eChapters

Practically every aspect of the chemistry of heavy metals in soil is related to the formation of complexes with organic matter. While monovalent cations (Na+, K+, etc.) are held mainly by simple cation exchange through the formation of salts with COOH groups (RCOONa, RCOOK), multivalent cations (Cu²+, Zn²+, Mn²+, etc.) form coordinate linkages with organic molecules.

A schematic diagram showing organic matter reactions involving metal ions in soils is given in Fig. 9.1. The metals present in the solution phase as charged species and as soluble metal-organic complexes (MChe), are shown to be influenced by the activities of higher plants and microbes, both of which serve as sources of water-soluble ligands for complex formation; some metals are held in insoluble organic complexes and are non-leachable and relatively unavailable to plants.

Understanding the mechanisms controlling the adsorption of organic molecules on clay minerals is of significance in many branches of science and industry. The interaction between clay minerals and organic compounds elicits interest that emanates from the prospect that the adsorption of the organic matter fraction in the soil on the mineral particles would render physical stability to soil aggregates.

Organic compounds tend to interact with clay minerals by:

• adsorption process at the external surfaces
• adsorption process at the external and internal surfaces

Extensive studies have shown that much of the humified material in soil is finely bound to colloidal clay. However, it is uncertain to what proportion of the clay surface in any given soil is coated by organic substances as this will depend on the organic matter content and the type and amount of clay.

The ways in which organic substances are retained in soil are as follows:

1. As insoluble polymeric complexes of humic and fulvic acids.
2. As polymeric complexes of humic and fulvic acids bound together by di- and trivalent cations such as Ca²+, Fe³+ and Al³+.

It is well known that organic matter plays a unique role in the binding of pesticides in soil, and that this phenomenon is usually the most important cause for interaction of pesticides in the soil environment. Fulvic or humic acids are most commonly associated with the binding interactions. Binding can take place with either the original pesticide or a transformation product, the reaction being induced by abiotic or biotic agents (microbial or plant enzymes). The reactions or processes involved are apparently the same as those responsible for the formation of humic substances, i.e., for the humification process.

Humic substances are the most widely-present, natural, complexing ligands occurring in nature. They are found not only in soils, but in natural waters, sewage, compost heaps, marine and lake sediments, peat bogs, carbonaceous shales, coals and other miscellaneous deposits.

The fate of natural organic matter, especially humic substances, has over recent decades attracted increasing attention of scientists representing various disciplines. Humic substances constitute about 25% of the total organic carbon on the earth. These are a group of naturally occurring complex molecular structures into which biomolecules derived from plant and animal residues are transformed progressively through biotic and abiotic pathways, by aggregation and accumulation processes

The nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR) has led to major advances in the studies on the nature and chemical composition of soil organic matter. The technique has the potential for characterizing organic matter in the intact soil and its size fractions without the need for extraction and fractionation. Furthermore, it can provide information on the compositional changes in crop residues, peat and litter of the forest soils during biodegradation and humification.

Quite a large number of vegetable crops are grown in the country either on a commercial scale or limited to backyards of homesteads. A few crops have similarity while others have dissimilarity in their climatic and soil requirements, parts used, method of cultivation etc. While describing individual vegetables, there is possibility of repetition in many aspects. In order to avoid repetition, it is essential to classify or group them into different classes/groups. Different methods of classification followed in vegetables are described below:

I. Botanical classification

Botanical classification is based on taxonomical relationship among different vegetables. Plant kingdom is divided into four viz. Thallophyta, Bryophyta, Pteridophyta and Spermatophyta. All vegetables belong to Division Angiospermae of Spermatophyta. It is further divided and two classes viz., Monocotylydoneae and Dicotylydoneae.

2.1. Origin and distribution

• Queen of spices, native to East Indies/ India, originating in the forests of the Western Ghats in Southern India.

• Also grows in Sri Lanka, Guatemala, Indo China and Tanzania.

• Cultivated in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

2.2. Economic importance

• Used for flavouring various preparations of food, confectionery, beverages and liquors.

• Used as whole pod, seeds or ground.

