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This book contains the most up-to-date data on the most important crops grown in various regions. Extensive discussion is given to the origins of agriculture, the evolution of agricultural plants, the discovery of plants, the migration of plants, the domestication of plants, and the proliferation of plants. Following a study of the ancestry and diversification of cultivated plants, we turn to a review of tropical, subtropical, and temperate crops used for food, beverages, spices, and medicines, as well as plant insecticides, timber plants, and essential oil-producing plants. Products from these crops range from food and drink to spices and even medicine. Plants that are used to make essential oils are also discussed. The beneficial impacts of a number of plants are examined in light of their unique genetic and evolutionary properties. Commercially important subtropical and temperate plants, as well as petro-crops, ethnobotanical studies, and biodiversity conservation, are discussed in this volume. The most important plant species belonging to each group are identified, and their significance is discussed at length. This book is an excellent resource for students of botany, food science, nutrition, forestry, agriculture, horticulture, plant breeding, and environmental science. One of the book's strongest selling qualities is that it was written by a person who has devoted their entire life to the field of economic botany. Extensive photographs and line drawings are provided, all of which include descriptive captions.

Chapter 1 - Elementary Particle Chapter 2 - Antimatter Chapter 3 - Ultra-High-Energy Cosmic Ray Chapter 4 - Tachyon Chapter 5 - Boson and Positronium Chapter 6 - Fermion and Gluon Chapter 7 - Atomic Nucleus Chapter 8 - Standard Model Chapter 9 - Quark Chapter 10 - Lepton Chapter 11 - Neutrino Chapter 12 - Electron and Electron Neutrino Chapter 13 - Muon and Muon Neutrino Chapter 14 - Tau and Tau Neutrino Chapter 15 - Gauge Boson Chapter 16 - Photon Chapter 17 - Higgs Boson

This book covers whole Europe within its geographical limits, providing not only an overview about biogeography and recent taxonomic status of Charophyte species but also in-depth information about recent knowledge about ecology, ontogenesis, morphology, palaeontology and systematics of this group of algae. This is the first comprehensive treatment of European Charophytes. In addition, the reader for the first time is provided by definitions of terms applied to Charophytes, sorting out several previous confusions about terminology. Special attention was paid on oospores in order to exploit their potential for supporting species delineation as well as analysis of sediment records. A red list, dealing also with threats and habitat conditions, completes the book.Altogether more than 70 taxon are described in detail, each of the descriptions giving full information about morphology, habitat conditions, distribution as well as variability; important characters for determination are illustrated by photographs and drawings. Hints for correct determination are given in a separate para, allowing correct species delineation even for critical species. This, together with a set of determination keys, will allow beginners and practitioners to get familiar with the determination of Charophytes, being often regarded notoriously difficult in the past.Authored by a large group of 70 specialists from all over Europe and Overseas, a commonly agreed taxonomy is provided, and all debates about taxonomic status and nomenclatural problems have been discussed beforehand extensively. By this, a sound reference for applied aspects is given, allowing for reliable cross-country comparisons especially with respect to bioindication purposes but also serving ground for biogeographical research, biodiversity issues and the emerging field of elucidating the process of territorialisation of land plants. The authors hope that this book will become the reference work for the coming decades it was designed for.

This edited book is a compilation of information on existing frontier technologies in agriculture, such as driving modernized crop improvement programs via digitalization, mechanization and automation, artificial intelligence, speed breeding. The major focus of the book is on the technologies related to genetic gain, nutrition and food safety. Agriculture is core to industry as well as human civilization and sustainability of the society. Therefore, advancement and investment of technology is essential for enhancing the quality and quantity of the produce for ensuring food and nutritional security. The frontier technologies bring drastic change in the way of functioning leading to multi-fold increase in efficiency and outcome. Chapters in this book addresses a particular enabling technology and forward-looking strategy. Compiled information with successful deployment examples of these technologies is not been made available from a single platform, therefore, this volume is a unified compilation of information from international experts. The book is a relevant reading material for students, researchers, academicians and industry players in agriculture.

Aquaculture is expanding along with the increase in demand for animal protein and hence significantly contributes to food security and socioeconomic livelihood. This book gathers current principles of aquaculture that are applied and practiced globally. It covers crucial topics including site selection, breeding and husbandry techniques, nutrition, health management, biosecurity, and sustainability. Furthermore, aquaculture's impact on food production and the economic values generated by the industry are also explored. While emphasizing the significance of environmental sustainability, this book encourages practices that minimize negative impacts on the ecosystem and preserve the health of our oceans. As a collection of reviews on the current practices in aquaculture, this book is a resource for individuals working in or interested in the industry. It also serves as a reference and guideline for students, researchers, and aquaculture operators.

This book covers cadmium contamination of soil and plants, its sources, acute and long-term impacts on the environment and human health, and overall challenges posed by the global poisoning issue. Cadmium is among the elements that have been most broadly used by man over time, which has led to extensive pollution of surface soils, mainly associated with the mining and smelting of the metal and the addition of organic cadmium compounds to petrol. The release of cadmium into the atmosphere from various high-temperature processes has also led to surface contamination on a regional and even global scale. Cadmium is particularly firmly bound to humic matter in organic-rich soil and to iron oxides in mineral soil and is rather immobile in the soil unless present at very high concentrations. Plants grown on cadmium-rich soils incorporate cadmium, thus increasing the concentration of cadmium in crop plants. Cadmium thus enters the food chain through the consumption of plant material, whichposes important health risks to humans and animals. In this book, readers will find out about the latest mitigation strategies, including a multi-disciplinary approach to address cadmium contamination. Recent methods in cadmium detoxification, speciation, and molecular mechanisms are included, and the book offers the knowledge required for efficient risk assessment, prevention, and countermeasure. Divided into 3 parts, this book brings together expert contributions on cadmium toxicity. In the first part, readers will find out about the different sources and distribution of cadmium in soil and plant ecosystems. The second part of the book outlines the health risks linked to cadmium toxicity, and in the final part, readers will discover sustainable cadmium toxicity mitigation strategies and potential applications of recent biological technology in providing solutions. This book is a valuable resource for students, academics, researchers, and environmental professionalsdoing fieldwork on cadmium contamination throughout the world.

