareness about the sports, degrading environment and the increase in real estate value. The economic value of the turfgrass industry in India is yet to be determined as there is no single government agency handling or collecting the authentic data on turfgrass cover, use or import. All the agencies dealing with turfgrasses are either private companies, nurseries or corporates. But, according to the scarce data gathered by golf associations, sports experts and Association of Indian Nurserymen, turfgrass industry covers an area of more than 30000 acres, in which around 6000 acre is under turfgrass cultivation (sod production). States leading in turfgrass cultivation and marketing are Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Maharashtra, etc. The total number of international cricket grounds in India are 50 and 8 are under construction, more than 520 domestic cricket grounds and athletic fields are also in operation. Indian turfgrass industry is growing around 10 per cent annually. Landscape business contributes 2-3 per cent of total construction and turf has 50 per cent of landscape business.

Annual flowers are a cluster of herbaceous plants which grow from seeds, produce flowers, set seeds and complete their life-cycle within one year or one season. They offer a gorgeous display of colours within the garden. Whether it is a small homemade garden or a giant public garden, it is incomplete without beds of annual flowers. They enhance the ornamental value of a garden within a small span of time. At their blooming time, one feels elated when rainbows of colours appearin the garden.

Classification of Annuals

Flowering annuals are grown in beds and pots. They’re used for several purposes in the garden. In beds, they are grown individually with or without perennial plants in borders. They are developed in hanging baskets, window boxes or rock gardens, for training on walls and trellises and for planting in the form of edges, borders or ground covers. Dried flowers of some annuals are similarly used for interior decoration. Some annuals provide sweet fragrance.

1. Based on season: the annual flowers are divided into 3 groups—winter, summer and rainy season.

Shrubs are defined as woody, semi woody or herbaceous perennial plants, branches arises from the base of the plants and grow up to height of about 0.5 to 4.0 meters. These plants are commonly erect and bushy. Most of the shrubs are very hardy, require little attention and grow in all types of soils. Although some plants flower almost throughout the year, in most cases it is seasonal and selection can be made in such a way that some plants in the shrubbery will be in bloom in different seasion of the year. Shrub flowers regularly every year and produce flowers of almost all the important colors white, light yellow, golden pink, scarlet, crimson, violet, blue, and some are sweet scented.

In gardens, shrubs are usually planted in three ways:

(1) In the form of shrubbery, on the long strip of land where taller shrubs are grown at the back with medium height in middle and dwarf once at the fronts. Colors of flowers and time of flowering are also considered so that shrubbery remains colorful throughout year with bloom and foliage.

(2) In small garden or to break monotony of open space shrubs are often grown in groups and in this case few plants of the same variety or of different species are selected.

(3) Shrubs are also grown as a specimen plant or in only one row along the border of the garden or a wall.

Shrubs are used in gardens for decorative purposes as these shrubs are found more in ornamental and provide a variety of interests. They are evergreen and best against noise and dust. Any perennial woody, perpetual and thick plant of relatively low height that branches into a few stems or trunks arising from the ground base is known as shrub. They are littler than a tree but taller than herbaceous plants. They are also called as bushes when they are much-branched and dense. They grow upwards up to 0.5-4.0meter and may be flowering and ornamental. Shrubs play important role in permanent landscaping i.e. formal decoration which contributes pattern, colour, fragrance and utility. They may be either evergreen or deciduous in nature. Some shrubs have attractive foliage, flowers and attractive berries. Shrubs are planted as borders on the sides of paths and at the corners of lawn in a curving line. Shrubs are used for back ground, boundary wall, screen, shade, wind breaks and foundation planting. Hence, knowledge on the form, growth habit and habitat is essential to select the shrubs for planting. Shrubs are important part of landscaping or landscape designing is an art of modifying the overall appearance of a given piece of land using different ornamental plants. It is an artificial process. A garden or national and international playgrounds are the example of artificially landscaped area. Ornamental plants are a group of different flowering, foliage and stylish plants. These plants are used for the beautification of selected part of a site or other places.

Climbers are the group of ornamental plants which possess weak stem and climb up the support with the help of certain modified organs to reach the top and receive sunlight and air. Climbers enhance the beauty of any garden provided they are selected carefully depending upon the availability of space and the orientation of the building. The growth habit, mass effect of foliage and diverse flower colour give charming appearance to the climbers for their characteristics.

Ornamental climbers are commonly used to train on suitable supports such as arches, pergola, trellis, along the walls and trees. These are most suited in congested regions prone to scarcity of space especially in urban environment.

Trees are amazing nature’s creations that are not only important for mankind but also sustain ecological balance in nature. They are the source of livelihood and provide valuable raw material for manufacture of household utility products. They are important from spiritual aspect and have been exhaustively described in ancient Indian texts with their significant Ayurvedic and other potential health benefits. Botanically a “tree.” is a large, long-lived (perennial) woody plant that attains a height of at least 6 m (20 ft) at maturity. A tree possess certain characteristic features such as a trunk (single main self-supporting stem) which gives off spreading branches, twigs and foliage to make a crown. Since the diameter at breast height (dbh) of trees is determined internationally at 1.35 m (4.5 ft) above the ground, a tree must be un-branched at least up to 1.5 m (5 ft) from the ground.

Growing foliage and flowering potted plants in the home is a great way to develop an intimacy with the nature. Caring and attending the plants gives us immense pleasure and satisfaction, especially retiring after day long working schedule. Now a days, wide variety of houseplants are available that can accommodate almost any indoor location in terms of available space, light and management factors. Research carried at National Aeronautical Space Agency (NASA) has shown that having plants in the home or office, especially in a closed air-conditioned environment, can be good for your health and well-being.