• Used in garam masala

• Spice mixture seasons meat and vegetable dishes, and masala chai and Turkish coffee.

• Antioxidant and diuretic properties

• May lower blood pressure.

• May contain cancer-fighting compounds.

• May protect from chronic diseases due to anti-inflammatory effects.

• May help with digestive problems including ulcers.

.1. Origin and distribution

• Native of South and South East Asia, from there it is spread to Indonesia, China, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Pacific Islands

6.2. Economic importance

• Used as condiments.

• Rhizomes are boiled in water, dried, ground into a deep orange yellow powder and used as a colouring and flavoring agent in many Asian cuisines, especially for curries, as well as for dyeing.

• Has a warm, bitter, black pepper like flavor and earthy, mustard like aroma.

• Yellow color is due to curcumin (3-9%)

• Anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties

• Protect against heart disease

• May prevent cancer

• Ease symptoms of osteoarthritis

• Treat or prevent diabetes

• Treating depression

5.1. Origin and distribution

• Indigenous tree of tropical rainforest of Amazon basin of Brazil and introduced in Asia in 1876

• Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Africa are the main rubber producing countries.

5.2. Economic importance

• Natural rubber is available from Manihot glaziovii (Cera rubber), Ficus elastica (India rubber), Castiolla elastica (Panama rubber), Parthenium argenatum (Guayul), Taraxacum koksaghyz and Hevea brasiliensis (Para rubber).

• Hevea brasiliensis is the most important commercial source of natural rubber.

• After proper chemical treatment, rubber wood provides enough strength and durability of any semi-hard wood available in India

• U sed for the manufacture of useful articles like door and window components, furniture, wall paneling, interior decoration, tool handles etc.

6.1. Origin and distribution

• Native of America and Brazil.

• Introduced in India during later half of the Sixteenth Century.

• In 2017, Vietnam, India, and Ivory Coast were the major producers.

• Cultivated in Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal; also in few pockets of Assam, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura.

• Cashew is called gold mine of waste lands.

6.2. Economic importance

8.1. Packaging

• One of the important steps in long and complicated j oumey from grower to consumer.

• Bags, crates, hampers, baskets, cartons, bulk bins, and palletized containers are convenient containers for handling, transporting, and marketing fresh produces.

8.2. Packaging points

• Recyclability / Biodegradability

• Variety

• Sales appeal

• Shelflife

• Containment

• Protection

• Identification

? To provide information on produce name, brand, size, grade, variety, net weight, count, grower, shipper, and country of origin.

? Universal Product Codes (UPC or bar codes) is included as part of labelling.

? UPC is used in food industry which consists of a ten digit machine readable code.

Horticulture is of immense importance for human beings. Among these major ones are nutritional importance, economic importance, medicinal values, environmental balance, aesthetic value and recreation. These are as follows.

1. Nutritional importance: Healthy body maintains a healthy mind. Human body requires vitamins, minerals, proteins, energy, fibers, etc. for its health. Fruits and vegetables are the chief sources of proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals, organic acids, fibers, etc. Consumption of fruits and vegetables keeps the human body away from several illnessess and hence are recognized as protective foods; necessary for the maintenance of human health. As per the Indian Council of Medical Research; consumption of at least 120 g of fruits and 280-300 g of vegetables per day per capita is essential. Among vegetables, 80-100 g of leafy vegetables, 100-125 g of tubers as energy source and reamaining as other vegetables. However, the consumption of fruits per capita in India is still low. In countries like Italy, France and USA; the daily fruit consumption is 308, 232 and 223 g respectively. 

The system of planting to be adopted is selected after considering the slope of land, planting density, purpose of utilizing the orchard space, convenience, etc. Traditionally, six systems of planting are recommended for fruit trees. However, with the popularity of high density planting, there are some advances inplanting, especially in fruit crops.

1. Square system: This system is considered to be the simplest of all planting systems and adopted widely. In this system, the plot is divided into number of squares as per plant spacing and trees are planted at the four corners of each square, in straight rows running at right angle. Under this system, intercultural operations, spraying, harvesting, etc. can be done conveniently and easily. Cultivation and irrigation can be done in two directions. In this system, plant to plant and row to row distance is the same. e.g. 5x5m, 4x4m, 10x10m, etc.

