eChapters

A rock is the home for minerals. In other words, naturally occurring coherent aggregate of minerals (or glassy mass) will constitute a rock. Like in a family, more often, there are several members(minerals) within a rock but occasionally just one mineral also makes a rock( olivine in dunite, quartz in quartzite and calcite in marble). The root word petros is of Greek origin, meaning rock and a petrologist is one who specializes in the study of rocks. The three main categories of rocks are distinguished on the basis of their origin. Igneous rocks are the ones that have solidified from a molten state in deep seated conditions, as also on the surface while Sedimentary rocks are formed from the erosion of preexisting rocks and subsequent re-deposition or precipitation of the resulting material at or near the surface. Metamorphic rocks on the other hand, are formed by the action of heat or pressure or both on preexisting rocks.

The theme of rocks is split into five chapters. The first chapter introduces the theme of petrology, petrography and petrogenesis., presents rocks as the storehouses of minerals and their grouping into three classes. The second chapter presents all the important aspects of igneous rocks( plutonic, hypabasal and volcanic) including their forms, texture, structure, chemistry and classification and variation diagrams. It also presents a somewhat sufficient description of different kinds of igneous rocks under the categories of ultrabasic, basic, intermediate acid and alkalic rocks. The chapter ends with an introduction to some of the peculiar kinds of igneous rocks and also presents a brief account of causes of diversity among igneous rocks.

Chapter III is devoted to the study of sedimentary rocks beginning with nature and categories of sediments and general factors that affect sedimentary process. Sequence of breakdown, sedimentary minerals, depositional environment , classification of sediments and sedimentary rocks is the next theme followed by primary and secondary and biogenic structures. The next theme is a description of important sedimentary rocks under different categories ( rudaceous, arenaceous, asrgillaceous and rocks of biogenic origin). The chapter ends with introducing sedimentary rocks as the home for natural resources.

Chapter IV dwells on metamorphic rocks distinguishing between metamorphism and metasomatism. Metamorphic minerals and naming metamorphic rocks is the next theme. Next, agents and types of metamorphism is followed by grade, zones, index minerals and metamorphic facies. Textures, structures and the description of metamorphic rocks comes next. The use of triangular plots in metamorphic petrology is introduced and ends with considering metamorphic process in the light of global tectonics.

The last chapter is a short but important chapter- The Rock Cycle which combines the three important geo-processes of igneous activity, sedimentary process and metamorphism while presenting a birds eye view of them. It considers the movement, not only of matter but also the energy that drives the rock cycle. The chapter closes with introducing the rock-cycle-mineral deposits relationship.

13.1. Quarantine Inspection and Certification

13.1.1. Scope/Purpose

Provides guidance and describes the standard operating procedures for certification of facilities for growing imported plants/plant material including transgenic plant material and other regulated articles such as biological control agents/beneficial organisms and living modified organisms under post-entry quarantine and inspecting the same to ensure free from quarantine pests and other regulated non-quarantine pests.

The purpose is to facilitate adoption of standard operating procedures by all the inspection authorities notified by the Ministry of Agriculture (Department of Agriculture & Cooperation)/PQOs (with PEQ responsibilities) for undertaking certification of post-entry quarantine inspection facilities as well as conducting postentry quarantine inspection of growing plants and other regulated articles under the supervision of concerned inspection authority/ PQOs (with PEQ responsibilities) in accordance with phytosanitary requirements specified under the Plant Quarantine (Regulation of Import into India) Order, 2003 and amendments issued there under to prevent the introduction and spread of destructive pests that affects plants and other regulated articles such as biological control agents and beneficial organisms.

Annuals are the group of plants that complete their life cycle in one season or in one year during which they grow, flower and produce seed; and after this they wither out. A true annual (like zinnia) is a plant that will grow from seeds, flower, produce seeds and die in one season. Zinnias provide a succession of flowers for summer colour in any sunny location with good soil drainage.