Our indoor environment

It is surprising to know that our comfort zone environment may have 2-5 times the pollution levels than outside air. Although, the magnitude may vary and could potentially reach 100 times depending upon the size of building, occupants, provision of ventilation, volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) emitted from upholstery and paints. The quality of outside air also determine the indoor air quality that may get mixed-up resulting in elevating the levels of carbon-dioxide (CO₂) and other harmful gases beyond the permissible limit. It has been revealed that the indoor CO₂ levels are substantially higher (3-5 times) than those recorded outdoor. The CO₂ being a narcotic cause drowsiness and loss of concentration leading to decline in performance and productivity of employed staff. This sudden upsurge in CO₂ and other toxic gases evolved from the volatile compounds from paints likely raise the Air Quality Index (AQI) that affects the health and working efficiency of building occupants.

It has been scientifically proved that the equipments installed for ventilating closed environment of residential or commercial buildings are not efficient in removing gases and thereby, to some extent filter only the particulate matter (PM). As per the prescribed standards of World Health Organization (WHO) and American society of heating, refrigeration and air conditioning engineers, the maximum permissible limit for indoor CO₂ is 1000 ppm. The term “Sick Building Syndrome” (SBS) is a very common disorder associated now a dayswith the people working in closed environments, especially that lack ventilation. When the CO₂ levels reach 1500 ppm, symptoms such as sore throat, nasal flow and cough are quite commonly observed among the people, thus affecting their general health and well being. Poor indoor air quality has been a major factor linked to SBS, reducing productivity of employees and also cause impaired learning in children in schools.

Cactaceae family comprises of perennial shrubs or trees characterized with the presence of spines which arise from specialized axillary meristems (areoles), which in some taxa may also bear fine barbed hairs called glochids. A large family consisting of about 124 genera and 1,427 species. It is native to North and South America and widely distributed from Canada to Chile. Nowadays they are found growing in many countries like Australia, South Africa, and Mediterranean countries. They are highly adaptable to drier regions because of their characteristic leaflessness nature. Since cacti are succulent in nature that’s the reason that all cacti are succulents but all succulents are not cacti. Cacti conserve water by two means, first presence of cuticle which prevents water loss and second it is CAM (Crassulacean Acid Metabolism) plant where stomata opens at night and close during day time therefore prevents water loss.

Bonsai is an astonishing art-form, combining horticultural approaches and Asian aesthetics in a distinct way, which reflects the nature’s beauty (Pietraszko and Sobota 2008). The art of bonsai is considered to be originated in Chinese empire (Doyle et al., 2019) and was later adapted by the Japanese, where it has become the integral part of their culture (Ching 1990, Roth 2014). The word ‘Bonsai’ is derived from two Japanese words ‘Bon’ (Shallow pan) and ‘Sai’(plant) which literally means “planted in a container”. The Chinese started creating miniature landscapes in the form of Bonsai during Han Dynasty over 2000 years ago. During the Kamakura period (700 years ago) the Japanese adopted the bonsai art-form and subsequently a different Japanese style form came into existence. This art of bonsai was further redeveloped under the influence of Japanese Zen Buddhism (Doyle et al. 2019).

A bonsai is a nature’s replication of plant in its miniature form, without depicting the human interference too clearly. Thus, they are normal trees and shrubs which are dwarfed by a specific system of pruning-training-wiring. Techniques such as pinching buds, pruning and wiring branches, and carefully restricting but not abandoning fertilizers are used to limit and redirect healthy growth in bonsai. They are different from the pot plants which are mainly grown for either their foliage or floral beauty, but in case of bonsai the whole artistic look of the plant in its miniature form is maintained for years. Bonsai can be grown both outdoors and indoors, especially they are ideal for display in living rooms, verandas, terraces and window-sills etc. The good bonsai specimens are usually hardy species that can be kept outdoors the year round wherever winters are mild. They can be brought into the house occasionally for appreciation and enjoyment. In Japan, they are customarily displayed in a recess area or on small tables in a living room and later returned to their outdoor bonsai stands.

Rose (Rosa x hybrida L.) is the most beautiful creations of nature and is commonly known as queen of flowers. It occupies first position in the international trade. Rose is known for its beauty and is used in worship, bouquets, cut and loose flowers, preserves, garlands, decorations, landscaping, etc. It has gained wide acceptability due to varied growth habits, beautiful shape, dissimilarity in size and form, attractive colour, pleasant fragrance and abundant varieties. These can fulfill the requirement of climbers, trees, hedges shrubs, and edges in the landscape gardening. Commercial products of rose such as rose water, rose attar, gulroghan, gulkand, rose dry petals, rose oil, etc play a vital role in international and national market. Rose hips are one of the imperative sources of Vitamin C and are used for preparation of rose tea. With the ever-increasing demand of novel varieties in the world trade, a large number of varieties are being bred every year with many novel traits. Its share is around 51 per cent of the whole of European markets. In India, 29.41 thousand ha area, producing 301.95 thousand MT is under rose cultivation in the states of West Bengal, Karnataka, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra (NHB database, 2017). Cultivation of rose such as Rosa damascena, R. bourboniana, R. centifolia is also done for essential oil extraction from rose petals.

Origin and Taxonomy

Rose belongs to the family Rosaceae. The genus is divided into four sub genera of which sub genus Rosa includes nearly all the species (Gudin, 2000). The sub genus Rosa is further divided into different sections of which the actual number is arguable. There are about 100 to 300 species in rose based on various reports. The rose genome is complex consisting of five haploid chromosome sets each made of seven chromosomes. (Nybom et al., 2005). The chromosome number of wild species varies from 2n = 2x=14 to 2n= 8x=56, with most of the species being diploid or tetraploid (Nybom et al, 2005). Rosa x hybrida L. is not a species in botanical terms, however, is a highly complex artificial species (Gudin, 2003) that may be used to describe the modern rose cultivars.