   While laying out the plot, a base line is first drawn parallel to the road, fence or adjacent orchard at a distance equal to half the spacing to be maintained between the trees. Wooden pegs are fixed on this line at the desired distance. At both the ends of the baseline, right angles are drawn by following the simple carpenter’s 3,4,5 meter system. After the formation of three lines, it is easy to fix all the other pages to mark the tree locations at the required spacing by using ropes connecting the pages of the lines in opposite directions.

   Area occupied per plant = row to row distance X plant to plant distance

Water is one of the most vital components for the successful growth and development of crops. It influences most of the plant metabolic activities, namely photosynthesis, respiration, absorption, translocation utilization of mineral nutrients, etc. Its stress or in excess affects the growth and development of a plant directly and consequently its yield and quality.

Role of water: Water plays an important role in plant growth and development in many ways.

• It is the chief constituent of protoplasm.
• It provides aqueous medium for various biochemical (metabolic) reactions.
• It serves as a temperature stabilizer and helps in maintaining a stable metabolic rate.
• It is an essential input for photosynthesis.
• It helps to maintain turgidity of cells and plant organs.
• It is an excellent solvent for various organic materials of cells.

Potting and repotting is an essential practice to be done in a nursery to maintain the expected vigour of the plant. When a seedling from a seedbed or plant from a flat bed or raised bed is planted in a pot, it is called potting. The same term is utilized when the bulbs of bulbous plants are planted in a pot. When a plant is transferred from one pot to another pot, it is called repotting. At the time of repotting the plants may be planted in a large pot or in the same sized pot. Repotting is necessary when

1. Plant is grown for a season or a year in the same pot and becomes pot bound resulting in extensive growth of roots in rooting media and there is very little scope for further fresh growth.
2. When a plant is overgrown and requires separation or division.
3. When soil gets depleted of its nutrients.
4. Repotting affords an opportunity to the roots to form a new root growth, as repotted soil contains sufficient amounts of nutrients and good aeration.

It is not just enough to produce fruit and ornamental plants in a nursery, but it is also very much important to consider the post production management practices like harvesting, packing, storage and marketing of nursery plants for successful industry.

Harvesting: Harvesting is one of the important factors considered, when nurserymen are producing seeds, bulbs, etc. The seeds or bulbs should be harvested at proper maturity stages depending on the plant species.

Seeds are generally harvested when they are fully ripe. In some of the annuals and perennials, seeds are likely to fall from the plant at ripening either due to bursting of the fruit/ capsule or due to wind. (calendula, balsam). In such cases, it is better to cover with muslin cloth or butter paper bags. Bulbs, corms and tubers are carefully dug out without injury, along with cormels or bulblets.

Packaging: The package should provide a convenient mode used for marketing and distribution. It protects the contents from undue damage during distribution. It is important that appropriate packaging should be used to preserve quality of material along with maximum survival during transit. Proper packaging of plant material (fruit plants/ ornamental plants/seeds) ensures quality during storage, distribution and transport.

The term bio-fertilizer is related with such microorganisms that they add, conserve and mobilize the plant nutrients in the soil. Excessive use of nonrenewable exhaustive petroleum product based chemicals in horticultural production system has residual effect on soil, environment and human health. Use of biofertilizers is ecofriendly, cost effective and organic based inputs such as botanical pesticides, FYM, vermicompost, biogas slurry, disease and pest resistant varieties in cultivation of horticultural crops for safeguarding soil health and quality production.

Biofertilizers are microorganisms, which are capable of mobilizing nutrients from unavailable form to available form through biological process. They are not only cost effective but also inexpensive source of plant nutrients. They do not require non-renewable source of energy during their production. Besides, improving crop growth and quality of the product by producing plant hormones and help in sustainable crop production through maintenance of soil productivity. They are also useful as biocontrol agents, as they control many plant pathogens.