This book focuses on recent advances in biosensors and nanosensors to monitor, manage and improve horticultural crops in terms of plant growth, nutrient deficiency, toxicity, diseases, abiotic stress, soil amendments and agrochemicals entry into surrounding environment. Besides contributing to sustainable agriculture, these innovative tools facilitate promoting plant health and horticultural products quality and safety. The book consists of 11 chapters grouped in 4 parts. Part I Growth, Development and Productivity, Part II Trends in Abiotic and Biotic Stress Management, Part III Harvest Quality, Part IV Precision Agriculture and Environment Sustainability. Increased productivity, stimulation of plant growth, precise farming, monitoring food quality and freshness during production, processing, distribution and storage, reduced costs and waste, and sustainable agriculture are some of the concepts discussed. The book presents the mechanisms of biosensors and nanosensors for monitoring the various changes during pre- and post-harvest stages of horticultural crops. These are considered as efficient tools to achieve goals of plant breeders in horticultural crops improvement programs. Chapters are written by globally recognized scientists and subjected to a rigorous review process to ensure quality presentation and scientific precision. Each chapter begins with an introduction that covers similar contexts and includes a detailed discussion of the topic accompanied by high-quality color images, diagrams and relevant details and concludes with recommendations for future study directions in addition to a comprehensive bibliography.

Bioremediation is the use of biological interventions for mitigation of the noxious effects caused by pollutants in the environment including wastewater. It is very useful approach for a variety of applications in the area of environmental protection. It has become an attractive alternative to the conventional clean-up technologies that employ plants and their associated microorganisms to remove, contain, or render harmless environmental contaminants.Hydroponic systems, which utilize plants which are grown in a nutrient solution without soil, are expanding and raising great interest in the commercial and scientific community. They are engineered systems designed and constructed to utilize the natural processes involving macrophytes, media, and the associated microbial assemblages to assist in treating wastewaters. This is a relatively new approach in wastewater treatment by which a variety of emergent macrophytes are grown hydroponically on top of floating platforms with their roots developing freely into the flowing wastewater. The roots provide a support medium for attached microbial growth which participates in the treatment process.

The book “Field Manual on Alien Flora of Kashmir Himalaya: Casual, Naturalised and Invasive Plants” has been prepared with two main goals in mind: (i) to promote awareness on the threats of invasive alien plants to biodiversity, ecology and environment, and (ii) to encourage research on, and management of, the alien plants. The Manual contains concise information on the taxonomy, ecology, invasion status, impacts, distribution and illustrated photo-plates of the alien plant species of Kashmir Himalaya, India. The Manual has three chapters: Chapter-I provides a general introduction to the discipline of invasion ecology. Chapter-II guides the readers on how to use the Manual, including brief information on the study region, methods, definitions and terminology used. Chapter-III comprises the bulk of this Manual, providing profile of 100alien plant species with scientific information on the botanical, english and local names, taxonomic characters, ecological traits, current invasion status (casual, naturalised and invasive), impacts, native range, species'distribution-map in Kashmir Himalaya and coloured illustrations that will aid in field identification. It is hoped that the Manual will increase awareness on the threats posed by plant invasions among all the stakeholders - researchers, land managers, policy makers, environmentalists, naturalists, citizen-scientists, students, and the general public. It will also help in promoting research, formulating policies and planning management actions to deal with invasive alien species.

This handbook covers both principal and applications aspects of hydroponics. This reference book shows the state-of-the-art in this area, while offering a clear view of supplying plants with nutrients other than soil. Chapters about hydroponics provides the reader with an understanding of the properties of the various soilless media and how these properties affect plant performance in relation to basic agricultural operations, such as fertilization and irrigation. Chapters explore the drawbacks and advantages of using hydroponics as a soilless crop production system and provide a wider view of science, technology, and economic impact of hydroponics. This book is a valuable resource to agriculturists, horticulturalists, greenhouse and nursery managers, and professionals involved with the production of plants. The handbook provides chapters about technology and applications of hydroponics. It contains an overview of the relevance of aquaponics in the fulfillment of the SDGs.

This book focuses on recent advances in Molecular Tools, Nanotechnology and Artificial Intelligence to monitor, manage and improve horticultural crops in terms of plant growth, nutrient deficiency, toxicity, diseases, abiotic stress, soil amendments and agrochemicals entering the surrounding environment. The book consists of 11 chapters grouped in 3 parts. Part I Nanotechnology and Artificial Intelligence, Part II Monitoring Abiotic and Biotic Stress, Part III Genetic Engineering and Genomics. This book provides an overview of nanotechnology and omics used to improve the productivity of crops and sustainability in the future. It also describes the basic structures of six popular artificial intelligence techniques and their applications in horticultural crop improvement. The book presents molecular techniques such as molecular markers, genome sequencing, genome editing and genetic modification that are considered efficient tools to achieve the goals of plant breeders in horticultural crop improvement programs. Chapters are written by globally recognized scientists and subjected to a rigorous review process to ensure quality presentation and scientific precision. Each chapter begins with an introduction that covers similar contexts and includes a detailed discussion of the topic accompanied by high-quality color images, diagrams and relevant details and concludes with recommendations for future study directions in addition to a comprehensive bibliography.