Carnation (Dianthus caryophyllus L.) is one amongst the commercially important cut flowers traded worldwide. The genus Dianthus has about 300 species of annual, biennial and perennial herbs of which Dianthus caryophyllus is the most important species commercially. The genus Dianthus in Greek means ‘Flower of Zeus’ or ‘Divine Flower’. Linnaeus chose the species name, caryophyllus, after the genus of Clove, as the fragrance from carnation is reminiscent of clove. It is genetically a quantitative long day plant based on its photoperiod requirement (Blake, 1955). The Dianthus species are adapted to the cooler Alpine regions of Europe and Asia and are also found in Mediterranean coastal regions. Carnations were the first flowers to be cultivated on commercial scale in high altitude areas of tropics for export to Europe and North America.

It is cultivated throughout the world. The largest growing areas of carnation are in Bogota and Colombia. Carnation is also grown in Italy, Spain, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Canary Islands, France, Holland, Germany, Israel and USA. In India, main production areas are located around Pune and Bangalore. It is also being grown in Solan, Shimla, Mandi, Kullu, Chamba, Sirmour, Bilaspur and Hamirpur districts of Himachal Pradesh. As per the State Department of Horticulture - Himachal Pradesh, carnation occupied 44.07 hectares out of 705.77 hectare total area under floriculture in the state during 2018-19. The acreage of carnation is still expected to increase because of the favourable climatic conditions for its cultivation in different parts of Himachal Pradesh and other hilly states of the country.

In India, depending upon the regions, there is a wide difference in temperature, light intensity and humidity which not only affect the yield and quality of the flowers but also limit their availability for a particular period of the year. To produce quality flowers, carnation needs to be grown under cover, that is, in greenhouse which provides the plants with the optimum condition of light, temperature, humidity and carbon dioxide for proper growth and to achieve maximum yield of best quality flowers. Though, there are different types of the greenhouses, naturally ventilated polyhouses are preferred in mild climate in which temperature is reduced by ventilation (Ryagi et al., 2007).

Chrysanthemum takes its name derived from the Greek word chryos meaning gold and anthos meaning a flower, as many species have yellow flower heads. The genus Chrysanthemum belongs to family Asteraceae. It is herbaceous perennial plant. The genus comprises some 200 species of annuals, perennials and shrubs from northern temperate zone (chiefly Europe and Asia), whereas some researchers claim it was originated only from China. Though botanists have retained only the annual species under the genus Chrysanthemum (Beckett, 1983; Dole and Wilkins, 1999).

Annual chrysanthemums which are propagated through seeds. Annual chrysanthemum comprise ofthree species viz, Chrysanthemum segtum (corn marigold), Chrysanthemum carinatum (tricoloured chrysanthemum) and Chrysanthemum coronarium (crown daisy or garland chrysanthemum). The crown daisy or garland chrysanthemum (C. coronarium) is a native from Southern Europe, branching annual with finely cut foliage reaching a height up to a metre, size of flowers varies from 2.5 to 4 cm and colour is usually in shades of yellow and white with cream zone at the center (Vishnu Swarup, 1967).

Importance and Uses

Chrysanthemum is the number one dollar earning flower in the United States and cultivars suitable for growing throughout the year have been evolved there. The members of National Chrysanthemum Society run into thousands in several countries. It ranks second (next to rose) in the international cut flower trade. In India, it occupies a place of pride both as a commercial flower, garden plant, pot plant and as a popular exhibition flower.

Large number of chrysanthemum cultivars which exhibit wide variation for characters like growth habit, size, colour and shape of blooms makes chrysanthemum suitable for varied purpose. Its erect and tall growing cultivars are suitable for background planting in borders and as cut- flowers. The dwarf and compact growing ones are suitable for front row planting or pot culture. The decorative and fluffy bloomed small flowered cultivars are ideal for preparation of garland and hair decoration. The extra large- bloomed cultivars are prized for their exhibition value. Certain species like Chrysanthemum cinerariifolium and Chrysanthemum coccineum are cultivated as sources of pyrethrum, a natural insecticide.

Gerbera (Gerbera jamesonii Bolus), commonly known as Transvaal Daisy, Barberton Daisy or African Daisy, belongs to the family Asteraceae is one of the most important cut flowers in domestic as well as global market. It ranks sixth among the top ten cut flowers. Gerbera can successfully be grown in the plains as well as in the hills. In India, its cultivation is confined mostly to Kalimpong, Bangalore and Pune. The flowers are known for long vase life (Chauhan, 2005) and good rehydration capacity suitable for long distant transportation. It is a diploid species with somatic chromosome number 50 (n=25).

Importance and Uses

Gerbera is very fashionable and widely used as a decorative garden flower and cut flower (Kanwar and Kumar, 2008). It is ideal for garden decoration as a bedding plant, pot plant and suitable for growing in rock gardens. It is also used in interior decoration in vases, flower arrangements and in bouquets.

Gerbera viridifolia is referred as ‘the herb of milk’ in the eastern Cape and is probably used to stimulate milk production in cattle (Dold and Cocks, 2002).

Orchid is a valuable flowering plant belongs to family Orchidaceae. It is considered that the family recognise for maximum number species ranged between17,000 and 35,000 worldwide (Garay 1960; Willis 1973). The word orchid is derived from a Greek word orchis for testicle because of the shape of the root tubers in some species of genus Orchis. India is a reservoir of 1300 orchid species from 184 genera, accounts for nearly 7 per cent of worlds orchids genetic diversity (Arora, 1983; Rampal and Nagrare, 2006) and 1150 species belonging to 164 genera (Satish Kumar and Manilal, 1994) of which about 800 species are found in the North Eastern region of the country (Nagaraju et al., 2006). Apart from species, more than one lakh hybrids developed in orchids. It is found all over the world from tropical to temperate and even alpine region. People always think that orchids are epiphytic only but it is not. It can grow in soil as terrestrial, on tree trunk (epiphytic) and on dead organic matter (saprophytes) and on rocks (lithophytes). Orchids produce unique flowers, affluent for their uniqueness in shape, size and colour, exquisitely attractive; remain fresh condition for long period of time in comparison to other flowers. Vase life of its flowers varied among species and hybrids ranged up to 40-45 days. Orchids are cultivated for trade of orchid species, cut-flowers, potted plants, flower basket, bouquet, stage decoration in high profile meets and functions and also used in many other value-added products (Kuehnle 2007). Many orchid species are used as food like Cymbidium hookerianum, Dendrobium chrysotoxum, D. kingianum, D. cathenatum and many more (Singh et al., 2016), spices (Vanilla planifolia and V. pompona) and medicinal uses (Dactylorhiza hatagirea, Flickingeria macraei, Vanda tessellata and Dendrobium macraei as reported by Ram Pal et al., 2020). The most popular and commercially cultivated genera are: Cymbidium, Dendrobium, Oncidium, Phalaenopsis, Vanda, Paphiopedilum, Mokara, Arundina, Paphiopedilum, Ascocenda and Cattleya in the country and even in the world.