The chapter covers some important terms and their concepts connected to the research that are necessary to effectively communicate the study’s ideas, as well as to give a theoretical foundation for the empirical investigation and direction for the selection of pertinent predicting factors.
3.1. Health, hygiene, nutrition
For the development of human resources, prerequisites include education, health, cleanliness, and nutrition. Women have trouble determining their level of hygiene and wellness. Proper nutrition and basic cleanliness are essential for maintaining a decent health status. Health is more than just the absence of sickness and disability; it is of overall physical, mental and social wellbeing. A nation’s female population’s health has a significant impact on children’s health and education, as well as the household’s economic well-being. According to the WHO, hygiene is the practice of particular behaviors to preserve good health on both a personal level including personal hygiene, cleanliness, exercise, proper rest, sleep, bathing, avoiding smoking, drinking alcohol, using drugs and a community level. The state of human society’s health is significantly impacted by hygiene practices. Accordingto WHO, ?Nutrition isthe intake of food, considered in relation to the body’s dietary needs. ''An important health indicator for both children and adults is proper nutrition. The lack of primary and specialized care is one of several problems affecting all rural women. Chronic disorders like cancer, diabetes, and heart diseases are alsomore prevalent in rural settings.
3.2. Hunger and malnutrition
Malnutrition includes both overeating and undereating and involves an insufficient, excessive, or unbalanced intake of nutrients for healthy tissue and organ function. Inadequate care, such as inadequate breastfeeding or poor dietaryintake during pregnancy, as well as a lack of public health services and access to clean water, are some of the underlying causes of malnutrition. These factors may also contribute to inadequate care and poor nutrition. Global hunger has increased since 2016, affecting 815 million people, according to a United Nations assessment on world food security and nutrition. According to WHO,98 million children under the age offive, or around one in every six children, are underweight. This increase attributed to climate change and rising violence. According to the director of the world food program ?In the fight against hunger we could now be facing a perfect storm of challenges, including climate change and increasingly severe droughts and floods, soaring food prices and the tightest supplies in recent history, decline levels of food aid, and HIV/AIDS, which is also aggravates food insecurity?.

Medicinal plants constitute a group of industrially important crops which are of great value for domestic use and for export. Plant-best drugs are being increasingly preferred in medical science. The use of various parts of several drug plants to cure specific ailments has been in vogue from ancient times on our indigenous medicine.

We are fortunate to have rich heritage in the form of information available from tribal areas gathered by the tribals through experience of generation in the form of folklore medicine. It is however unfortunate that full potential of these crops has not been scientifically explored. As compared to agricultural crops on which researches have been done for getting better varieties for high yields diseases resistance and better quality comparatively, little work has been done on the medicinal plants. The Ethnomedicinal plants are enumerated in subsequent pages and in Table 1 with their local name and families.

Introduction

Fresh fruit journey from the farm to the consumer’s table is an intricate process which needs a lot of attention. The way that the produce is harvested and handled is of supreme importance in relation to its quality shelf life and general market attractiveness. Improper handling practices during these critical stages can bring both quantitative and qualitative loses hence the perishable produce will lose its commercial value and appeal to the consumers (Kader, 2005). No doubt the significance of successful harvesting and post-harvest handling practices is crucial and has an impact on quality features and safety in case of fresh fruits. Poor management can cause physical assault ripening speed and more susceptibility to the growth of micro-organisms which makes the produce unsuitable for consumption or processing.

A. Diseases

1. Bacterial Disease: Angular leaf Spot

Occurrence & severity status

Angular leaf spot disease, also known as ‘Black arm disease’ or ‘Bacterial blight’ is a disease of cotton potentially destructive in all cotton-growing areas of the world. The disease became prevalent in the USA during the 1950s (Schnathorst et al., 1960) and in India in the 1970s (Verma, 1986). In the USA, losses of between 34 and 59% were reported (Leyendecker, 1950; Bird, 1959). In India, losses of 5-20% were common in crops (Verma and Singh, 1971). Late and very late sowing of crops resulted in more yield reductions (Meshram and Raj, 1992). In general, losses due to bacterial blight in India are ranged between 1% and 27% depending on the cultivar and crop age (Mishra and Krishna, 2001). In Africa, data on crop losses is available for only a few countries. In Sudan, losses of 20% were common from severe infection (Last, 1960). However, nowadays, due to the wide availability of resistant varieties, its importance has been declined, with certain deviations where proliferation of new races has occurred as in Australia (Anonymous, 1980).