This new volume offers a multi-pronged perspective on maize science, bringing together important recent research advances from several disciplines. The volume covers maize from origin to biotechnology. It provides an overview of recent world maize production along with technological advancements and green strategies in maize science. The authors cover the background of maize, its origin and domestication, ideotypes, botany, taxonomy, physiology of crop growth, methods of cultivation, production, nutritional functions, biotic and abiotic stress impacts, postharvest management and technology, maize grain quality, and advances in breeding and biotechnology, filling a gap in the literature of maize.

This book provides a comprehensive summary of the recent advances in the biofortification of plants under climate change and how it affects food security globally. The need for mineral biofortification to eradicate or alleviate malnutrition through sustainable agriculture is also discussed. Biofortification of edible plants is considered the most appropriate approach to alleviate nutritional problems and nutrient deficiencies. In contrast, biofortification focuses on improving the nutritional content of the region's current agricultural biodiversity while preserving its habits and customs. Emphasis is also placed on recent advances and developments in omics, particularly metabolomics and related techniques, to unravel the potential alterations in plants caused by biofortification. The book brings together eminent scientists to present the latest developments in the field. This timely publication addresses practical scenarios of bio-fortified food production and climate change. The book focuses on the methods, techniques, and environmental changes used to enhance and improve agricultural products. This book is one of the first to provide information on the use of modern biotechnologies to modify crops for health benefits. It also examines the mechanisms of the plant responses to genetically induced biofortification, the production and responses of fortified plants under climate change, and their effects on food security. The book will be useful for students and researchers, especially crop scientists, environmental scientists, biotechnologists, botanists, and agronomists, to understand the techniques and mechanisms of biofortification, and responses of biofortified plants under climate change.

This book aims to describe the role of silicon in the environment from the biogeochemical cycle of terrestrial ecosystems, uptake to cellular and tissue bioaccumulation and its effects in mitigating abiotic and biotic stresses. From an agronomic point of view, this knowledge is essential to boost agricultural production and improve its quality and the sustainability of crops in the face of the growing pressure of different stresses on crop systems of different natures. Si is the only multi-stress mitigator in plant nutrition. It plays an important role in mitigating nutritional deficiency by increasing nutrient use efficiency, something that will be very important in the future: producing more with less nutrient accumulated in the plant. The book focuses on the effects of Si on plant mineral nutrition, exploring nutritional deficiencies and toxicity of Al and potentially toxic heavy metals such as Cd, as well as important stresses such as salinity, water deficit and high temperature. The book will also discuss the Si extractors in the soil and criteria for recommending Si in crops and the sources of the element for its application in soil and leaves, as well as the role of Si in the activity of microorganisms and in plant diseases and pests. São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP)(2022/10092-9).

This book addresses quantitative assessment of forest governance and how local-level institutions work in governing efficient ways of forest resource management so that sustainable development of forest is ensured. The research is done at the micro-level as well as macro-level in India. The research presented here focuses on forest governance and institutions in the two forest divisions of West Bengal say South Bengal and North Bengal. The research covers 36 villages, 844 households, 10 Gram panchayat, 12 Beat offices, and 36 Forest protection Committees in West Bengal and also studies different local-level institutions like local communities/households; Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMC)/Forest Protection Committees (FPCs); Community Forest Management groups; Van Panchayats; Village Councils (schedule VI area) and Biodiversity Management Committees; Eco-development committees, NGOs and Self-Help Groups, and Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs). Chapters also address various issues like monitoring, enforcement, rule of law, transparency, accountability, participation, control of corruption, government effectiveness, regulatory quality, and sustainable livelihood in connection with the study of forest governance. This research is associated with different sectors like agricultural sector, forestry sector, informal sectors and rural development, etc., and involved multi-stakeholders. Particular attention is given on the policy-oriented research which is the cornerstone of SDG of 16. Developmental practitioners, government implementation agencies, researchers in environmental science and social science, and policymakers find this book appealing.

Most imperative environmental concerns are Cultural eutrophication pertaining to industrialization and urbanization which lead to proliferation of weeds in aquatic environs disturbing these ecosystems. Alarming increase in CO2, CH4, CFC's, N2O and water vapour in the atmosphere cause enhanced greenhouse effect, among all these CO2 is accountable for 55-60% of total enhanced effect. Phyto- and Nutrient sequestration via plants helps storage of atmospheric CO2 in the vegetation to get rid of contaminants. Carbon and nutrient sequestration can be braided together for sustainable development goals. The chapters adopt the hierarchy as follows: significance of quality environs, quantification and bio-monitoring of culprit contaminants, the issues relevant to global warming and accelerated eutrophication and their ecological impacts followed by various sequestration technologies.

This book provides essential information on the role of phytonanotechnology in the removal of environmental pollutants and covers recent advances in experimental and theoretical studies on plant-derived nanoparticles. It also discusses their current and potential applications and challenges.The combination of nanotechnology and phytoremediation, which is called phytonanotechnology, have the potential to remove contaminants from the environment or degrade them. The efficiency of contaminant removal can be improved by combining both methods as they are complementary to each other.Phytonanotechnology offers the advantages of increased bioavailability, prolongation of heavy metal absorption time, and multiple metal removal, all contributing to improved efficacy and decreased toxicity in plants and surroundings. Therefore, there is immense scope for nature-derived molecules to be formulated into nanotechnology-based phytoremediation approaches targeting the specific heavy metal removal from effluents and surroundings. This encourages research initiatives to synthesize more phytonanotechnology based uptake plant systems with high efficiency. Efficient formulation targeting strategies and the evaluation of targeting efficiency of phytonanotechnology, conforming to international standards of their toxicology and biocompatibility, could pave the way for heavy metal uptake and removal by plant-based systems.This book serves as a valuable resource for postgraduate students, environmental scientists and materials scientists in academia and corporate research.