Unfruitfulness is a major problem in many fruit crops and their varieties. ‘Fruitfulness’ refers to the state, where a plant is not only capable of flowering and bearing fruit but also takes these fruits to maturity. The inability of plant to reach the fruits to maturity is known as ‘unfruitfulness’ or ‘barrenness’. In spite of adequate flowering, low fruit yields in orchards have been experienced because of low initial fruit set and subsequently higher fruit-let abscission. In an orchard, all the trees do not bear fruits equally or regularly and sometimes fail to flower and bear fruit under similar conditions, where another fruit tree bears heavily. This failure to fruit may be attributed to unfruitfulness. It is associated with internal and external factors.

Internal factors: These are as follows.

India has achieved tremendous increase in horticulture production after independence. Adoption of several production technologies developed by several agricultural universities across the countries boosted the production of the horticulture sector both by increasing area under various fruit crops as well as by elevating productivity. Though the country has acquired second position in world fruit production; the productivity is less than many under developed countries.Several reasons can be attributed for declining productivity; few of them are enlisted below.

• Cultivation of old and less bearing varieties
• Improper and unscientific management of fruit crops
• Large number of old and senile orchards with declining productivity
• Problems in flowering and fruiting due to aberrant climate especially during flowering and fruiting

Flower is symbol of beauty and by nature attracts every human being. It is a gift of nature to humanity. Flowers symbolize the quintessence of human spirit. In India, losses are estimated to be more than 30-35%. It is due to the lack of knowledge of postharvest management of cut flowers. Several factors at pre harvest stage including genetic or inherent, climatic or environmental and management harvest factors like stage, method, time of harvesting and postharvest factors such as watering, rehydration, precooling, storage environment, packaging techniques and microorganisms influence the postharvest quality and longevity of cut flowers.

Preharvest factors

1. Genetic or inherent makeup: Postharvest lasting quality of flower species and cultivars vary considerably due to differences in their genetic make up. It is therefore desirable to grow cultivars, which possess long vaselife. 

A cropping system refers to the type and sequence of crops grown and practices used for growing them. It is based on the available technologies of crop production. Cropping systems have been traditionally structured to maximize crop yields. Now, there is a strong need to design cropping systems, which take into consideration the emerging social, economic and ecological or environmental concerns for each ecosystem. The goal of a cropping system must be to conserve natural resources i.e. soil, water and sustain crop production. Conserving soil and water and maintaining longterm soil productivity depend largely on the management of cropping systems, which influence the magnitude of soil erosion and soil organic matter dynamics. Crop diversification is an important option in sustainable agricultural systems. Management of cropping systems implies management of tillage, crop residue, nutrients, pests, and practices for soil conservation. Difference between dry land and rainfed farming is as follows.

Orchard management is one of the important aspects in the horticulture industry. Success of orchards is mostly depends upon economic utilization of natural resources namely land, water, trees and other external inputs. All these resources have to be well utilized to the best advantage for higher production per unit area on a sustainable basis without adversely affecting the quality of the environment. Important aspects of orchard management are related with soil and water conservation, canopy management, nutrition management, weed management, plant protection measures, biotic and abiotic stress management, maturity and harvest, post harvest handling, utilization and marketing.

Soil management: Soil management aims at maintaining the fertility and productivity of soil. It creates favorable conditions for moisture supply, proper drainage and nutrient availability. It helps to maintain high fertility level and replenishment against losses, gaseous exchange, microbial activities, it helps to check soil erosion, suppress the weed population, economic utilization of interspace of main crops. Common soil management practices are cultivation, sod culture, mulching and rotation.

The word ‘organic’, means ‘living’, ‘earth friendly’ or ‘of plant or animal origin’. Organic farming is a very native concept of India and has been followed from ancient times. Soil is a living entity and the focus in organic farming is the soil itself. Of course, it is based on understanding the ways of nature. All organic waste from agriculture and other sources is recycled to enrich the soil. Thus, the health of the soil and its structure is maintained. The natural microorganisms of the soil are protected and nurtureed.

Organic farming is primarily aimed at cultivating the land and raising crops in such a way to keep the soil alive and in good health by use of organic wastes and other biological means of sustainable production in an ecofriendly pollution free environment.