Anthurium is commonly known as anthurium/tail flower/oilcloth flower (Anthurium andraeanum) and flamingo flower/flame plant (Anthurium scherzerianum). The word anthurium is derived from two Greek words viz, anthos meaning flower and aura meaning tail, referring to the spadix. Anthurium plants were growing undisturbed for hundreds of centuries in the rainforests of South America. Samuel Damon, a businessman and politician in the Kingdom of Hawaii brought one species out of hundreds of species of anthurium to Hawaii in 1889 for cultivation in his garden. The plants were introduced by various people in their gardens from Samuel Damon’s garden. It is a tropical ornamental plant valued for its flowers and unusually attractive foliage. In India, it is grown commercially in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Sikkim, West Bengal, Meghalaya and Maharashtra. In India, total anthurium flower production is 3230 tonnes with Assam producing highest anthurium production of 2050 tonnes followed by Meghalaya 740 tonnes (Seemanthini and Chandrashekar, 2018). Major markets in the world for per capita consumption of anthurium flowers are Europe (47.80%), United States of America (21.80%) and Japan (16.80%) (Misra and Misra, 2017). In anthurium, various ploidy levels exist like diploid (Anthurium andraeanum and A. hookeri), triploid (A. scandens) and tetraploid (A. digitatum and A. wallisii). Basic chromosome number varies in different species of Anthurium. Most of the Anthurium species have 2n = 30 chromosomes while in some polyploids, it is 2n = 60. However, a few species have 2n = 20 to 124 chromosomes (Petersen, 1989). In Anthurium andraeanum, somatic chromosome number has been found as 2n = 30 + 2B and this species has high percentage of meiotic abnormalities and karyotype differences suggesting its hybrid origin. Anthurium plants need medium care and reach up to a height of 45-50 cm bearing pale white to yellow coloured flowers with orange to red coloured bracts.

Gladiolus, commonly known as ‘Sword lily’ which derives its name from latin word Gladius meaning sword shape foliage. The name gladiolus was originally given by Pliny the Elder (A.D.23-79). It is an important florist crop, cut flower in the domestic and international flower trade. It is relatively easy to grow, suitable for cut flower, pots, hanging basket, bedding and exhibition. An engrossing cut spikes bear a large number of florets on rachis, which exhibit various sizes, forms, with smooth, ruffled, deeply crinkled or laciniated tepals. As a genus it was first proposed by Tournefort and which was accepted in botanical litreture by Linnaeus through his description “Species Plantarum” in 1753 and “Genera Planterum” in 1754. The gladioli are said to be cultivated since the days of ancient Greece. The genus Gladiolus, at present comprises with 255 species (Mishra et al.,1995; Goldblatt and Manning,1998) with wide distribution occurs in Central Europe, Mediterranean region, Central and South Africa are primary centre of origin. Campbell and Bower (2003) mentions about one more species Gladiolus scabridus- a new species 1978 from the mountains of northern Kwa Zulu- Natal and southern Swaziland, restricted to well- drained rocky habitat and where it is endemic. This species has enormous commercial potential have large number of pink flowers. So now number of recorded gladiolus species are more than 260. The gladiolus was brought into cultivation first during Greek period. Gladiolus has been documented in literature since 1578, as evidenced from the record Lyte’s Nievve herbal. This was first time introduced in France and soon after spread to England, Germany, Holland and North America. In India, its cultivation dates back to 19^th century as mentioned in the ‘Firminger’s Manual of Gardening in India (1863)’ that Mr. Charles Gray of Conoor grew some gladioli from corms and seeds at his garden. The European Union gladiolus importing countries are Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, Denmark, Spain, France, United Kingdom, The Netherlands, Italy and Portugal.

Botanically aster belongs to the family Asteraceae and scientifically known as Callistephus chinesnsis which is basically native to China aster and annual aster. It is native to China and Japan and it is cultivated worldwide as cut flower, loose flower, bedding plant, for flower decoration and for making floral ornaments. It can easily cultivate in the open fields and green houses for the production of cut-flowers. The genus Callistephus derives from two Greek words that is ‘Kalistos’ and ‘Stephos’ meaning ‘most beautiful’ and ‘a crown’, respectively. The name Aster comes from the Ancient Greek word acx^p (aster),, meaning “star”;, referring to the shape of the flower head (Janakiram, 2006).Among various flowering annuals, China aster is having an important position in Indian floriculture industry. It holds the position next to chrysanthemum and marigold among the traditional flowers. In fact, it has widely replaced an already grown annual Chrysanthemum up to greater extent in Indian floriculture industry.

This flower is most preferred for wide cultivation by virtue of its wide variation in attractive color and longer vase life. It is also very much used for beautification in landscape gardening which create mass effect. In India it is cultivated in about 1,020 ha with a production of flower 800 million tonnes. It is commercially cultivated in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Maharashtra. In Karnataka it account for 6 % of the total area and 8.8 % of the total flower production.