Floriculture is the aesthetic branch of horticulture which deals not only with the cultivation of ornamentals, annuals, biennials and perennial plants but also with their marketing. Flowers symbolize beauty, purity, peace and love. In India, it is a dynamic and expanding industry showing an impressive annual growth rate.

Classification of Flower Crops

The flowering plants can be classified broadly on the basis of their species, genus, family, plant part used or type of flower plants. They are further classified as cutflowers, cut foliage, turfgrasses, groundcovers, hedges, accents, specimen plants, avenue trees, screens, topiaries, fillers and others.

3.1 INTRODUCTION

The complete soil organic fraction is made up of live organisms, and their undecomposed, partly decomposed and completely transformed remains. Soil organic matter is the term used to refer more specifically to the non-living components which are a heterogeneous mixture composed largely of products resulting from microbial and chemical transformations of organic debris. These transformations, known collectively as the humification process, give rise to humus, a mixture of substances which have a degree of resistance to further microbial attack.

The cattle skeleton, like that of other mammals, is a complex structure that provides support, protection, and mobility. The skeleton for study purposes is divided into two main parts: the axial skeleton and the appendicular skeleton. The axial skeleton forms the central axis of the body and includes bones such as the skull, vertebral column, ribs, and sternum. The appendicular skeleton comprises the bones of the forelimb (scapula, humerus, radius-ulna, carpals, metacarpals and phalanges) and hindlimb (os coxae, femur, patella, tibia-fibula, tarsals, metatarsals and phalanges).

Cheese is a milk product of ancient origin and portrays the ethos of civilization and its cultural evolution. Cheese is one of the oldest foods of mankind. It is commonly believed that cheese evolved in the Fertile Crescent between the rivers Tigris and Euphrates in Iraq some 8000 years ago. The so-called Agricultural Revolution occurred here with the domestication of plants and animals.

It seems that the cheese originated accidentally as a result of the activities of nomadic tribes. Since animal skin bags were a convenient way of storing liquids for nomadic people, these were used for storing surplus milk. Fermentation of the milk sugars in the warm climate prevailing would cause the milk to curdle in the bags. The swaying animals would have broken up the acid curd during journeys, to produce curds and whey. The whey provided a refreshing drink on hot journeys, while the curds, preserved by the acid of fermentation and a handful of salt, became a source of high protein food supplementing the meager meat supply.

This activity gave rise to the assumption that cheese was evolved from fermented milks. It is perhaps more probable that the crude fermentations progressed in two ways. In one direction towards the production of liquid fermented milks such as dahi, yoghurt, laban, koumis and Kefir and in the other direction through the drainage of whey through a cloth or perforated bowls, to leave solid curds which when salted became cheese.

It was a prominent article of the Greek and Roman diet as much as 2500 years ago. It is referred to in the Old Testament several times.

AVOCADO

Persea americana Mill.

F: Lauraceae

Avocado, also known as butter fruit gained importance over years as one of the most nutritive fruits. Demand for this fruit increased over the past few years and now it has become an important fruit in international trade.

Original home of Avocado is Mexico in Central America and grows wild all over South America. The Spanish explorers took this fruit to Spain during 1601. It was introduced to Jamaica in about 1650. Avocado was first reported in Mauritius in 1780, Florida in 1833, California in 1856 and Zanzibar in 1892, but its cultivation started extensively in these areas during 1900 (Purseglove, 1974). It was introduced to South and West Coasts of India about 100 years ago from Ceylon. Avocado is now growing in most of tropical and sub tropical countries.

Avocado is grown commercially in USA, Israel, South Africa and Australia. USA, Israel, and South Africa are main exporters. In India, it is mainly grown in South where it is centred on hill slopes of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Coorg and in selected regions of Karnataka and Maharashtra.