As per the definition of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) study team; organic farming is a system which avoids or largely excludes the use of synthetic inputs namely fertilizers, pesticides, hormones, feed additives, etc. and to the maximum extent feasible rely upon crop rotations, crop residues, animal manures, off farm organic waste, mineral grade rock additives and biological system of nutrient mobilization and plant protection.

oilless culture is a method of growing plants without soil. It is an artificial means of providing plants with support and a reservoir for nutrients and water. The simplest and oldest method for soilless culture is water culture or solution culture, where inorganic chemicals are dissolved in a vessel containing water to supply all the nutrients to plants. This method was originally termed hydroponics (water working) by W.F. Gericke in the 1930s. Over the years, hydroponics has been used sporadically throughout the world as a commercial means of growing both food and ornamental plants. Today, it is used widely in research facilities as a technique for studying plant nutrition.

Gravel or sand is sometimes used in soilless systems to provide plant support, and retain some nutrients and water. The retention of nutrients and water can be further improved through the use of sphagnum peat, vermiculite, or bark chips. These are the most commonly used materials, but other material such as rice hulls, bagasse (sugarcane refuse), sedge peat, and sawdust are used sometimes as constituents in soilless mixes.

It is difficult to define ‘stress’ precisely. In engineering and the physical sciences, it is usually defined as the force applied per unit area. But as far as in biology, stress it is usually described more loosely as any factor that disturbs normal functioning of an organism. Any environmental factor potentially unfavorable to plant is termed as stress.

The effect of stress on plant condition is called strain. Stress is the action, whereas strain is the reaction. Stress may be defined as external conditions that adversely affect growth, development and productivity. Stress may further classified as:

• Zero stress: This is the level of exposure of plants to environmental factors that leads to neither injury nor reduction in growth and yield of crops.
• Stress escape: Capacity of the plant to complete its life cycle during wet season before onset of stress.

India has an opportunity to grow a variety of horticultural crops due to varied agro climatic conditions and thus, it forms a significant role in total agricultural produce. Though, horticultural crops occupy 8% of the cropped area, approximately 30% contribution in agricultural GDP. Horticultural crops play a unique role in India’s economy by improving the income of the rural people.

However, during the last decades onwards, the productivity of horticultural crops has been affected by many factors. One of the major reasons is climate change. Climate change is one of the most leading environmental problems which is facing the modern world and directly or ultimately to human action that changes the arrangement of the global atmosphere.

The earth climate has always changed in response to changes in the cryosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere and other atmospheric and interacting factors. It is widely accepted that human activities are now increasingly influencing changes in the global cliamte. Emission of increasing amounts of greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide, methane, chlorofluorocarbons and nitrous oxide are responsible for generating changes to global climate. These changes are responsible for rise in sea level, rainfall sequences and movement of climatic regions due to increased temperatures.

Crops that are not part of the customary diet of the local population and grown primarily for their high cash values and export potential are categorized as non- traditional. Non-traditional crops are usually cultivated on low acreage, crops such as ethnic fruits and vegetables, culinary and medicinal herbs, plants for industrial uses etc. are usually considered as non-traditional fruit crops. A non traditional crop may be new to a region or simply new to the grower. Many times non-traditional crops are cultivated to adapt to changing trends in agriculture and demographics.

For growing non-traditional crop proper planning is required to build a comprehensive business case. Realistic assessment of the potential risks and gains is necessary before actual implementation. All aspects of non-traditional crop production, including the agronomics of growing the crop, potential food safety and regulatory issues and marketing needs to be reviewed. Experience of producing conventional crops may not necessarily be directly applicable in producing non-traditional crops.

India has experienced rapid urbanization as well as industrialization since independence. Though, the country has achieved considerable progress in industrial growth as well as expansion of urban and town spread, the land available in urban periphery as well as near big rivers are being utilized for non agriculture purposes. Similarly, for the development of road, rail as well as irrigation infrastructure, the government reserved huge land, which was under cultivation of various crops. The non agricultural businesses became more remunerative near cities and has increased the value of land near cities; which is not affordable for agriculture production. Considering the limitation of land for production purposes in urban areas, the concept of Urban Horticulture was conceived.