Tuberose is an important half-hardy, perennial bulbous flowering plant. It belongs to the Amaryllidaceae family and having basic chromosome number (n=30). It is one of the important cut flower among the top ten cut flowers due to its beauty, elegance and sweet pleasant fragrance (Sadhu and Bose, 1973). It is cultivated for its long lasting spike as cut flower as well as loose flower purpose. Tuberose also known as Rajanigandha in Bengali, Gulchari and Galshabbo in Hindi, Sukandaraji and Nelasanpengi in Telegu, Nilasompangi in Tamil and Sugandharaja in Kannada. It is suitable under protected cultivation as well as open field condition (Brundell and Steenstra 1985). It has a huge economic potential and more demand for cut-flower purpose (Usman, 2013) and essential oil industry (Singh, 1995). Due to its immense export potential, cultivation of tuberose is gaining momentum day by day in our country.

Origin and distribution

Tuberose is cultivated all over the world and it is originated from Mexico. Tuberose is commercially producing in various countries such as India, China, Bangladesh, Mexico, Kenya, Italy, France, Morocco, USA, Hawaii and South Africa. In India, it is commercial growing in West Bengal, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and North Eastern part of India. At present scenery tuberose is cultivation in India 7. 95 lakh hectare and cut flowers is estimated to be 27.71 ‘000 MT and loose flowers1560.70 lakh (Anonymous, 2013).

Zingiberales is an important order in Kingdom Plantae with eight families in which most of them are important as far as commercial horticulture is concerned. The order includes fruits (bananas and plantains), spices (ginger, turmeric, cardamom), medicinal (arrowroot, galangal) and ornamental (Heliconias, Bird of Paradise, Marantas, Canna, Costus, etc) plants. Among the ornamental zingiberales, plants of Strelitziaceae and Heliconiaceae are gaining popularity for its aesthetic preferences and marketable cut flowers. The unique colour and enhanced vase life of inflorescences makes them as flowers of choice. The plants of other families such as Marantaceae, Cannaceae, Costaceae, Zingiberaceae, Lowiaceae and Musaceae are also gaining momentum in floriculture business for their cut foliages and inflorescences. Some plants such as calathias are admired as potted plants and for indoor gardening.

Dahlia (Dahlia variabilis Desf., family: Asteraceae, origin: Mexico) is regarded as a premium specialty cut flower besides its utilization for garden decoration and growing as a potted flowering plant. The dahlia flower symbolizes elegance, inner strength, creativity and dignity. It is herbaceous rooted perennial valued for their majestic and attractive display of colourful spectacular flowers. The generic name “Dahlia” was coined by Swedish botanist “Andreas Dahl”. Dahlia was introduced in India during 1857 under the auspices of the “Agri-Horticultural Society of India”, Calcutta. Dahlia exhibit wide range of flower from and size ranging from miniatures (less than 2.5 cm across), to giant (more than 40 cm in diameter). Dahlia flowers profusely and its easy cultivation have made these very popular worldwide. The commercial value of this crop has been exploited in certain countries only. The Netherlands is claimed to be the largest producer of tuberous rooted dahlias. Other countries cultivating Dahlia as a specialty cut flower are Japan, France, South Africa, the U. K., Italy, Germany and the United States. The commercial cultivation of dahlia in Indian subcontinent is limited to hills and plains of Eastern India (Misra and Misra, 2017).

Holland takes the lead in dahlia bulb production cultivation neeary 400 ha, followed by France and Chile. There are 41 international associations concerned with the cultivation and spreading awareness about dahlia as a potential specialty cut flower and flowering potted perennial. Societies such as National Dahlia Society in the UK, the American Dahlia Society (ADS), other groups of New Zealand in European countries, France and Germany have been maintaining Dahlia germplasm for developing novel flower colour and breeding dahlias for their uniform and profuse flowering, longer flower duration, stem sturdiness and longer vase life.

Lily is one of the most beautiful and popular ornamental bulbous flowers. They belong to the genus Lilium of the family Liliaceae, which comprises of 110 species classified into seven taxonomic sections: Lilium, Pseudolirium, Martagon, Sinomartagon, Archelirion, Leucolirion and Oxypetalum. All species are distributed over the mountainous area in the Northern Hemisphere (10° to 60°), mainly in Asia, North America and Europe. Especially, China, Nepal, Korea and Japan are the major centres of lilium gene pool around the world. Being second amongst the bulbous flower crops in the commercial market, Lilium has 4^th position among cut flowers in Flora Holland (Flora Holland Annual Report 2017). In the language of flowers lily is known as symbol of purity and innocence. Majority of cultivated lilies are either hybrids or selections. A large number of species and hybrids can be used in ornamental gardens even though the lily requires little more attention than any other bulbs. Many species of lily (L. leichtlinii, L. lancifolium, Lilium candidum and L. auratum) are also edible and having medicinal value.

Importance and uses

Lilies are one of the most important bulbous ornamental plants with varies uses, grown in border, beds, pots, landscape gardens and are excellent cut flowers of magnificent appearance and beautiful flowers. Roman naturalist and writer, Plinius, recorded that salves and oils were prepared from leaves and flowers of the Madonna lily, or L. candidium. Some species are also known for medicinal and food values, which increased its economic importance many folds. The mucilaginous substance coming out from the bulbs while cooking is used as an ointment for tumours, ulcers and inflammations. The plant was really more of a miniature household pharmacy. Different compounds have been reported in this genus, such as carbohydrates, proteins, fats, amino acids, vitamins, alkaloids, phenolics, flavonoids, carotenoids, sterols, steroidal saponins, and steroidal glycoalkaloids. Alkaloids, steroidal saponins, flavonoids and polysaccharides have been isolated from L. lancifolium and L. brownii var. colchesteri bulbs. Flowers of Lilium candidium contain an alkaloid. Extract of Lilium polyphyllum bulb has been used as refrigerant, expectorant, aphrodisiac, diuretic, antipyretic and tonic (Warrier et al., 1997; Dhyani, 2007). In the customary system of medicine, this species reported to restore health immediately and works as antioxidant in the body. Lily oil is an aid in childbirth. The white lily was also renowned as a cosmetic.