2.1 INTRODUCTION

Textural assessment has long been used to indicate quality in agricultural soil and although it contains an element of subjective judgement, a skilled surveyor can differentiate many grades of texture. Soil texture correlates with the distribution of particle size in the soil, though this is not the only component in texture. Although particle size distribution is an objective attribute of soils and can, in principle, be measured with accuracy, the determination is in practice quite difficult and certainly laborious, so that it is customary in soil mechanical analysis to divide the soil into several broad fractions: sand, silt and clay are the principal categories. The clay fraction, which comprises the smallest particles in the soil, is generally defined as the fraction smaller than a nominal diameter of 2 jam. The practical division is, however, based on the velocity of fall of soil particles through a fluid, calculating the diameter of the particles from the equation of Stokes

Skull: The skull of domestic animals has two sets of bones i.e facial and cranial bones. The facial bones are placed in front and cranial bones are placed caudally.

Facial bones: The paired facial bones are premaxilla, maxilla, nasal, pterygoid, lacrimal, turbinates, malar and palatine bones. The unpaired facial bones are mandible, hyoid and vomer.

1. Propagation
• Multiplication of plants is termed as propagation.
• Aim to achieve increase in number and preserve essential characteristics of mother plant.
• Most of the horticultural crops are propagated through vegetative means.
• Two types of propagation
• Sexual propagation - through seeds which is formed by sexual reproduction
• Asexual propagation - through vegetative parts or organs of a plant.

The active management of soil nutrients to ensure optimal plant nutrition has been a fundamental practice in agriculture since its inception. For centuries, production of agriculture depended on the organic materials recycling like manure and crop residues. Interest in plant nutrition dates back to ancient times, first captivating philosophers and later becoming a subject of rigorous scientific inquiry. The history of how plants obtain nutrients is marked by numerous misconceptions and incorrect theories. Exploring the long-standing efforts to uncover this essential agricultural process highlights the perseverance and brilliance of early thinkers and scientists. It also underscores that modern understanding, which may now seem straightforward, is the culmination of significant scientific endeavour. The concept of managing fertility of soil to boost yield of crops is far from new—its origins are intertwined with the earliest practices of agriculture. Ancient civilizations recognized the value of applying organic matter such as green manure, farmyard manure, night soil, bone, and wood ashes to enhance soil productivity.

1. Abrus precatorices

Scientific name     :     Abrus precatorices Linn.
Common name      :     Indian Liquorices
Family      :     Fabaceae
English      :     Indian liquorices
Hindi      :     Gunj
Kannada      :     Gulaganji

Plant habitat and description : It is found in South China, the pacific island, tropical Africa, the West Indies and almost all tropical countries in moist places. In India, it occurs commonly near the ravines of miscellaneous forests, waysides, grass of localities up to 1000 m altitude and throughout warmer regions of country. It is propagated by seeds and can also be propagated by cuttings of firm shoots in sand under glass.
A much branched, perennial climber with woody stem. Leaves are paripinnate leaflets opposite, deciduous, oblong, ligulate, membranous, and glabrous or thincy silky beneath.

MANIFESTATIONS OF GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT DISEASES Diseases of gastro-intestinal tract may be acute or chronic. Dehydration and shock are the major effects of acute and hyper acute diseases of gastrointestinal tract respectively. While major effect of chronic dysfunction of gastrointestinal tract is exhaustion from lack of food and water owing to loss of appetite (anorexia,). Other manifestations of gastro-intestinal tract diseases are abnormalities of prehension, mastication and swallowing; salivation; diarrhea: constipation and tenesmus; ileus; vomiting; hemorrhage; abdominal pain; abdominal distension; and shock and dehydration. Abnormal Prehension • Prehension   abnormalities may arise from paralysis of jaw muscles and tongue, dentition defects, mouth pain

4.1 Seeding equipment

Sowing is an art of placing seeds in the soil to have good germination in the field and thereby gives better productivity. Seeding is one of the most important farm operations after soil preparation because the time of sowing and the way in which it is done decisively influence germination of the seed and growth of the seedling during its early stages. This in turn affects the subsequent time of weeding and inter-culture, harvesting and threshing and finally the yield. Seed needs an adequate supply of moisture, temperature, air and protected environment for good germination.

