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      • Trusted Partner
        Technology, Engineering & Agriculture
        April 2017

        Legumes in Cropping Systems

        by Donal Murphy-Bokern, Fred Stoddard, Christine Watson

        Based on contributions from members of the Legumes Future research consortium and complemented by articles from other research teams, this book provides a comprehensive overview of knowledge relevant to developing legume-supported cropping systems in Europe. It reflects the growing interest in using legumes to improve cropping and the current debate over the imbalance in European systems where the low use of legumes has caused concern in the agricultural policy community. This book supports informed debate and decision-making that addresses the associated challenges. Legumes in Cropping Systems presents current knowledge on this subject across 15 coordinated chapters. Each chapter addresses a specific aspect of legume cropping and provides insight into the relevant literature to help support understanding and explore the underlying processes that influence cropping system development. This book includes coverage of: · the role of legumes in cropping systems; · the role of legumes in European protein supplies; · environmental effects of grain and forage legumes; · current status of the major grain and forage legume crops; · economic effects; and · policy development. Written by an international team of expert authors and presented in full-colour throughout, this book is an invaluable resource for researchers in agronomy and crop sciences, agricultural professionals, policy makers, and students. ; This book is a comprehensive overview of legume research, from intercropping with legumes and cereals to legumes grown as a primary protein source, crop protection progress and policy issues. It contributes to debate and knowledge for the rebalance of farming and food using legumes.

      • Trusted Partner
        Animal husbandry
        June 1995

        Tropical Legumes in Animal Nutrition

        by J P F D'Mello, C Devendra

        Legumes have diverse uses and roles in agriculture and environmental protection. They are particularly important in the tropics for a number of reasons. Browse or tree species are renowned for their drought resistance and their role in the prevention of desertification. All legumes can fix atmospheric nitrogen, thus reducing the cost of fertilizers to farmers who may not be able to afford them. While tropical grasses are often of poor nutritive value, both browse and pasture legumes may have a higher protein content, palatability and digestibility. This volume focuses on the use of tropical browse, pasture and grain legumes in animal nutrition. It is written by leading authorities from the UK, Australia, India and Malaysia.

      • Trusted Partner
        Socialism & left-of-centre democratic ideologies
        October 2014

        Against the grain

        The British far left from 1956

        by Edited by Evan Smith and Matthew Worley

        Against the grain is the first general history of the British far left to be published in the twenty-first century. Its contents cover a range of organisations beyond the Labour Party, bringing together leading experts on British left-wing politics to examine issues of class, race and gender from 1956 to the present day. The essays collected here are designed to highlight the impact made by the far left on British politics and society. Though the predicted revolution did not come, organisations such as the International Socialists, the International Marxist Group and Militant became household names in the 1970s and 1980s. Taken as a whole, the collection demonstrates the extent to which the far left has weaved its influence into the political fabric of Britain.

      • Trusted Partner
        Botany & plant sciences
        December 1997

        Pathology of Food and Pasture Legumes

        by Edited by David J Allen, Jillian M Lenné

        The plant family Leguminosae is second in economic importance only to Gramineae, which includes the world's cereals and pasture grasses. Indeed, about one quarter of the total output of crop protein in the world as a whole is derived from legumes, which are of great importance both in human diets and in the feeding of livestock. Production is nevertheless limited by major diseases, and therefore there is a great need for a reference book on the pathology of food and pasture legumes. This book fills that need and provides substantial critical reviews of each crop type. It is written by leading research workers from the USA, UK, India, Nigeria, Malawi, New Zealand, Syria and Uganda. The content is thus applicable to both the developed and the developing world, and to temperate and tropical zones. Well illustrated with both monochrome and colour plates, and thoroughly referenced to the research literature, it represents an indispensable volume for plant pathologists and legume agronomists.