Statice, botanically known as Limoniumis very highly demanded ornamental plant. It is also known as ‘Sea Lavender’ owing to its color and place of growth. The genus name Limonium is from Greek name ‘leimon’ which translates to origin ‘a meadow’, most suitable as many species are found growing near marshy lands or salty areas of sea shore. The statice plants have very wide adaptability and can be seen growing under a wide range soil and climatic conditions like sea shores, marshy lands, deserts and plains etc. Statice figures in top 20 cut flowers sold worldwide but information on its trade, volume, export-import and number of stems sold etc. is not available. The reason for this may be attributed to classification systems, data collection categories and frequently changing nature of the assortments in the international flower market. Comprehensive trade statistics are difficult to locate for Statice. However, Statice figured in top 10 imported products in the Netherlands way back during 2013, 2014 and 2015. Though it is presently not among the top 10 flowers category, still it enjoys the immense popularity among the growers owing to its ease in cultivation and other characteristics. It is cultivated as annual as well as perennial crop, as different species have been domesticated for this purpose.

Jasmines constitute a group of traditional flower crops which are commercially grown for their fragrant flowers and essential oil production. There are trailing, climbing, and erect growing species and cultivars in the genus Jasminum. The genus Jasminum comprises of more than 200 species which are known to occur in different tropical and subtropical regions of the world. The countries growing Jasmines on a commercial scale are India, France, Italy, Morocco, Algeria, North Africa, Egypt and Spain. More than 80 Jasminum species are found in India, of which only four species viz., Jasminum sambac (Mogra / Gundumalli), Jasminum auriculatum (Jui / Mullai), Jasminum multiflorum syn Jasminum pubescens (Kunda / Kakda) and Jasminum grandiflorum (Jai / Pitchi) are widely used for commercial cultivation. Jasmines are commercially grown in many parts of the country as a dry land crop. The leading states in jasmine production are South Indian states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. In India, the commercial cultivation of jasmines are popular in Athoor, Coimbatore, Dharampuri, Dindigul, Erode, Krishnagiri, Madurai, Nilakottai, Periakulam, Salem, Thiruchirapalli, Thirunelveli, Thiruvallur, Tirumanagalam, Vellore, Virudhunagar etc. in Tamil Nadu; Bangalore, Bellary, Kolar, Mysore, Shimoga, Tumkur etc. in Karnataka ; Hyderabad, Khammam, Mahbubnagar, Mancherial, Ranga Reddy, Sangareddy, Vikarabad, Warangal Rural, Yadadri etc. in Telangana; Anantapur, Chittoor, Cuddapah, East Godavari, Guntur, Krishna, Kurnool, Nellore, Prakasam, West Godavari etc. in Andhra Pradesh; Ahmednagar, Aurangabad, Pune, Sangli etc. in Maharashtra; Ahmedabad, Anand, Bharuch, Bhavnagar, Kutch, Vadodara etc. in Gujarat; Gazipur, Jaunpur, Kannauj etc. in Uttar Pradesh; Ajmer, Jaipur, Kota, Udaipur etc. in Rajasthan; Panskura Ranaghat etc. in West Bengal; Guwahati, Hoja, Jorhat etc. in Assam ; and parts of Punjab and Delhi. Jasmines contributes markedly to the national economy and it is estimated that annually more than 20 crores worth of jasmine flowers are produced and traded in India and are also exported to countries like Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, UAE and United States (Safeena et al., 2017).

Marigold (Tagetes spp.) is an important annual flower crop; native to Central and South America especially Mexico and belongs to family Asteraceae (Compositae). It is commonly known as “Gainda” in India and also called as “Friendship Flower” in United States of America. Loose flowers of marigold are in great demand throughout the year. It is commercially grown in tropical and subtropical regions of India owing to its ease in cultivation, hardy nature, wider adaptability and year round availability of single, semi-double and double flowers of vibrant colours. Marigold is grown over an area of about 66.09 thousand hectares with production of 603.18 thousand MT loose flowers in India. Major states involved in loose flower production of marigold are Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Haryana and Chhattisgarh. In India, Assam is the only state, which produces marigold for both cut as well as loose flower purpose on an area of about 0.61 thousand hectare (Anonymous, 2016a).

Marigold is a cross-pollinated flower crop and it is pollinated by insects (Kaneko et al., 1990). It bears terminal and solitary inflorescence, known as head or capitulum, which possesses long and hollow peduncle with swollen apex and campanulate involucres (Setshogo, 2005). Capitulum consists of peripheral ray florets and central disc florets. Ray florets are pistillate, ligulate, sessile, epigynous and zygomorphic, whereas, disc florets are bisexual, tubular, sessile, epigynous and actinomorphic (Subrahmanyam, 1996 & Setshogo, 2005).

African marigold (Tagetes erecta L.) is a diploid species (2n = 2x = 24), while, French marigold (Tagetes patula L.) is a tetraploid species (2n = 4x = 48) with basic chromosome no. of x = 12 as revealed by breeding work of various researchers (Towner, 1961, Chen and Lin, 1981, Chen and Lin, 1982, Serrato-Cruz et al. 2000, Zhang et al., 2011). Tagetes erecta and Tagetes tenuifolia are diploid species, whereas, Tagetes patula, Tagetes minuta, Tagetes biflora and Tagetes remotiflora species are tetraploid in nature (De, 2017). On the basis of floral morphology; three different types of male sterile systems i.e. apetaloid, petaloid and gynomonoecious types was observed in African marigold (Prakash et al., 2016). Out of these, apetalous male sterility (femina type) is more reliable and preferred over petalous male sterility because later is more prone to break down (Goldsmith, 1968 & Janakiram, 2004). Apetaloid male sterility was controlled by single recessive gene (Prakash et al., 2016). A monogenic recessive male sterile apetalous mutant was detected from T. erecta population by Khoshoo (1979). Cyto-genetic male sterility is also found in marigold (De, 2017). Petaloid and gynomonoecious male sterile systems were controlled by cytoplasmic inheritance (Prakash et al., 2016). In marigold, cytoplasmic genetic male sterile lines were also developed for commercial production of F_l sterile hybrids (Pratibha et al., 2000).