Crop sowing refers to broadcasting seeds on the surface of soil, placement of seeds in the soil or transplanting seedlings in the soil, under optimum conditions. The primary functions of any planting operation are to establish an optimum plant population and spacing, the ultimate goal being to obtain the maximum net return per unit area. Plant population and spacing requirements are affected by various factors such as the crop type and variety, soil type, soil fertility level, soil moisture and row spacing upon the cost and convenience of operations such as thinning, weed control etc. In order to get better returns, the right amount of seed should be placed at the right time and at a predetermined depth and spacing in the soil. Usually the depth of sowing depends upon the moisture availability and seed emergence capacity. The amount of seeds to be sown varies according to the size of seeds, percentage germination etc.

7.1 Harvesting and threshing equipment for cereal crops

Harvesting and threshing is an important operation in the farming. This can be done either manually or with the help of power operated machinery. Harvesting of field crops continues to be one of the most labour intensive operations in agricultural production system. Harvesting of crop is generally done by hand using sickle in India. Power operated harvesting machinery has not caught up with Indian farmers because of limited size of land holdings, economic constraints and non-uniformity of field conditions. Manual harvesting with different hand tools continues to be dominant, which takes 170-200 man-hours to harvest one hectare of paddy crop. Due to high labour demand at the time of harvesting, the operation continues for weeks together, resulting in over drying of crops in the field causes grain losses to the extent of 5 to 15 percent and even results in loss of crop due to untimely rain during harvesting. Mechanical devices to harvest wheat and paddy crops have become popular especially in northern India to minimize the field losses resulting from shattering, unfavourable weather conditions and pilferage.

1.1. Establishment of orchard
• A long term investment and deserves a very critical planning.
1.1.1. Location and site
• Well established fruit growing region, because one could get benefit of experience of other growers.
• Market should be close to the area with assured demand.
• Climate should be suitable to grow the chosen fruit crops; free from cyclones, frost, hailstorms and strong hot winds.
• Adequate and good quality water supply should be available round the year.

THE AGRO-ECOSYSTEM CONCEPT

An agro-ecosystem is a site of agricultural production farm, for example- understood as an ecosystem. The agro-ecosystem concept provides a framework with which to analyze food production systems as wholes, including their complex sets of inputs and outputs and the interconnection of their component parts.

Because the concept of the agro-ecosystem is based on ecological principles and our understanding of natural ecosystems, the first topic of discussion in this chapter is the ecosystem. We examine the structural aspects of ecosystems their parts and the relationships among the parts and then turn to their functional aspects how ecosystems work. Agro-ecosystems are then described in terms of how they compare, structurally and functionally, with natural ecosystems.

Structure of Natural Ecosystem

An ecosystem can be defined as a functional system of complementary relations between living organisms and their environment, delimited by arbitrarily chosen boundaries, which in space and time appear to maintain a steady yet dynamic equilibrium. An ecosystem thus has physical parts with particular relationshipsthe structure of the system that together take part in dynamic processes the function of the system.

The most basic structural components of ecosystems are biotic factors, living organisms that interact in the environment, and abiotic factors, nonliving physical and chemical components of the environment such as soil, light, moisture and temperature.

Groundnut

Groundnut roundnut is believed to have originated in Brazil and later spread to many countries all over the world. It is known to humanity since 950BC. Groundnut crop and its products have multiple uses. Being a leguminous crop it enriches the soil with nitrogen through symbiotic biological fixation by rizhobium. The economic product, groundnut in shell, contains the seeds, which are edible. The shell as well as the haulms serve as fuel and fodder. The seed oil serves as a good cooking oil while the cakes are good sources of protein for animals and even humans. Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L,) belongs to leguminosae family and papilionacea sub family. It consists of two sub species each with two varieties. The first one hypogaea has the variety hypogaea (virginia group) and variety hirsuta kohla while the second one fastigiata has the variety fastigiata (valencia group ) and the variety vulgaris (spanish group). Hypogaea varieties are spreading types with branching and lack infloresence on the main stem. They are of longer duration and have fresh seed dormancy . Varieties of the fastigiata are of erect type with branching and flowering on the main stem also. The crop is of shorter duration than hypogaea types, but with little fresh seed dermancy.

