eChapters

Wind stress at the sea surface not only causes horizontal movement of water (Ekman Net transport), but also leads to vertical motion (Ekman Pumping). This horizontal movement of water leads to the occurrence of upwelling and down welling throughout the oceans both at coastal boundaries as well as in the open ocean. As divergence of surface water causes rising, convergence of the surface water causes sinking. This rising and sinking of water are called upwelling and down welling.

The word mulch was coined by Wagganor in 1960. It is derived from the German word ‘molsch’ means “easy to decay,” and mulches have widely been used for vegetable production since ancient times (Lightfoot 1994). Therefore the term mulching refers to the practice of covering the soil surface with different organic and inorganic materials, known as mulch materials to reduce moisture loss, balance wide variations in diurnal soil temperatures especially in the root zone, control weeds, insect-pests and diseases and finally enhance crop yield (Nalayini 2007; Kader et al. 2019).

Black pepper (Piper nigrum L.), famous as “Black Gold” and also known the “King of Spices” is the most important agricultural commodities of commerce and trade in India. It is the most important, most popular and most widely used spice in the World. Of the total spices traded internationally, black pepper accounts for 34 per cent. South West India is the traditional home of this important spice, particularly the Malabar Coast. Black pepper is also grown in tropical zones such as the Asia Pacific Region, mainly India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, China, Vietnam and Cambodia. Outside the Asia Pacific region, the crop is distributed in Brazil, Mexico, Guatemala, etc., totaling about 26 countries. It is grown successfully between 20°N and 20°S latitude and from mean sea level to 1500 meters above sea level. World’s black pepper production varies in the range of 2.7 to 3.35 tonnes annually. The major production share is contributed by Vietnam with an annual production of 80,000 tonnes. About 85 per cent of the World trade of pepper is determined by the largest pepper producing countries in the International Pepper Community (IPC). World export fluctuates around 1.5–2.5 lakhs tonnes per annum. Global black pepper supply has shown a drastic increase over last ten years except in 2008–09. Vietnam’s sudden increase in production has resulted in the massive global out put of 3–3.5 lakhs metric tonnes from 1.9–2.0 lakhs metric tonnes in late nineties. 

ABSTRACT

Plants play an important role in human survival and contribute to sustainable development as they are the major source of different bioactive compounds such as taxol, digoxin, reserpine and vinblastin used directly as drug and medicines for human diseases. As plants are basic need and requirement for living, they are used as herbal remedy, and known to produce lead compounds for semi synthesis of higher activity or lower toxicity. Indian Himalaya regions are repository of more than 8,000 plants species and out of which 50% are endemic and unique due to thepresence of morphological and chemical structure of peculiar characters. Most of the plant used in Indian traditional system of medicines such as Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha or Amchi described for different formulations and ethnomedicinal applications had distributional range restricted to the hills and the valleys of Himalayas. Hence, in this communication, an attempt has been made to present economic plants of Himalayan origin used as ethnomedicine, wild food plants as vegetables, herbal teas, homemade soups, wild salads, chutney, underground snacks, alcoholic drinks, nutrients as burnt powder and other human usages. Besides, this unique Himalayan plant has potential to be used as wild source for the development of new drugs and medicines which can sustain future to human survival and had the ability to produce medicine against deadly diseases. It is estimated that 80% of the world population uses traditional medicine made from herbal botanicals to cure disease and illness. It is of the record that 122 compounds obtained from ethnomedicinal plants is globally used as drugs. This indicates that tribal knowledge on plants and drug discovery cannot be separated, and newdrugsfor uniquedeadly diseases can be discovered only from ethnobotanical leads. More than 5,000 species reported from Indian Himalayas are of ethnobotanical values and they are used as medicine or wild food by different tribal communities. It can be concluded that Himalayan tribals are endowed with strong culture associated with botanicals and have age-old tradition with respect to the use of wild plants as food and medicine. Plants provide a real substitute for the primary health care systems in hills and valleys, and definitely going to serve as jewel for mankind in near future to come.

Linear models have been extensively used in animal breeding. This chapter explains the basics of linear models including description; fixed, random and mixed models; model diagnostics and covariates. The concept of linear models in animal breeding is explained with representation and actual examples of use in different types of livestock.

Introduction to Linear Models

A model can be defined as a physical, mathematical or otherwise logical representation of a system, entity, phenomenon, or process. Linear models are a way of describing response variables in terms of a linear combination of the predictor variable. They provide a framework for a large set of models whose common goal is to explain or predict a quantitative dependent variable by a set of independent variables that can be categorical or quantitative.

1. INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE

Flower arrangement is a very old art. In India, the flowers have been earlier arranged in temples and during festivities. The first rules of ikebana were laid down in Japan more than a thousand years ago. Flowers have been widely used for interior decoration, but they were cut from the garden and simply massed into water-filled containers to brighten the home. The beauty of the display relied upon the blooms themselves rather than the aesthetic appeal of the design. Even at homes and venues of festivals/functions/on auspicious occasions, flowers are used in a big way in the form of garlands, wall hangings, and floor decorations. Flower arrangements grace table tops, window sills, corners, fire places, and so on to suit the occasion.