Lotus being a national flower of India, is closely associated with religion and culture. It is a perennial, aquatic crop that is grown and consumed throughout Asia. The edible parts of lotus are Leaves, flowers, seeds and rhizomes, and the flowers are also used in religious ceremonies. Lotus flowers are also, used for extraction of perfumes. It is one of the oldest plants in the world Archaeologists in China found Lotus seeds with estimated ages of 5,000 years in 1972 in Yunnan Provincelagoons.

During the pre-historic period, the South India Dravidians used lotus flowers (pundarika) as their food, much earlier than the people of the Indus Valley civilization (3000-2000 BC). However, there is no evidence of lotus being present during the Indus Valley culture of the Mohenjo Daro and Harappa period in northern India. The Rigveda reference that lotus was made by the Aryans (2000-1500 BC) wherein it is also mention that lotus can be used as food. Subsequently, lotus was mentioned in the Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, Slokas, plays and other ancient Sanskrit literature. The lotus symbol is not only mentioned in the scriptures of Hinduism but it also occurs in the Buddhist and Jainism literature.

In the Arthasastra (350-300 BC) by Kautilya, the great diplomat during the golden age of Chandra Gupta, it is recorded that one of the varieties of sandal wood possesses the fragrance of lotus. The Mughal kings were also attracted towards the beauty of lotus. While describing Agra, the Mughal king Jehangir (1605-1627 AD) in his memories Tuzuk-i-Jehangiri, mentioned a memorable scene of a tank full of exquisite red lotus flowers, the like of which he had not seen before.

Floriculture is a high value industry. It is increasingly regarded as a feasible diversification option from traditional field crops due to increased per unit returns and increasing habit of ‘Greeting with Flowers’ during all the occasions. With increasing awareness among consumers and pressure from the artificial floral products on the fresh flower industry, and continued competition even amongst the growers, whole salers and retailers, quality is becoming increasi ngly important. The aspects related to visual quality of the product are the main determining indices of consumer’s acceptability of flowers.

The important flower crops in the international market are rose, carnation, lisianthus, chrysanthemum, gerbera, hydrangea, gladiolus, gypsophila, bird of paradise, orchids, anthurium, tulip and lilies etc. Cut flowers have the highest economic value and are the most perishable. Their high respiration rates, rapid deterioration, and susceptibility to damage require the utmost care during postharvest handling for quality maintenance. The post-harvest losses can be both, quantitative as well as qualitative, which ultimately result in loss in terms of its monetary value.

Floriculture industry is facing main problem due to highly perishable nature of its flowers which demand for appropriate post-harvest handling techniques to maintain the quality. With changing scenario in international floriculture trade, perfection in post-harvest technology is mandatory to offer quality plant products to the consumers round the year. The post-harvest life of cut flowers and flowering pot plants can be extended relatively by a range of treatments and technologies. Quality factors that influence the post- harvest keeping quality and flower longevity are environmental factors as well as the influence of the pathogenic organisms. Due to perishable nature of cut flowers, huge post-harvest loss is there which ranges from 30-50 per cent. Qualitative losses which include consumer acceptability of fresh produce are much more difficult to measure than quantitative losses. Quantitative losses can occur during the entire post-harvest and marketing chain due to lack of proper post harvest handling (Bhattacharjee, 2006). These losses could be on a higher side, which might be due to lack of knowledge on ‘post-harvest handling’ of cut flowers and proper infrastructure for post-harvest management and storage. However, all these losses can only be minimized by proper technique of harvesting, post-harvest handling, packaging, storage, marketing and value addition of flowers.

Flowers and various parts of the plant have been used for decoration and to commemorate various religious, festive, matrimonial and social gathering events in day to day life. The main drawback of fresh flowers and foliage is being highly perishable and delicate which cannot retain their beauty for longer durations. Moreover fresh flowers are not available round the year which can be overcome by the dehydration and drying techniques. Since ancient times, in Egyptian pyramids, fragrant dried flowers and herb garlands were encased along with mummified bodies. Japanese people created “Oshibana”, the “preserved flower art” of enduring designs to retain the exquisite beauty of the living plants centuries ago.

Later on, this craft making technique spread from Japanese to Victorian England because of their beautiful long lasting appearance. During middle ages monks dried flowers, foliage, and herbs for use in decorative motifs or for colouring their handprinted books.

Dried flower arrangements have been popular in Europe for centuries, and as early as 1700 AD, colonial Americans used dried flowers to brighten their homes, especially during the dark winter months.

Earlier botanists practiced dried flowers in the form of herbarium for the purpose of identification of various plant species. Though drying of flower was well known even in the past but for the first time the flowers were dried commercially in Germany (Sankari and Anand, 2014).

Floriculture has flourished with a considerable growth and a useful crop diversification option, particularly for small farmers over the past three decades. The commercial production of the cut greens has started in India in recent years and has huge demand in the market. They are suited for year round production with low investment and less care and maintenance. Cut greens or fillers are an important component of the floricultural industry and their commercial value depends on vegetative characters, such as stem length, leaf colour, density and side branching. Cut foliages (leaves and stems), which are attractive in form, colour and freshness, are lasting and in great demand. They have various other uses in making attractive fresh floral designs and floral arrangements, such as bouquets, wreaths, decoration of house interiors, etc. Evergreen plants with green, silver or variegated leaves are usually used and species with berries are now also becoming popular. Fillers are critical components in most arrangements as the flowers themselves,used to increase the volume and size of the bunch and provide colour contrast. These floral produce have various other uses in making attractive fresh floral designs and floral arrangements, such as bouquets, wreaths, decoration of house interiors, etc. Colour, freshness, stem length, freedom from pests, fragrance and vase life are important quality aspects of fillers. In the International market, fillers accounts for about 16 percent of the total trade by volume with an annual turnover of more than Rs 800 crores including selling of ornamental leaves, filler flowers, dry and dyed flowers along with berries and capsules. On the contrary, fillers representvery less quantum with poor quality in the domestic market and are unsuitable for cut flower bouquets. Their share in the market is very low and fetches nominal rates.