The major groundnut producing countries of the world are China, India, Nigeria, U.S.A. Indonesia, Argentina, Sudan, Senegal and Myanmar. The cultivation is spread in tropical and sub-ropical regions. Groundnut is a self- pollinated crop and pollination takes place in the morning. After fertilization an elongated stalk namely peg develops which enters the soil, bends horizontally and swells to become a pod. Within the pod, two, three or four kernels are formed. The crop can be grown under rainfall conditions ranging from 50-125cm, with good distribution during flowering and pegging stages. Sandy loams, loamy soils, and black soils with good drainage are suitable for growing the crop.

2.1 Insect Pests

Insects are often a major obstacle to the successful production of cucurbits (York, 1992). They can severely reduce yield, injure or kill plants, spread diseases and adversely affect fruit quality. A number of insect pests, mites and nematodes have been found to infest cucurbitaceous vegetables but fortunately, in India, fruit flies and a few species of beetles are of economic importance; aphids and blister beetles though of regular occurrence, seldom cause severe damage.
 
Other insect pests reported to infest the cucurbitaceous vegetables are pumpkin caterpillar, Diaphania indica (Sounders), snake gourd semilooper, Plusia peponis Fab., white fly, Bemisia tabaci Genn., stink bugs, Apspongopus spp. and flea beetle, Phyllotreta spp. etc. These biotic pressures on the crops are increasing day by day due to round-the-year intensive cultivation of photo and thermo insensitive cultivars as well as indiscriminate use of toxic agro-chemicals in the present era of chemicalized agriculture.

6.0 General

No lessons can be drawn without the experiences of the past. In fact, much of engineering, rather all sciences have developed in bits and pieces from the experiences of the past. The engineers by and large have never become wiser in one day. They have become wiser slowly and slowly with their own experiences and from the experiences of past engineering works. Wisdom lies to gain wisdom from experiences/draw lessons from the marvellous engineering works constructed so far. It helps us in a direction for further development of technological skills.

Here an effort is made to draw lessons from experiences of the canals constructed in the past.

 There are several aspects of such experiences. A few important aspects of studies are:

 (i) Internal hydraulic sections of the canal with respect to discharge, topography, stability of side slopes, type of lining, operation and maintenance problems and their solutions etc.

 (ii) Design of canals banks (embankment) with respect to discharge, depth of flow, depth of cutting /filling, below/above natural ground level, type of soil, topography, operation and maintenance, drainage of banks etc.

 (iii) Canals aesthetics and arboriculture

 (iv) Other utility/service of canal such as multi-objectives of hydropower, irrigation, drinking/industrial water supply, social needs of recreation, forests etc.

Introduction

India has a long history in the cultivation of vegetable crops and it sustains the livelihood of a large section of population directly or indirectly. Vegetable crops offer high returns,  have a potential to alleviate the poverty of people, provide nutritional security and essential raw materials for agro industries. These crops also offer greater rural employment opportunity and have high potential for foreign exchange earning. India bestowed with varied soil and high climatic conditions has excellent potential for growing both tropical and temperate vegetables. India is the second largest producer of vegetables in the world after China. The total area under vegetables is estimated 5.9 million ha which contributes more than 2.5% of total cropped area. The production is estimated  90.83 milion tonnes. China having a production of about 278.59 million tonnes  is the largest producer of vegetable crops in the world. The annual growth rate in vegetables is of the order of 2.6%. Potato, brinjal, tomato, chilli, cabbage, onion, cauliflower,okra and peas are grown on commercial scale. West Bengal, Uttar Predesh, Bihar, Orissa and Karnataka are the leading vegetable producing states. Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Andra Pradesh are the leading states in onion production where as West Bengal, Uttar Predesh and Bihar are the leading potato producing states. Bengal, Orissa, Bihar and Assam are the leading brinjal producing states.