This book is centred around various interwoven topics which are fundamental to policy analysis in agriculture. Key concepts and tools that are fundamental for the analysis of agricultural policies and programmes are presented. Key concepts introduced include, the role of the state in a market economy with examples from the Sri Lankan and other developing economies, the international trade environment, and conceptual frameworks for analysing important domestic and international trade policies. It also highlights interconnections among agriculture, development, policy and illustrates the extent to which the agricultural sector contributes in achieving economic growth objectives, equity and equality objectives and environmental objectives. The book takes the readers through the nature of agricultural markets in developing countries, with special emphasis on Sri Lanka, and illustrates how the degree of competitiveness is measured at various market levels using multiple indices and methods. Several tools, with accompanying case studies, for the analysis of policies and programmes are detailed. These tools include the GTAP model, gravity models, extended benefit cost analysis, and linear programming. Tools and models are applied to the analysis of trade policies and agreements, marketing policies, environmental services, extension programmes, land tenure reforms and climate change adaptations. Case studies in relation to the agri-food policy and strategy response to COVID-19 Pandemic are also covered. This book is of interest to public officials working in agricultural planning and agricultural policy, teachers, researchers, agro-economists, capacity builders and policymakers. Also the book serves as additional reading material for undergraduate and graduate students of agriculture, development studies, and environmental sciences. National and international agricultural scientists, policy makers will also find this to be a useful read.

This book discusses plant invasions and environmental impacts on the Himalayas through a novel procedure, and helps to understand the influences of climate, physiography, soil, and disturbance on plant richness in mountain systems. Assessing invasion risks to mountain space under future climate change scenarios is highly significant for appropriate preparedness, and this book details analytical and modeling techniques to assess the conditions of mountain ecosystem and ecology to better inform our preparation for future environmental challenges. The book presents the state-of-the-art understanding of the species-environment relationships in a global biodiversity hotspot, relatively unexplored areas for the Himalayan life-form richness. The book provides not only the academic but also the professional community and policymakers a review and update on modeling applications for determining interactions of the plant species with the environment of a subtropical mountain ecosystem across a climatic gradient. Currently, there is no book in the market addressing the implementation and applications of modeling in the Himalayan plant and environment continuum, and most of the existing books cover the species richness pattern along the elevation gradient and basic ethnobotanical features of a mountain system. Since the book covers the applications of novel methods and modeling for ecological analysis of mountain ecosystems, it will also be significant for the professional market. Therefore, the book aims to fill the gap between scientists and professionals in the use of modeling strategies to monitor biodiversity in mountain systems for the formulation of conservation, adaptation, and mitigation principles.

This volume discusses how plant and algae organisms play a pivotal role in the transformation of solar energy to essential metabolites, and explores the numerous beneficial roles these metabolites have at an industrial level. It presents information on the utilization of plant and algae for biomass production, and shows how this is a practical option for large scale biofuel production. The book examines how these bio-metabolites can then be used to extract biofuel. Biomass produced from plants and algae can act as the source of feedstock for biofuel production and industrially important compounds. This book also explores that by curtailing culturing cost using wastewater, seawater, and industrial water as a nutrient and water source, biomass becomes an economical energy source. The introductory chapters of the book focus on the appreciative values of a pollution-free atmosphere, with special reference to enhanced greenhouse effect, and then are followed by chapters on the potential of plant and algae as a liquid energy resource. This book targets researchers, graduate students, and energy and fuel industry professionals interested in the plant sciences, biotechnology and renewable energy.

Crop plants growing under field conditions are constantly exposed to various abiotic and biotic stress factors leading to decreased yield and quality of produce. In order to achieve sustainable development in agriculture and to increase agricultural production for feeding an increasing global population, it is necessary to use ecologically compatible and environmentally friendly strategies to decrease the adverse effects of stresses on the plant. Selenium is one of the critical elements from the biological contexts because it is essential for human health; however, it becomes toxic at high concentrations. It has been widely reported that selenium can promote plant growth and alleviate various stresses as well as increase the quantity and quality of the yield of many plant species. Nonetheless, at high concentrations, selenium causes phytotoxicity. In the last decade, nanotechnology has emerged as a prominent tool for enhancing agricultural productivity. The production and applicationsof nanoparticles (NPs) have greatly increased in many industries, such as energy production, healthcare, agriculture, and environmental protection. The application of NPs has attracted interest for their potential to alleviate abiotic and biotic stresses in a more rapid, cost-effective, and more sustainable way than conventional treatment technologies. Recently, research related to selenium-NPs-mediated abiotic stresses and nutritional improvements in plants has received considerable interest by the scientific community. While significant progress was made in selenium biochemistry in relation to stress tolerance, an in-depth understanding of the molecular mechanisms associated with the selenium- and nano-selenium-mediated stress tolerance and bio-fortification in plants is still lacking. Gaining a better knowledge of the regulatory and molecular mechanisms that control selenium uptake, assimilation, and tolerance in plants is therefore vital and necessary to develop modern crop varieties that are more resilient to environmental stress. This book provides a comprehensive overview of the latest understanding of the physiological, biochemical, and molecular basis of selenium- and nano-selenium-mediated environmental stress tolerance and crop quality improvements in plants. It helps researchers to develop strategies to enhance crop productivity under stressful conditions and to better utilize natural resources to ensure future food security and to reduce environmental contamination. Finally, this book is a valuable resource for promoting future research into plant stress tolerance, and a reference book for researchers working on developing plants tolerant to abiotic and biotic stressors as well as bio-fortification and phytoremediation.