Flower arrangement is the art of using plant materials and flowers to create an eyecatching and balanced composition or display. Among all art forms, flower arrangements today take as prominent a place. The art engages ones personal involvement in welcoming guests and bringing cheer to the surroundings. It is rightly said, “Flowers are the music of the ground. From earth’s lips spoken without sound. “Professionally designed floral designs, arrangements or artwork incorporate the elements of floral design: line, form, space, texture, and color, and the principles of floral design: balance, proportion, rhythm, contrast, harmony, and unity.

Composition of Arrangements

There are a few compositions of flower arranging that should be considered. Once we understand these we can create so many different styles and our floral designs will have that professional look.

All higher plants have some kinds of aroma or flavor in their various parts, which includes roots, stems, leaves, flowers and fruits. This flavor and aroma in a particular plant part due to the presence of some specific essential oils present in special glands in it (Chadha and Choudhury, 1989). Essential oils arethe concentrated liquid, which is highly concentrated and water insoluble liquid (hydrophobic) and it is also known as ethereal or volatile oils, which are fragrant oily liquid that are extracted from the various parts of the plants. Generally they are organic compounds like hydrocarbons likealcohols, aldehydes, esters, ketones and phenols. An essential oil is “essential” in case that it contains the essence of the different fragrance, and the properties of the plants from which they are derived. All though all ornamental plants have some aroma but only few of them are used commercially in perfumes, flavor and cosmetic industries. The essential oil demand by fragrance industry is 60%, flavour industry 20% and pharmaceutical industry 20%. In all the perfumes, rose oil is one of the best and costliest perfume. The first recorded reference of rose perfume is in CharakSanghita. The credit for discovery of rose perfume was given to Queen Noor Jehan mentioned in the book written by Md. Achem of King Jahangir’s regime.

The volatile oils showed the different kinds of biological activities including the antibacterial, antioxidant, antiviral, insecticidal, etc. These oils are also used for cancer treatment, while some other has been used for the food preservations, aromatherapy, and in the perfumery industries. Thus, in the day to day life a large spectrum of usage the essential oil and aroma industry has a bright future. Yet the known applications of essential oilsare opening up ofmore areas which will benefit the industry.

1.1 Weather Parameters

The atmosphere is a gaseous component surrounding the earth as an integral part and its interaction with ocean (water bodies), other planets of the solar system and land (Earth) generates one physical product namely weather elements (temperature, pressure, wind, humidity, precipitation, etc.,) and these form the weather and climate of the Earth. The process of generation of weather and climate of the region is purely natural and cannot be modified by the human being. But they can do adaptation to the existing climate and weather for their sustainable life. The weather can be defined as day to day change in the atmosphere in terms of heat and moisture exchange, while the climate is average of long period weather covering larger area or a region.

The particular climate of a region dictates/permits the genesis of a particular bio-organism in that domain and this selected organism’s growth and multiplication are triggered by the prevailing weather of that particular climate. Hence weather parameters of the atmosphere are very important to human being and other organisms of the Earth. The details on weather elements are given in question and answer section of this book (Annexure-I)

The climate, the past weather event that existed over larger region and covering long years of more than 30 years is very important for the emergence and successful sustenance of an organism including human kind. Normally scientists talk about environment and this includes not only the soils but also the climate of the particular region. Based on this, during 1989, the Planning Commission of India divided the entire India in to 15 agro-climatic zones based on physiography and climate. This division is only for planning purposes. Subsequently under NARP, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), New Delhi in consultation with the Planning Commission, requested all State Agricultural Universities (SAU) to divide their State in to different sub climatic zones considering soils, temperature and other weather parameters preciously with in the major agroclimatic zone of India in which the concerned State falls. Accordingly, each SAU has divided their State into different agro-climatic sub-zones and this resulted in 129 agro-climatic sub zones in India and limited to 127 and these all fall within 15 agro climatic zones of India as done by the Planning Commission of India.

The National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning (NBSS&LUP), Nagpur not satisfied with this division, considering soils, temperature, rainfall, vegetation and all factors responsible for ecosystem (bio-climate, length of growing period, moisture index) divided the whole India in to 20 agro-eco regions by 1992 and revised preciously again by 2015 (Mandal et al., 2016) and the revised approach is being considered as scientific tool and taken for micro-level planning in India now and those are discussed at this chapter.

The subject on micrometeorology deals with small scale meteorology of near ground surface with its related elements of both physical and biological processes. When this micrometeorology is integrated for crop production purposes, then it becomes crop micrometeorology, which is very important in the science of agricultural climatology. This crop micrometeorology gets varied with the architecture of the crops grown, available soil moisture, agronomical practices followed, soil texture, topography of the area, the nature of climate and weather that prevails etc. The soil surface heat, exerts a profound frictional effect on wind movements and hence it is different from the air layers at higher levels. These special features constitute the microclimate, which is modified compared to a flat bare surface by factors like topography, nature of soil surface, presence of vegetation and type of vegetative cover. The presence of crop canopy leads to distinct differences in the thermal and humidity regimes of the soil, the air layers immediately above it and the distribution of radiation and wind profiles inside the canopy. The study on the physical exchanges of the transfer of heat, momentum and moisture in the microclimatic region is called as micrometeorology (Venkataraman and Krishnan, 1992).

Radha Krishna Murthy (2002) reported that the micrometeorology is the micro scale of both the physical and meteorological factors that are taking place within the ecosphere. The ecosphere means the area between just above the crop canopy and just below the root zone of a crop. Further he was on the opinion that the microclimate of valley is important as compared to the entire climate of the mountain for the bio-life of valley. For the crops purpose, the microclimate is the climate of the ground surface to top of the crop canopy or otherwise it can be called as crop’s climate, a modified one from the Stevenson’s Screen climate/weather observation.