      • Trusted Partner
        Science & Mathematics
        February 2017

        Seed Biology and Yield of Grain Crops

        by Dennis B Egli

        This new edition of an established title examines the determination of grain crop yield from a unique perspective, by concentrating on the influence of the seed itself. As the food supply for an expanding world population is based on grain crops harvested for their seeds, understanding the process of seed growth and its regulation is crucial to our efforts to increase production and meet the needs of that population. Yield of grain crops is determined by their assimilatory processes such as photosynthesis and the biosynthetic processes in the seed, which are partly regulated within the seed itself. Providing a timely update in this field and highlighting the impact of the seed on grain crop yields, this book: · Describes all aspects of seed growth and development, including environmental and genetic effects on growth rate and length of the filling period. · Discusses the role of the seed in determining the two main yield components: individual seed weight and number of seeds per unit area. · Uses the concepts and models that have been developed to understand crop management and yield improvement. Substantially updated with new research and further developments of the practical applications of the concepts explored, this book is essential reading for those concerned with seed science and crop yield, including agronomists, crop physiologists, plant breeders, and extension workers. It is also a valuable source of information for lecturers and graduate students of agronomy and plant physiology. ; This is a new edition of an established title examines the determination of grain crop yield from a unique perspective, by concentrating on the influence of the seed itself. ; Chapter 1: IntroductionChapter 2: Seed Growth and DevelopmentChapter 3: Seed Growth Rate and Seed-Fill Duration: Variation and Regulation.Chapter 4: Yield Components-Regulation by the Seed Chapter 5: The Seed, Crop Management, and YieldChapter 6: The Way Forward

      • Trusted Partner
        Agricultural science
        May 1998

        Seed Biology and the Yield of Grain Crops

        by Dennis B Egli

        The food supply to an expanding world population is based on grain crops, i.e. crops harvested for their seeds. Therefore, understanding the process of seed growth and its regulation is crucial in our efforts to increase production, in order to meet the needs of that population. Yield is determined by the ability of crop plants to use their assimilatory processes such as photosynthesis and also the biosynthetic processes in the seed, which are partly regulated within the seed itself. This book examines the determination of grain crop yield from a new and unique perspective, by concentrating on the influence of the seed. All aspects of seed growth and development are described, including environmental and genetic effects on growth rate and length of filling period. The effect of the seed on the two main yield components, individual seed weight and number of seeds per unit area, is then discussed. Finally, the concepts and models developed are evaluated in terms of crop management. The book is essential reading for those concerned with seed science and crop yield, including agronomists, crop physiologists, plant breeders, and extension workers. It will also be a valuable source of information for lecturers and graduate students of agronomy and plant physiology.

      • Trusted Partner
        Agronomy & crop production
        September 2011

        Biology and Breeding of Food Legumes

        by Geert Angenon, Ashwani K Basandrai, Judith Burstin, Steven B Cannon, S K Chaturvedi, H K Chaudhary, Percy Maruwa Chimwamurombe, Nazmul Haq, Manabu Ishitani, Shiv Kumar, Monika Lulsdorf, Michael Materne, Nobuko Ohmido, Klaus Oldach, Reid G Palmer, Marta Santalla, Jessica Schlueter, B B Singh, Mohar Singh, Carlos Roberto Spehar, Brijesh K Tiwari, Cenzig Toker, Rajeev K Varshney, Maria Wedzony, Asibuo James Yaw. Edited by Aditya Pratap, Jitendra Kumar.

        Food legumes are important constituents of human and animal nutrition, supplying high quality proteins crucial for a balanced diet. These crops also play an important role in low-input agricultural production systems by fixing atmospheric nitrogen. Despite systematic and continuous breeding efforts by legume researchers all over the world, substantial genetic gains have not been achieved. These issues require immediate attention, and overall, a paradigm shift is needed in breeding strategies to strengthen our traditional crop improvement programs. To this end, Biology and Breeding of Food Legumes provides extensive information on their history, origin, evolution and botany, as well as breeding objectives and procedures, nutritional improvement, industrial uses, post-harvest technology and recent developments made through biotechnological intervention.

      • Trusted Partner
        Botany & plant sciences
        December 1994

        Azuki Bean

        Botany, Production and Uses

        by Thomas A Lumpkin, Dean C McClary

        Azuki is one of the twelve most important grain legumes in the world and is grown widely in China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. It has also been produced or studied in several other countries, including the USA (Minnesota and Washington States), Argentina and Australia. In Japan, azuki is an essential ingredient of both seki-han, a festive rice dish, and an, a sweetened bean paste. Botanically, it formerly belonged to the genus Phaseolus, but it has recently been transferred to the genus Vigna with relatives such as mungbean, black gram and rice bean. This book is the first comprehensive work on this crop. It draws extensively on the Chinese, Japanese and other East Asian literature and is based on a review of approximately 800 published references. It is a definitive reference work that should greatly enhance interest in the crop. It is aimed at researchers throughout the world working on grain legumes, as well as others in agronomy and plant science.