1. Introduction

Total population of India is estimated to cross 1.64 billion in 2050. Increasing population, decreasing economic status of Farmer, improper diet and nutrition, fixed farm land, degradation of cultivable land and malnutrition in Indian population is major key problem in 2 to 3 decades. More than 600000 children below 5 year age die due to improper nutrition each year in developing countries (White and Broadley, 1998). All the data provide a scary image about future. Almost 60% of the malnutrition children are iron deficient. Iron deficiency is very common among the girls; 30% each are deficient in zinc and iodine. The incomplete diet and malnutrition can lead to several disorder and degrade the human health (Shuman, 1998).

1. Introduction

Lac and other non-timber forest products (NTFPs) provide vital sustenance, employment, and financial revenue to producers and collectors as well as serving a raw material for a range of businesses. They are also important for ecological balance and long-term growth. Weather and price fluctuations have a significant impact on the production of such natural items. Food, fodder, and medication are all ingested straight from these plants. The Indian subcontinent is a significant centre of animal and plant biodiversity. In tropical climates, a variety of forest products play an important role in social and economic life. Wood and Non-Wood Forest Pro

Introduction

India is often criticized for the negative externalities to the ecology due to the largest livestock population of the country. Thus inspite of the fact that the integrated farming system followed in the country contributes towards not only saving the resources and improving the environment. This study quantifies the positive environmental externalities associated with the livestock production in the context of integrated farming system of rainfed areas. It included land saving due to recycling of agricultural by-products as animal feed and also due to use of dung- cake as domestic fuel, saving of chemical fertilizers due to use of dung as manure and prevention of carbon dioxide emission due to use of animal energy in agriculture.

Biofertilizers are products that contain microorganisms essential for soil fertility and plant growth when added to the soil. Biofertilizers consist of microbes and living bacteria that promote the fertility of the soil and the growth of plants. Biofertilizers are known to play a number of vital roles in soil fertility, crop productivityand production in agriculture as they are eco-friendly and cannot at any cost replacechemical fertilizers that are indispensable for getting maximum crop yields. Increasing useof chemical fertilizers in agriculture make country self-dependent in food production but itdeteriorate environment and cause harmful impacts on living beings. 

Irrigation

Irrigation means the watering of land to make it ready for agriculture. It is the process of application of water to crops through artificial channels to grow them. Water is vital for the growth of plants. And, there can be no plants or crops if they do not have access to water in some form. It is, thus, crucial to supply water to crops and plants in time as per their need. The supply of water to plants comes from various water resources. For example,

• Wells
• Ponds
• Lakes
• Canals
• Dams and Reservoirs

Importance of Irrigation

Irrigation is necessary for agriculture and farming.

Introduction

Mechanized agriculture is the process of using agricultural machinery to mechanize the work of agriculture, greatly increasing farm worker productivity. The effective mechanization contributes to increase production in two major ways: firstly the timeliness of operation and secondly the good quality of work. The requirement of power for certain operations like seedbed preparation, cultivation and harvesting becomes so great that the existing human and animal power in the country appears to be inadequate. As a result, the operations are either partially done or sometimes completely neglected, resulting in low yield due to poor growth or untimely harvesting or both.

• More tolerant to wet soils but less tolerant to drought than apple.
• Browning of pears is due to polygalacturonase activity.
• Major acid - Malic Acid
• Chilling - China Pear (Low chilling) - 150 hrs.
• European pear - 1200-1500hrs.
• Most commonly used clonal rootstock - Quince A cutting.
• Quince is scientifically - Cydonia oblonga origin - South-Eastern Europe and Asia minor.
• Quince is a monotypic genus
• Vigorous rootstock - Pyrus pashia
• Graft incompatibility is overcome by double grafting with old home or hardy varieties.
• In India, the open center system is common
• Training system modified central leader system

• L-42 is the most suitable cultivar for canning.
• A promising genotype in Allahabad is locally known as “Lal Sebia”.
• Strawberry Guava – P. cattlcianun, P. nolle is a shrub or small tree.
• Triploidy is the cause of seedlessness in guava.
• Red pulp colour is dominant to white and that this character is governed monogenic gene.
• Guava improvement work for the first time was initiated in 1907 at Ganeshkhind Experiment Station, Pune, Maharashtra.
• The fact that Guava wilt is soil-borne was first reported in 1935 from Babakkarpar Allahabad.
• Usually, fifteen days period is required for the complete wilting but some trees take even up to one year.
• In general, the more than 10-year-old plants are more prone to wilt incidence.
• Guava wilt, effects more severely in alkaline soils. Wilting is observed during the rainy season. It starts in August with the largest number of the plant dying in September and October.
• Guava improvement work was started at Pune in 1907.