This edited book details the plant-assisted remediation methods, which involves the interaction of plant roots with associated rhizospheric microorganisms for the remediation of soil and water contaminated with high levels of heavy metals, pesticides, radionuclides, agricultural by-products, municipal wastes, industrial solvents, petroleum hydrocarbons, organic compounds, and various other contaminants. Each chapter highlights and compares the beneficial and economical alternatives of phytoremediation to currently practiced soil, water, and air removal. This book covers state-of-the-art approaches in phytoremediation contributed by leading and eminent scientists from across the world. Phytoremediation approaches for environmental sustainability dealing the readers with a cutting-edge of multidisciplinary understanding in the principal and practical approaches of phytoremediation from laboratory research to field application. This book is of interest to researchers, teachers, environmental scientists, environmental engineers, environmentalists, and policy makers. Also, the book serves as additional reading material for undergraduate and graduate students of environmental microbiology, biotechnology, eco-toxicology, environmental remediation, waste management, and environmental sciences as well as the general audience.

This contributed volume compiles the latest improvements in the field of biotechnology. It focuses on topics that comprises industrial, environment, agricultural and medical related issues to technology and biological studies and exhibits the correlation between the biological world and the dependence of humans on it. The book is organized into five parts covering the role of biotechnology in industrial products, environmental remediation, agriculture and pharmacological agents. Ranging from micro-scale studies to macro, it covers a huge domain of agricultural biotechnology and focuses on important commercial crops (e.g. cacao and coffee), arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, flow and distribution of phosphorus in agricultural soils in the Latin American region. Overall, the book portrays the importance of modern biotechnology and its role in solving the problems in modern day life. The book is a ready reference for practicing students, researchers of environmental engineering, chemical engineering, agricultural engineering, and other allied fields likewise.

The Bambara groundnut (BGN) or Vigna subterranea is an extremely hardy grain legume. As it produces reasonable yields even under conditions of drought and low soil fertility, it is also a climate-smart crop. Previously underutilized, BGN is the subject of growing interest among researchers and consumers for its balanced nutritional profile. Indigenous consumers of BGN report medicinal benefits from the plant; however, such knowledge is at risk of being lost with the urbanization and changing lifestyles of younger generations. To date, there is no comprehensive resource on the Bambara groundnut, despite market demand for plant proteins around the globe. Authored by scientists who have researched and developed patents using BGN, Bambara Groundnut: Utilization and Future Prospects aims to fill this gap. The text provides in-depth coverage on breeding, food and feed utilization, medicinal benefits and future research prospects. Drawing on both indigenous knowledge and cutting-edge research, Bambara Groundnut is the first book to fully explore the potential of this remarkable crop.

Soil is a vital support system for all life forms, and is directly or indirectly exposed to various pollutants and harmful chemicals. Any pollutant entering the soil system not only affects the quality of the soil, but also the plants and crops growing in it. Further, soil pollution has far-reaching impacts, since harmful chemicals can become biomagnified and enter the food chain, causing severe health concerns. Degraded soils can adversely affect various plant systems by creating biotic and abiotic stress, which increases the chances of biochemical and physiological disorders. Chronic diseases and lower yield have been reported as consequences of soil pollution. Drawing on decades of soil-related research, this book focuses on soil pollution, types of soil pollutants, and their impacts on plant physiological and biochemical systems, along with crop productivity. The book begins with a brief introduction to soil pollution and continues with a discussion of the different types and their effects, together with remediation methods. It highlights various sources of soil pollution such as herbicides, acidification, chemical fertilizers, sewage sludge, heavy metals, and radioactive pollutants. It also covers plant responses to combinations of pollutants, effects of pollutants on plant ultrastructure, interactions between pollutants and plant diseases, and interactions between pollutants and agricultural practices. In closing, it addresses the challenges involved in the restoration of degraded land, side effects of agricultural practices in the form of greenhouse gases, and strategies for mitigating these effects. Plant Responses to Soil Pollution offers an essential guide for students, environmental consultants, researchers and other professionals involved in soil and plant-related research.

First published in 1991, Traditional Plant Foods of Canadian Indigenous Peoples details the nutritional properties, botanical characteristics and ethnic uses of a wide variety of traditional plant foods used by the Indigenous Peoples of Canada. Comprehensive and detailed, this volume explores both the technical use of plants and their cultural connections. It will be of interest to scholars from a variety of backgrounds, including Indigenous Peoples with their specific cultural worldviews; nutritionists and other health professionals who work with Indigenous Peoples and other rural people; other biologists, ethnologists, and organizations that address understanding of the resources of the natural world; and academic audiences from a variety of disciplines.

This book provides in-situ phytoremediation strategies that are particularly well suited for developing nations. Its goal is to promote the use of field-tested phytoremediation methods for removing soil and water pollutants from agricultural, industrial, military, and municipal sources. These strategies include using algae and a variety of aquatic and terrestrial plants. The book subsequently discusses the use of crops and native plants for phytoremediation, and how phytoremediation efforts impact the rhizosphere. After having finished the book, readers will be able to directly adapt the strategies described here for their specific purposes.

This book describes various aspects of modern microbiology including microbial enzymes, secondary metabolites, next-generation sequencing, microbial-based biopesticides, microbial-based cancer therapies, biodiesel, and microbial products from fermentation, biodegradation, bioremediation and wastewater treatment. Further, it explains how and why microbes play an important role in preserving the welfare of living beings and the environment. Many bacteria play a significant part in cleaning our environment by detoxifying various xenobiotic compounds, while several microbes produce secondary metabolites that are useful to human beings. The book is divided into 15 chapters that cover various aspects of microorganism-based biotechnology, including recent methodologies such as advanced molecular techniques, as well developments in classical microbiological techniques. The authors also explain how the latest and classical techniques are being used in modern-daymicrobial biotechnology. All chapters were written by experts from prominent universities, research laboratories, and institutes around the globe. Above all, they focus on recent advances in microbial technology that promote the welfare of living beings and the environment.