      • Trusted Partner
        September 2021

        Applied Crop Physiology

        Understanding the Fundamentals of Grain Crop Management

        by Dennis Egli

        This book presents a simple, straightforward discussion of the principles and processes involved in the production of grain yield by agronomic crops, and how these processes underlie and influence management decisions. The focus is on grain crops, principally maize and soybean, although the general principles apply equally well to cereals, grain legumes and oil crops. Management decisions define all cropping systems - what (crop species, variety), where (climate), when (planting date), and how (row spacing and population density) are the fundamental choices. Knowledge of the fundamental processes responsible for plant growth and the accumulation of yield simplifies the decision-making process and leads to improved management decisions, higher grain yields, and cropping systems that are efficient, resilient and sustainable. The contents include: · Basic plant growth processes e.g. photosynthesis, respiration, evapotranspiration · Growth and production of yield · Crop management - seed quality, variety selection, plant date, row spacing · Crop production in the future - climate change, GMOs, precision data and new crops Intended for researchers in crop science, agronomy and plant science, and crop production practitioners, this book will enable readers to make better, more informed management decisions; decisions that will help maintain a well-fed world in the future.

      • Trusted Partner
        Economics
        February 1998

        Against the Grain

        Agri-Environmental Reform In the United States and European Union

        by Clive Potter

        Agricultural policy has long been regarded as a driving force for rural environmental change in industrial countries. While the causes of recent habitat loss, landscape degradation, soil erosion and water pollution in the EU and US are undoubtedly complex, the most convincing explanations are still ones that are strongly policy driven. By the mid-1980s, environmentalists had come to the conclusion that a major change to farm support in favour of the environment was required if the environmental problems of modern agriculture were to be tackled at source.Against the Grain tells the story of the long campaign for agri-environmental reform which followed. The central argument of this timely book is that in order to appreciate the significance of the reforms themselves, and to predict where they are going, it is necessary to understand why they occurred and how they were accomplished. The book offers a unique comparative analysis of the greening process in the US and EU, connecting policy outcomes to the political battles which produced them. It reflects on what has been achieved in each case and seeks to identify what countries can learn from each other. With its fresh analysis of what promises to be an increasingly central component of rural policy, this book is essential reading for analysts and policy-makers as well as an important text for senior undergraduates and postgraduates in rural geography, agricultural and environmental economics and environmental studies.

      • Trusted Partner
        Insecticide & herbicide technology
        May 1998

        African Cereal Stem Borers

        Economic Importance, Natural Enemies and Control

        by Edited by Andrew Polaszek

        An assemblage of approximately twenty moth species belonging to the families Crambidae, Pyralidae and Noctuidae constitute the most important cereal pests in many parts of Africa. The caterpillars of these moths bore into the stems of maize, sorghum, millet and rice, often killing the plant, and are commonly known as stem or stalk borers. The cereals attacked are grown by smallholders to feed themselves and their families and are of great importance as the staple food for the population in most parts of Africa. Complex control measures, including the use of chemicals, are often inappropriate.This book provides fundamental information necessary for formulating integrated pest management of African cereal stem borers, in particular any natural enemy component. Firstly, the economically important species are characterized regionally and according to their biology and host plants, both wild and cultivated. The taxonomy of the moths, their larvae and their natural enemies is examined in detail and techniques of rearing are described. Illustrated keys are provided for their recognition, and their distributions and hosts are listed. Finally, the control measures currently in use and those being investigated, are summarized.This book is essential reading for applied entomologists, agronomists and extension workers with an active interest in cereal production in Africa and will be of value to all those concerned with integrated pest management in the tropics.

      • Trusted Partner
        Agricultural science
        April 1998

        Lupins as Crop Plants

        Biology, Production and Utilization

        by Edited by J S Gladstones, C Atkins, John Hamblin

        Lupins have until recently remained wild or semi-domesticated species of minor interest to agriculture, although their value as a rotation crop was noted 2,000 years ago. However, with the advent of the science of genetics in the early twentieth century, full domestication of Lupinus species for use as crops was begun, by the combination of favourable genes such as those for low alkaloid content, non-shattering pods and soft seeds. As a result several lupin species have become an important part of temperate farming systems as a high protein crop for both animal and human consumption. This book gives an authoritative account of the history, distribution and taxonomy of Lupinus species and the current knowledge of all aspects of their agronomy and impact on agriculture, including breeding, genetics and biotechnology, nutrition, nitrogen fixation, transport physiology, toxins, stress responses, pests and diseases, agronomy and farming systems, composition and food uses, economic value and trade. Contributions are made by researchers in Australia and Europe who have had key roles in lupin research. The book is essential reading for botanists, agronomists, plant breeders and geneticists involved with lupins and other grain legumes or with an interest in crop domestication and evolution. It also provides important information for lecturers and students of agriculture and for professionals in the livestock and food industries.