• The skin of grape berry is covered with a wax-like layer which is called cutin
• Fe deficiency is very common in black soil
• Thompsom seedless variety with its done occupies 55 % area under grape cultivation
• Rains during ripening cause berry cracking and rotting
• Pruning
  • North India- December-January
  • South India- April and October
    • April- Back of foundation pruning
    • October- Fruit or forwarded pruning
• Mg deficiency is universal in grape cultivation
• CCC- for suppressing vigour of wine and increasing fruit fullness of bud
• GA3- For increasing berry size

Introduction

Flowers provide opportunity to convert them into exquisite value added products directly from fresh flowers like garland, bouquet , flower arrangements or after drying the flowers making different dried flowers products like pot pourri, wreath, painted gourds or after processing like rose water, gulkand,gulroban,perfume, essential oil, insects repellants, cosmetics etc. Beside this a number of pigments like xanthophylls, carotenoids, luteins, anthocyanins etc. which have neutraceutical properties and pharmaceuticals compounds are also prepared from flowers. The value addition results in more acceptable quality products for the domestic and export market and hence ensure high premium to the producers.

Introduction

Nursery is a place where seedlings, cuttings and grafts are raised with care before transplanting.

Advantage of Raising Seedlings in Nursery

1. It is very convenient to look after the tender seedlings
2. It is easy to protect the seedlings from pests and diseases
3. Economy of land usage (duration in the main field is reduced)
4. Valuable and very small seeds can be raised effectively without any wastage
5. Uniform crop stand in the main field can be maintained by selecting healthy, uniform and vigorous seedlings in the nursery itself.

The major mountain ranges in India are the Himalayas and the Western Ghats. The mountain ecosystem is spread over two Union Territories of India: Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and eleven states Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and West Bengal. The hill agriculture has its own unique characteristics and that the growth potential of hill agriculture has remained under-exploited due to various mountain specifities like poor marketing and processing infrastructure, undulating topography, lack of system specific technologies, land degradation, soil erosion, soil acidity and loss of soil fertility. Hill agriculture has several niche areas having comparative advantage for better exploitation of resources and for better trade. Organic farming still remains a viable option for export of specialised commodities especially fruits and vegetables.

• In male animals, endocrine regulation of reproduction is mainly controlled by pituitary gonadotrophins and gonadal androgens. It is not the same as in females as there is only negative feedback controls in case of male while it is positively as well as negatively feedback control in females. In other words, the synchrony of pituitary gonadotrophins with gonads in male is non cyclic while in female it is cyclic i.e. even after castration (absence of androgen) the pulse frequency of LH and FSH is retained. • Sex Hormones are sex specific e.g. estrogen and progesterone work primarily in females and testosterone in males but sex specificity is limited as far as sexual behaviour is concerned. As estrogen injection in castrated ram recovers the maleness while testosterone injection in ovariectomized female maintain the receptivity for male up to a certain extent.

• To identity the normal fertile, infertile (Temporary loss of fertility), subfertile (reduced fertility), or sterile (no fertility) male animals makes the requirement of breeding soundness evaluation necessary. Infertile and sterile animals prove to be harmful for the economic survival of the dairy industry and should be eliminated from the breeding management system. • The breeding soundness examination is very necessary for the breeding management system as the ultimate goal is the achievement of healthy pregnancies. It is also useful for successful artificial insemination (AI) programs that involve the collection and cryo-processing of quality semen.