This book is the result of remarkable contribution from the experts of interdisciplinary fields of Science with comprehensive, in-depth and up-to-date research and reviews.​ It describes the applications of date palm for food, medicine and the environmental sectors. Date palm is one of the oldest cultivated trees and its fruit has been a dietary staple around the world for many centuries. Date pulps contain dietary fibers and easily digestible sugars (70%), mainly glucose, sucrose and fructose. They also contain vitamins like biotin, thiamine, riboflavin, ascorbic and folic acid that are important for our body. The date palm fruit has been used in folk remedies for the treatment of various infectious diseases, cancer and immuno-modulatory activity. Date stones and date palm leaves are freely and abundantly available biomass. Therefore, the renovation of agricultural biomass wastes into activated carbons for drinking water purification, wastewater treatment, treatment of dyes, andmetal-ions from aqueous solution would add value to agricultural commodities which offer a solution to environmental problems as well as reduce the cost of waste disposal.

This book discusses molecular approaches in plant as response to environmental factors, such as variations in temperature, water availability, salinity, and metal stress. The book also covers the impact of increasing global population, urbanization, and industrialization on these molecular behaviors. It covers the natural tolerance mechanism which plants adopt to cope with adverse environments, as well as the novel molecular strategies for engineering the plants in human interest. This book will be of interest to researchers working on the impact of the changing environment on plant ecology, issues of crop yield, and nutrient quantity and quality in agricultural crops. The book will be of interest to researchers as well as policy makers in the environmental and agricultural domains.

Vascular Plants of Alberta is a user-friendly, portable key to the ferns, fern allies, gymnosperms, and monocots of Alberta. This key to the species of Alberta will delight all those interested in botany, with its intuitive and exhaustive presentation of the plants, including new names and taxonomical understandings that have emerged in recent years. Designed to be carried into the field for handy reference and use, Vascular Plants of Alberta presents: A list of all species, native and introduced, known to occur in Alberta, arranged alphabetically Information on scientific names of taxa and their synonyms Keys for identifying taxa, including infra specific Descriptions of the major taxonomic categories Discussion about taxonomic problems and relationships of the taxa Distribution and habitat information for native species Descriptions for new taxa

This open access book addresses a wide variety of events and technologies concerning the sago palm, ranging from its botanical characteristics, culture and use to social conditions in the places where it is grown, in order to provide a record of research findings and to benefit society. It discusses various subjects, including the sago palm and related species; differentiation of species of starch-producing palm; habitat, morphological, physiological and growth characteristics; culture and management; productivity of carbon dioxide; starch extraction and manufacture; characteristics and utilization of starch; and cultural anthropological and folkloristic aspects. Problems such as food shortages due to increasing populations, global warming and climate change, and decreasing reserves of oil and other underground resources, have become more pressing in recent years. In the context of these problems, the book examines the role of the sago palm in sustainable food production, in the manufacture of other foodstuffs, as a raw material for ethanol and in the manufacture of biodegradable plastics. In addition to academics, this book will be useful to researchers and government officials working for international agencies, national governments, municipalities, and other research organizations; technicians, researchers, managers, entrepreneurs, and others working in industries such as agriculture, plant production, food production, manufacturing, chemical engineering, energy production, and distribution.

The book describes the innovations that enabled botany, in the Eighteenth century, to emerge as an independent science, independent from medicine and herbalism. This encompassed the development of a reliable system for plant classification and the invention of a nomenclature that could be universally applied and understood. The key that enabled Linnaeus to devise his classification system was the discovery of the sexuality of plants. The book, which is intended for the educated general reader, proceeds to illustrate how many aspects of French life were permeated by this revolution in botany between about 1760 to 1815, a botanophilia sometimes inflated into botanomania. The reader should emerge with a clearer understanding of what the Enlightenment actually was in contrast to some popular second-hand ideas today.

A long time ago botany used to be regarded as the scientia amabilis, the friendly science, eminently suitable for leisured amateurs. Since then, and particularly in this century, it has grown tremendously in its importance and in its intimate contacts with various other disciplines of science, some of which, like plant genetics and plant physiology, at one time indeed used to be included under the broad term botany. In spite of the fact that such subjects have expanded into major scientific fields of their own, botany, the mother science, continues to maintain its central place: this is because it deals with plants which constitute one of the most vital life-supporting systems of this planet. Furthermore, interacting and benefiting from advances made in other sciences, it has steadily progressed in a number of areas. Experimental embryology of vascular plants is one such field where spectacular advances have been made in recent years. The time is therefore particularly opportune for the publication of an authoritative book on the subject. It is very appropriate that the book has been planned and edited by Professor B. M. Johri, one of India's foremost botanists, whose contributions in embryology, plant morphology and morphogenesis are internationally known. He was closely associated over a number of years with Professor P. Maheshwari, the great botanist and embryologist, to whom the book is dedicated.

This book studies a striking example of intensely negotiated colonial scientific practice: the case of botanical practice in Korea during the Japanese colonisation from 1910 to 1945.The shared aim of botanists who encountered one another in colonial Korea to practise “modern Western botany” is successfully revealed through analysis of their fieldwork and subsequent publications. By exploring the variations in what that term should mean and the politically charged nature of the interactions between both imperial and colonial players, it reveals how botanists of the region created to a form of scientific practice that was neither clearly Western nor particularly modern. It shows how the botany that evolved in this context was a product of colonially resourced, globally connected practice, immersed in intertwined traditions, rather than simply a copy of'modern Western botany”.Utilizing extensive primary sources, this book will be of interest to students and scholars of the history of science, colonial Korean history and environmental history.

This groundbreaking interdisciplinary collection interrogates the significance of Deleuze's work in the recent and dramatic nonhuman turn. It confronts questions about environmental futures, animals and plants, nonhuman structures and systems, and the place of objects in a more-than-human world.