      • Trusted Partner
        Socialism & left-of-centre democratic ideologies
        December 2014

        Against the grain

        by Edited by Evan Smith and Matthew Worley

      • Trusted Partner
        Humanities & Social Sciences
        January 2017

        Against the grain

        The British far left from 1956

        by Evan Smith, Matthew Worley

        This is the first general history of the British far left to be published in the twenty-first century. Its contents cover a range of organisations beyond the Labour Party, bringing together leading experts on British left-wing politics to examine issues of class, race and gender from 1956 to the present day. The essays collected here are designed to highlight the impact made by the far left on British politics and society. Though the predicted revolution did not come, organisations such as the International Socialists, the International Marxist Group and Militant became household names in the 1970s and 1980s. Taken as a whole, the collection demonstrates the extent to which the far left has weaved its influence into the political fabric of Britain.

      • Trusted Partner
        December 2024

        The Rangelands of Libya

        by Gustave Gintzburger, Slim Saïdi

        Libya remains a land of mysteries with a harsh arid climate, a land rich in millenaries of troubled history, a land where the Sahara meet the Mediterranean Sea, a land where the West and the East Mediterranean merge. Libya is also a land where the desert and the sown intermingle in the steppe country where the rainfall is unpredictable, the soils are poor, rocky, saline, rendering rainfed cultivation hazardous, where grazing and rainfed cropping remained for long the only viable agricultural options. Over the past 60 years, oil resources allowed gigantic agricultural development projects, urbanization, road network expansion and well drilling. This changed the ways of life of rural populations, impacting and undoubtedly altering rangelands conditions and systems, as well as native vegetation cover, wildlife and land use. This book reviews the past and current environmental and agricultural condition of the Libyan rangelands with example of how territories and resources are used by tribal communities. It describes, explains and illustrates the landscapes, the vegetation, the wildlife, the rainfed cereal systems and livestock systems, the reasons for the rampant overstocking, the relentless land clearing for hazardous cropping and uncertain irrigation projects, the wild fuelwood collection and charcoal manufacturing, triggering land degradation and desertification. Long-tested rangeland recovery and rehabilitation techniques in Libya are reviewed using appropriate plant material and proven establishment techniques with successes and failures assessed. This book is offered in hopes of a better future for the Libyan people and the whole Mediterranean arid regions from Morocco to Pakistan.

      • Trusted Partner
        Agriculture & related industries
        June 2015

        Transition to Agricultural Market Economies

        The Future of Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine

        by Edited by Andrew Schmitz, William H Meyers.

        It is believed that the major countries of the former Soviet Union—specifically Kazakhstan, Russia, and Ukraine (KRU region)—are the part of the world with the most potential to increase food supplies and strengthen world food security. This book examines the future of the KRU countries in global agricultural markets and will examine a number of agricultural sectors, including meat, dairy, fruits, and vegetables. However particular attention is paid to the region’s potential expansion of the grain sector and why the KRU region emerged during the 2000s as a major grain exporter, and its potential to further expand grain production and exports. It also examine the issues of environmental constraints and trade-offs for agriculture, sustainability, and the possible effects of climate change

      • Trusted Partner
        Agricultural science
        December 1997

        Temperate Forage Legumes

        by J Frame. Edited by J F L Charlton, A S Laidlaw.

        The major temperate forage legumes are of global importance in the sustainable productivity of ruminant feed in the developed world. This book brings together in one volume all aspects of their basic biology and associated production practices. Emphasis is placed on the importance of understanding plant characteristics and their consequences in terms of forage output, quality and utilization by livestock. Recent research advances are reviewed and put into context and several recently commercialised species are also covered. The introduction considers the history, current extent, benefits and limits of temperate forage legume usage. Subsequent chapters are dedicated to a comprehensive examination of each forage species in turn, dealing with their origin, morphology, physiology, ecology, nitrogen-fixing capability, cultivars, seed production, nutritive value and productivity. The key factors for optimal management are identified and the prospects for the future outlined, including the potential arising from the use of biotechnology. This book is essential reading for degree and postgraduate students of plant science, agronomy and animal production. Additionally, students and researchers in ecology and environmental science will also find it a valuable resource. The management sections will be of particular value to grassland advisers, consultants and progressive land users.

      • Trusted Partner
        Horticulture
        October 2011

        Agricultural Seed Production

        by Raymond A T George

        A practical coverage of the principles of producing seeds for the main agricultural crops, this book emphasises producing optimal quality seed, and applies to small and large scale farms worldwide. Cereals such as wheats, rice, barley, rye and maize are covered along with pulses, legumes, oil seed rape and soybean. Coverage includes principles of production such as pollination, agronomy issues such as site selection and cultivar purity, seed processing, drying and storage. A focus on global food security is maintained throughout.

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