Semen • Semen, a fluid released from the male reproductive system during ejaculation, is made up of a liquid phase called seminal plasma and a cellular component called spermatozoa. • The term “spermatocrit” refers to the percentage of spermatozoa(v/v) in semen, which varies from less than 2% in pigs to more than 30% in sheep. It is about 10% in bull. Semen= Spermatozoa + seminal plasma Spermatozoon • In 1677, the scientist Van Leeuwenhoek first discovered the spermatozoa and called them ‘‘animalacula’’. • Spermatozoa or sperm cells or male gametes, develop within the wall of the seminiferous tubules as a result of a complex process known as spermatogenesis. • The spermatozoon is a highly specialized cell that performs the sole function of fertilizing an oocyte.

Sperm abnormalities may be genetical or morphological. They are directly related to the male infertility. • The wet mount method and phase contrast microscopy facilitate sperm visualization for abnormalities. Semen stained with vital stain can also be used for evaluating sperm abnormalities. Sperm morphology or related abnormalities can be evaluated by using eosin-nigrosine stain, carbolfuschin, aniline blue-eosine etc. • Generally, for head and tail abnormalities rose Bengal and William’s stain can be used while for acrosome and head abnormalities Giemsa stain can be used. Categorization of Sperm Abnormalities 1. On the basis of site of abnormality on the spermatozoa • Head abnormalities e.g. microcephalic head, macrocephalic/giant head, narrow or short sperm head, pyriform head, detached glea capitis (acrosomal cap), detached head and double head etc

• Semen cryopreservation – It is the process of preserving the semen in a suitable medium at an ultra-low temperature which reduces spermatozoa metabolism with the least production of metabolic waste products of sperm cells to prolong their life span. • Every fall of 100 C temperature decreases the metabolic rate of spermatozoa to half. Principle of various components involved in cryopreservation 1. Low temperature • Reduce metabolism (negligible) and least metabolic waste product • Decrease solute solubility leads to increased viscosity and physical resistance • Reduce motility • Prolong life span 2. Protection from cold shock and cryoinjury • When sperm cells are subjected to a reduction in temperature during the freezing process, there are: • Sperm membrane damages and lead to leakage of intracellular components like enzymes, ATP, K+ , cholesterol, lipoproteins etc. • Irreversible abnormality in motility pattern (bending of sperm tail)

Introduction Kale (Brassica oleracea var. acephala) belongs to family Cruciferae or Brassicaceae is a under exploited vegetable crop. It is introduced in 19th century. Economic Importance and Uses Its edible part is leaves and contains amazing source of amino acids, vitamins and minerals which has many medical advantages. It helps in lowering of blood cholesterol level which helps in lessening the heart illness. Kale leaves is also rich source of beta carotene, ascorbic acid and phylloquinone. Kale is a nutritious vegetable that is rich in vitamins A, C, and K, as well as calcium and iron. It is also a good source of antioxidants and fiber, making it a popular choice for health-conscious consumers. Kale is not so popular crop in India therefore it confined to very few states of Northern India like HP, UP, J & K, Pb and Haryana.

Hilly areas of India, especially the Himalayas and the Nilgiris which are rich in their forests areas and watersheds have played a major role in maintaining climatic and ecological balance in the country for a long time. These hills and mountain areas have specific characteristics which differs them from plains in diversity of habitats for flora and fauna, ethnic diversity, topography, elevation, physiographic feature land use systems and socio-economic conditions. Agro-biodiversity The hills are characterized by rich agrobiodiversity. These rich agro-diversity elements have evolved, over the years due to association with the communities distributed along the mountain and hill slopes.

Besides diversities and advantages in hills, the communities sustain largely on subsistence farming due to following constraints A.Natural constraints in hills There are large number of Inherent limitations in hill agriculture like, remote areas, vulnerability, marginality , eroded soil and short growing seasons. These Inherent constraints can be judged by the use of unsustainability indicators of hill agriculture which further showed increased in soil erosion rates from sloping farmlands , leaving of agricultural land due to decreasing soil fertility, appearance of stones and rocks on the cultivated lands, reduction in forest and grazing areas and more emphasis on monocropping that widened the cycle of inadequate food production and lead to food insecurity and increasing unemployment and frustration (Table 3) (Shrestha, 1992). These natural constraints are.