1.    Vegetables for Nutritional and Health Security
    
2.    Status of Vegetable Production
    
3.    Classification of Vegetable Crops
    
4.    Influence of Environment on Vegetable Production
    
5.    Management of Seedlings in Nursery
    
6.    Vegetables Based Cropping System
    
7.    Water Management
    
8.    Plant Nutrients and Integrated Nutrients Management
    
9.    Micro-Irrigation and Fertigation
    
10.    Pollination Management
    
11.    Integrated Pest Management
    
12.    Biological Management of Diseases
    
13.    Mechanisms of Biocontrol
    
14.    Weed Management
    
15.    Management of Vegetable Crops Under Polyhouse
    
16.    Post Harvest Handling and Storage of Vegetables
    
17.    Marketing and Export of Vegetables
    
18.    Export Trade of Vegetables in India
    
19.    Seed Technology
        
References

First Part: Multivariate Statistical Analysis
6.1. Results
The chapter deals with the result and discussion of the study using multivariate statistical analysis and participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) techniques with the purpose to provide sufficient information so as to arrive at valid conclusion. Tables and models are commonly used in this chapter to support and supplement the textual materials. Discussion helps to interpret the results of the study in proper perspective and to relate them with other relevant studies.
Axiomatic statement on the variable interactions and behaviour selected for the study
Research setting in the present study presents a dynamic social-ecology which is evolving along and across the undulation of social process. Both the structural and functional dimensions and behaviour are in constant interaction and response with the subject respondents in terms of innumerable variables. For the present research only some selected characters have been selected for empirical titration. There is no wonder these variables can be catalogued in terms of dependent or independent variables rather should not be distributed in a binary mode. Rather these variables are with seamless transformations like the algorithm of quantum physics. That is how whenever a set of x variables are supposed to behave with a contributor characters the same can be responsive with a recipient behaviour, e.g. in stepwise regression, set of ‘x variables’ are not considered as the only source of causal variables along with the couple of ‘y variables’ which are promoting rest other y variables have also been considered as causal variables. Hence, in case of y1, the rest of the y variables have to be treated like: y2 = y2' ; y3' = y3; y4 = y4' and so on.

4.1. Physical characteristics

4.1.1. Colour, number of bands and hair profile

The physical characteristics of hair like colour, number of bands and hair profile showed huge variations in the same individual from region to region particularly in the domestic animal species. So, these features of hair cannot be considered as an important tool for species identification from hair. These findings are in accor dance with the observations of Sarkar et al. (2011). Who mentioned that the coat of mammalian species varies with season, habitat and sex of the individuals.

1. General Olericulture

Olericulture is Latin term ‘Olerus’ meaning herb.

China, India, USA, Turkey and Italy: Major vegetable producers.

Indian subcontinent has 80 species of major and minor vegetables apart from several wild species consumed as vegetable.

About 175 different types of vegetables are grown in India, includes 82 leafy vegetables and 41 root (tuber and bulb) crops.

Cucurbits, taros, yams, brinjal and okra have rich diversity in Indian gene centre.

USA is leading importer of cucumber and gherkins, assorted canned vegetables and other dehydrated vegetables from India.

Germany leads in import of preserved onion, green pepper in brine and dehydrated onion flakes/powder.

Singapore leads in import of dried asparagus; Japan in dehydrated garlic flakes; UAE in dehydrated garlic powder; Bangladesh in peas and Switzerland in dried mushrooms including morels.

Mizoram is the largest producer of chow chow.

6.1 INTRODUCTION

This chapter is concerned with the interactions which retain mobile chemical species in the soil environment. Emphasis is centred on the binding of small organic chemicals to soil particles of colloidal dimensions, and on the associations between polymeric materials and inorganic colloids which strongly influence the physical and chemical behaviour of soils. These interactions are also involved in the retention by soil of water, discussed by Farmer (1978) in the companion volume to this book, and in ion and ligand exchange reactions, and in mass flow and diffusion discussed in preceding chapters.

The term colloidal refers to particles and discontinuities of matter (e.g. pore spaces or thin films) of dimensions in the range of 1 nm to 1 jxm (IUPAC, 1972). For such finely divided systems the properties of the interfaces are very important because these largely control the behaviour of the colloidal systems. The term phase is used to describe the homogeneous parts of a system and an interface or surface is the boundary region between any two phases; the relevant interfaces are solid/gas, solid/liquid, liquid/liquid, and liquid/vapour. Where none of the solid, liquid, or vapour phases in a system are finely divided the ratios of the interfacial areas to the bulk volumes of the phases are small, and the effects of the interface between neighbouring phases can be neglected.