Reviewers from diverse branches of botany have exerted pressure to have chapters dealing with their field extended. If only to cover his incompetence, the author could not accede to these requests. Nor was it possible to respond to Eastern European urgings to extend the classificatory terminology, especially in ChapterX. He is grateful for indications of factual shortcomings in the chosen field, especially for those by Dr. RUDOLF SCHMID (Ann Arbor), who provided exten­ sive comment. L. VAN DER PIlL The Hague, spring 1972 Preface to the First Edition The work offered here is a companion volume to the work by K. FAEGRI and 1. VAN DER PIJL, Principles of Pollination Ecology, whim. deals with the preced­ ing phase of reproduction in plants. In the present work too, the emphasis is on principles and ecology. It is neither an enumeration of mechanisms, nor a compilation of cases. RIDLEY'S monumental work The Dispersal of Plants Throughout the World comprises 700 large pages of small print, and research has proceeded since then. Though this work is more than just a compilation and contains much insight and thoughts on principles in addition to reviews, its completeness hinders its use as a text­ book. As a reference work, it is unsurpassed and the writer made frequent use of it. The writer paid special attention to functional backgrounds for the use of taxonomists working with'characters'and to biosystematics at the macro-level.

The book is the first comprehensive analysis of the macroecology and geobotany of endemic vascular plants with case-studies and analyses from different regions in the world. Endemism is a pre-extinction phenomenon. Endemics are threatened with extinction. Due to international nature conservation policies and due to the perception of the public the concept's importance is increasing. Endemism can result from different biological and environmental processes. Depending on the process conservation measures should be adapted. Endemic vascular plant taxa, in the setting of their species composition and vegetation types are important features of landscapes and indicators of the quality of relating habitats. The book is an important basis for biologists, ecologists, geographers, planners and managers of nature reserves and national parks, and people generally interested in nature conservation and biogeography of vascular plants.

The aim of this book is to give an overview of the most important aspects of physiological and biochemical basis for metal toxicity and tolerance in plants. The book is expected to serve as a reference to university and college teachers, students of plant sciences, environmental biology, environmental biotechnology, agriculture, horticulture, forestry, plant molecular biology, and genetics.

Bioprocess engineering has played a key role in biotechnology, contributing towards bringing the exciting new discoveries of molecular and cellular biology into the applied sphere, and in maintaining established processes, some centuries-old, efficient and essential for today's industry. Novel developments and new application areas of biotechnology, along with increasing constraints in costs, product quality, regulatory and environmental considerations, have placed the biochemical engineer at the forefront of new challenges. This second volume of Advances in Bioprocess Engineering reflects precisely the multidisciplinary nature of the field, where new and traditional areas of application are nurtured by a better understanding of fundamental phenomena and by the utilization of novel techniques and methodologies. The chapters in this book were written by the invited speakers to the 2nd International Symposium on Bioprocess Engineering, Mazatlan, Mexico, September 1997.

The mosses (Bryophatea, Musci) are a diverse and widely distributed group of land plants. Mosses are attractive experimental plants because they exhibit the traditional attributes of good model systems (Le. ease of growth & maintenance, fast generation time, and amenable genetics) with the added advantage of a haploid gametophyte that allowed developmental mutants to be recovered with relative ease. In addition, mosses with the ability to tolerate extreme environmental conditions offer realistic models for the analysis of environmental stress-tolerance; particularly when compared to tracheophytes such as Arabidopsis thaliana in which these important plant phenotypes are either not clearly expressed or entirely lacking. And, in one of the most exciting developments in Plant Biology, efficient homologous recombination occurs in the moss Physcomitrella patens. The ability to perform efficient homologous recombination (Le. gene knock-outs) in P. patens is at present unique amongst all plants and represents an extremely powerful technique for the functional analysis of many plant genes. Over the past 5 years, a world-wide community of moss researchers has evolved. A highly successful'Moss'conference has been held annually (l998-Mumbai, India; 1999-Carbondale, IL, USA; 2000-Villars, Switzerland; 200l-0kazaki, Japan; 2002-Ambleside, UK; 2003-St. Louis, MO, USA) with'Moss 2004'planned to be held in Frieburg Germany. These conferences have been instrumental in the creation & development of strong collaborative ties, and the free exchange of both ideas and materials.

Much of Europe has been complaining recently of unseasonal weathe- disastrous floods in Eastern Europe, temperatures reaching over 40'C in Central Europe, no decent rain for months in parts of the Balkans, coupled with unusually long and severe frosts in winter. Indeed, wheat yields in Serbia for 2003 are expected to be reduced by over 30% because of the combination of a long frost during winter with insufficient protective snow cover, very low rainfall in the spring months and sudden high temperatures reaching over 30·C at the time of flowering. So, with this background, it is very timely that this volume on Abiotic Stresses in Plants has been put together. Each of the eight chapters focuses on a different aspect of abiotic stress, presenting reviews of recent advances in the subject. Rather than summarise the contents of each chapter, I'll focus on some of the advances in technologies presented here for elucidating the molecular, genetic and biochemical mechanisms that regulate plant responses to stresses and which also provide opportunities for improving plant performance under abiotic stresses. The last 20 years has seen a revolution in the availability of technologies for this, starting with the development of transformation technologies to study the role of an individual gene, then came molecular marker technologies to study the genetic control of stress responses, and in recent years the'-omics'(genomics, proteomics and metabolomics) have been developed to create an integrated picture of how the plant responds to a particular stress.

Modern methods and approaches, such as the analysis of molecular sequences to infer evolutionary relationships among organisms, have provided vast new sets of data to further our understanding ofliving organisms, but there remain enigmas in the biological world that will keep scientists working and thinking for decades. Microorganisms by virtue of their small size and almost unbounded diversity provide ample examples of intriguing mysteries that are being challenged with all of the techniques the modern scientific arsenal can provide. One whole arena of this battle to resolve puzzling mysteries about various microorganisms is the almost unbelievable ability of many micro-organisms to live in extreme environments. Whether the challenge is extreme heat, cold, pressure, hyper­ salinity, alkalinity or acidity, some micro-organisms live now where no life might seem possible. This fascinating state of affairs is the context for this present volume edited by Joseph Seckbach. This Volume is a compilation of many of the especially interesting questions and biological challenges that arise in the consideration of microorganisms in general and the extremophiles in particular.

Following the rapid developments in the UV-B measurement techniques and the rapidly growing research in the field in the late 80's and early 90's, we organized a large gathering of distinguished experts in a NATO Advanced Study Institute, held in Halkidiki, Greece on October, 2-11. 1995. The Institute was organized so as to include state of the art lectures on most aspects of solar ultraviolet radiation and its effects. This was achieved by extended lectures and discussions given in five sessions by 27 lecturers and a demonstration of filed measurements and calibration techniques at the end of the Institute. The ASI began with the sun and fundamentals on solar radiative emissions and their variability in time and continued with the interaction of solar Ultraviolet with the atmosphere through the complex scattering processes and photochemical reactions involved. Particular emphasis was given to changes in atmospheric composition imposed by different manifestations of the solar activity cycle. as well as on the modelling of radiative transfer through the atmosphere and the ocean under variable environmental conditions. Overviews on the ozone issue. its monitoring and variability were extensively discussed with emphasis on the observed acceleration of ozone decline in the early 90's. This acceleration had as a consequence, significant increases in UV-B radiation observed at a few world-wide distributed stations.

In recent years an increasing number of studies have been published reporting observations of adapted behaviour and shifting species ranges of plant and animal species due to recent climate warming. Are these `fingerprints'of climate change? An international conference was organised to bring together scientists from different continents with different expertise but sharing the same issue of climate change impact studies. Ecologists, zoologists, and botanists exchanged and discussed the findings from their individual field of research. The present book is an international collection of biological signs of recent climate warming, neither based only on computer models nor on prediction for the future, but mainly on actually occurring changes in the biosphere such as adapted behaviour or shifts in the ranges of species. `Fingerprints'of Climate Change presents ecological evidence that organisms are responding to recent global warming. The observed changes may foreshadow the types of impacts likely to become more frequent and widespread with continued warming.

This book has been a long time in preparation. Initially it grew out of our frustrating attempts over the past ten years to identify the filamentous bacteria seen in large numbers in most activated sludge plants, and the realization that we know very little about them and the other microbial populations in these systems. Unfortunately this book does not provide many answers to the problems these filamentous bacteria can cause, but we hope it might encourage microbiologists and engineers to communi­ cate more with each other and to spend some time trying to understand the tax­ onomy, ecology and physiology of activated sludge microbes. It is now very timely, for example, to try to provide these filamentous bacteria with proper taxonomically valid names and to determine their correct place in bacterial classifications. This book is not meant to compete directly with the books by Gray (1989, 1990) nor the excellent manual published by Jenkins and coworkers (1993b), which has been invaluable to us and others trying to identify filamentous bacteria. Wanner's book (1994a) also provides an excellent account of the problems of bulking and foaming caused by filamentous bacteria. These publications and others by Eikelboom's group have made an enormous contribution to the study of filamentous bacteria, and will con­ tinue to do so.

Air pollution is ubiquitous in industrialized societies, causing a host of environmental problems. It is thus essential to monitor and reduce pollution levels. A number of plant species already are being exploited as detectors (for phytomonitoring) and as scavengers (for phytoremediation) of air pollutants. With advances in biotechnology, it is now feasible to modify plants for a wider range of phytomonitoring and phytoremediation applications. Air Pollution and Plant Biotechnology presents recent results in this field, including plant responses during phytomonitoring, pollution-resistant plant species, imaging diagnosis of plant responses, and the use of novel transgenic plants, along with reviews of basic plant physiology and biochemistry where appropriate. Researchers and students working in plant biotechnology and the environmental sciences or considering new areas of investigation will find this volume a valuable reference.

Rice production is affected by changing climate conditions and has the dual role of contributing to global warming through emissions of the greenhouse gas methane. Climate change has been recognized as a major threat to the global environment. Because of insufficient field data, rice-growing countries face a problem when trying to comply with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change stipulations to compile a national inventory of emissions and to explore mitigation options. Given the expected doubling in rice production in Asia, the need to evaluate the interaction between climate change and rice production is critical to forming a sound basis for future directions of technology developments by policy makers, agriculturists, environmentalists, rice producers, and rice consumers. The present book comprises two sections. The first part documents a comprehensive overview of the results achieved from an interregional research effort to quantify methane emission from major rice ecosystems and to identify efficient mitigation options. This research report broadens understanding of the contribution of rice cultivation to methane emissions and clarifies that emissions are relatively low, except in specific rice ecosystems, and that these high emissions could be ameliorated without sacrificing yield. The second section shows results from other projects that investigated the role of rice cultivators in field and laboratory approaches. The findings represent inputs for future modeling approaches in the role of rice cultivators. The expanded database generated by other projects is reflected in modeling efforts.

In the history of the International Plant Nutrition Colloquium from its first meeting in 1954, this meeting, the 13th Colloquium, is the first to be held in Asia and will be the last in the 20th century. The 20th century has seen huge changes in the number and activities of mankind. Our population has increased from around 1. 7 billion to more than 5. 8 billion and technological innovations have completely altered our way of living. As a consequence of such rapid change, we are facing many problems including changes in our environment of a global scale. But, while food shortage has been a serious concern to mankind throughout our history, serious food shortages in the 20th century have been confined to limited times and areas. As Lester Brown discusses in this volume, farmers have increased food production heroically on demand. We, the plant nutritionists should be proud of our support to the world's farmers which has helped them make their achievement possible. During the 20th century, the science of plant nutrition also has achieved great progress as described by Jack Loneragan; it became established as a discipline firmly based in science, defined the chemical elements supporting plant growth, and has contributed to improvements in plant production and environmental quality, as readers will find in many contributions in this volume.