The most extensive surfaces in soils are contained in domains and micro- aggregates of colloidal particles (cf. Greenland and Hayes, 1978; Greenland and Mott, 1978), These surfaces are accessible from the pore spaces between solid particles. Under normal field conditions these spaces remain filled with water. Thus, although modern fertilizers, and chemicals for the control of plant growth, pests, and diseases are applied to soils as solids, liquids, and gases, most of the interactions with the soil colloidal constituents take place at the solid/liquid interface. We shall be primarily concerned here with uptake from the liquid phase by solid soil components, although interactions at the solid/gas interface can sometimes be important.

Leaves are alternate in distichous arrangement; lamina long and linear and leaf sheath covering the internodes; ligule membranous and auricle claw shaped. The inflorescence is a spike and florets are borne on rachis node. Each spikelet has three florets. In two row barely, lateral spikelets become sterile.

PESTS OF CEREALS

Rice (Oryza sativa)

Rice is the staple food of a vast majority of people throughout the world, especially in India. Rice crop is grown in about 75 million acres, which is about one-third of the total world area under rice. The warm and humid environment for the rice crop is best suited for invasion by several insect pests and as many as 85 species of insects are known to infest this crop. The damages caused by different pests extend from the seedling to harvest stages of the crop. Some of these pests are widely distributed and cause extensive damage. The more important pests are described below:

1. Rice stem borer or Rice yellow stem borer

Scirpophaga (Tryporyza) incertulas

Order - Lepidoptera

Family - Pyraustidae

Among the pests, which ravage rice crop, ‘rice stem borer’ is a major one and infests rice crop at all growth stages, from seedling to flowering. It is a specific pest of rice alone and is more serious during the months of October-January. The pest has a wide distribution in all Asian countries. The damages caused by this pest ranges from 5-20 per cent. Generally, late varieties of rice are more severely infested than the early maturing varieties, because of the possibility of the pest multiplying in larger numbers by the time the late varieties come to maturity. Cold weather with high humidity and low temperature prevalent during October-December is found to be conducive for the multiplication of the insect.

Introduction

Pig production and marketing have been driven by the growing consumer demand for high quality and low cost animal protein. As a result, organized and industrialpiggery has been rapidly developing globally. Pigs are domesticated in various parts of India, especially in South-Central and North Eastern Region (NER), each place has its own locally adapted pig breed, and most households raise at least one or two pigs each year. Pigs are more valuable alive than dead, acting as efficient converters of kitchen and agricultural scraps into nutrient-rich fertilizer, before becoming pork that could even sometimes be given as a wedding gift, used to curry political or social favor, or eaten as part of local celebrations, especially in NER. The 21stcentury agricultural and dietary changes however represent radical departures from the small holder production system and consolidation of industry is clearly visible in the last two decades. It should be noted that the industrialization of pig production is a relatively recent phenomenon globally. In India, too, the speed and scale of change has been phenomenal, conditioned by policies, investments and the transforming economic system.

1. GENERAL POMOLOGY

Word pomology: Derived from Greek word ‘pome’ meaning development of fruit from inferior ovary and ‘logos’ meaning to study.

Father of systematic pomology: De Candolle.

Temperate fruits are popularly known in India as hill fruits or cold region fruits.

India ranks 1^st in productivity of grapes, banana and papaya.

Ratio of Chlorophyll a to chlorophyll b is highest in C⁴ plants.

Gibberellic acid is enhanced by exposing plants to red light.

The life line tree of ‘Thar Desert’ is Prosopis cineraria.

Grape of the desert is Salvadora oleoides.

1.1. Origin and distribution
• South East Asia, with the greatest number of species found in Borneo, Java, Sumatra, and Malay Peninsula.
1.2. Varieties
• Neelum, Bangalora, Alphonso, Rumani, Banganapalli, Kalepad, Peter, PKM 1, PKM 2, Senthura, Jahangir, Mulgoa, Himayuddin, Paiyur 1, Mallika, Amrapali, Salem Bangalora, Arka Anmol, Arka Aruna, Arka Neelkiran, Arka Puneeth, Sindhu, Ratna and Arka Suprabath