Flower arrangement may be defined as the art of organizing and grouping together plant materials (flowers, foliage, fruits, twigs etc) to achieve harmony of form, colour and texture, thereby adding cheer, life and beauty to the surroundings.

Various types of arrangements are chosen, as appropriate to the area and occasion. Medium sized ‘round’ arrangements are often provided at the guest relations executives’ desk in the lobby and on coffee tables in the lounges. In most five-star hotels, one can see huge, spectacular arrangements in the loggies. Table arrangements for conferences must be low so that guests may see over them. At informal banquets, large arrangements may be seen. At wedding banquets, wall arrangements using gerberas are very popular, now a days. On special occasions and festivals, a large amount of flowers is required for making up various types of arrangements. The extent to which flowers are used in hotel interiors depends on the degree of luxury provided, the number of special functions held.

The housekeeper is responsible for all flower arrangements and their placement. Simple arrangements such as a bud in a vase can be done. Alternatively, flower arrangements may be provided on contract, in which case the arrangements are brought in and taken away at agreed times and little or no floral work is carried out on the premises. Arrangements like running water, containers, buckets, vases, scissors and flower pots are important.

1.1 Introduction to Sustainable Energy
The idea of sustainable energy has come to light in the twenty-first century as the globe struggles with rising energy demands, environmental degradation, and the menacing threat of climate change. It offers hope and a way forward for a more promising future. A major change in the production, distribution, and consumption of energy resources is what sustainable energy entails. It is a paradigm that includes a range of clean and renewable energy sources, technologies, and methods with the goal of supplying our energy demands with the least amount of harm to the environment (Andrews and Shabani, 2014). 1.2 Importance of Sustainable Energy Sources Sustainable energy is of paramount importance due to several interconnected reasons listed below and shown in Figure 1:
1.2.1 Environmental Concerns: For many years, conventional fossil fuelbased
energy sources like coal, oil, and natural gas have formed the foundation of our energy system. But as they burn, greenhouse gases (GHGs) mostly carbon dioxide (CO2) are released into the environment (Hosseini and Wahid, 2016). These greenhouse gases are the main causes of climate change, which raises global temperatures, brings on harsh weather, and raises sea levels. Conversely, sustainable energy sources are crucial for reducing climate change because they emit little or no greenhouse gases when in use.
1.2.2 Finite Nature of Fossil Fuels: Because fossil fuels are limited resources,
their stocks are running out quickly. The task that follows is to ensure that future generations have access to economical and dependable energy sources. Because they are renewable or endless, sustainable energy sources provide a solution to the problem of energy security (Su-Ungkavatin et al., 2023).
1.2.3 Economic Benefits: Making the switch to renewable energy can be
very profitable. It can improve national energy security and lessen trade deficits by fostering innovation, generating jobs, and lowering dependency on energy imports. Furthermore, because they frequently have lower operating and maintenance costs than fossil fuel-based systems, sustainable energy technologies can result in cost savings over time (Shafiei et al., 2015).

Summary

Expressed sequence tags are small pieces of DNA sequence (usually 200 to 500 nucleotides long) that are generated by sequencing either one or both ends of an expressed gene. Currently various EST sequencing projects are underway for numerous organisms, generating millions of short, single-pass nucleotide sequence reads, accumulating in EST databases. Extensive computational strategies and various databases have been developed to organize and analyse both small- and large-scale EST data for gene discovery, functional annotation of putative gene products as well as transcript and single nucleotide polymorphism analysis. Present chapter provides an overview of the significance of ESTs, their properties, databases, analysis software and the applications of ESTs.

1. Introduction Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), a cereal grain belongs to the grass family (Poaceae), within the subfamily (Panicoidea) and in the tribe (Andropogoneae) (H.J. et al., 2005). It is grown throughout the world in regions with warmer summers and with daytime temperatures often exceeding 90°F (Rai et al., 1999).After wheat, maize, rice, and barley, it is the fifth most significant and nutritious millet in terms of volume. While many varieties of millets are exclusively cultivated for human consumption, sorghum is widely farmed for – food and feed for humans and animals respectively (Awika, 2011). For millions of people in Africa and Asia, sorghum is commonly consumed as a staple.. In West Africa, sorghum is known as dawa, guinea corn, and sorgho while in Sudan, it is referred as durra; in Ethiopia,Eritrea and East Africa, mtama; in southern Africa, kaffircorn, mabele, or amabele; and in the Indian subcontinent, jowar, jonna, cholam, or jola.(Bantilan et al., 2004).

10.1 Normal Distribution
The normal distribution is the most widely used distribution in statistics. Almost all biological data including the agricultural data eg. crop yield, plant height, seed weight, seed size, protein percent in pulse, oil content in an oil seed etc are assumed to be normally distributed. In practice their distribution is rarely verified. In distribution theory, for large values of n, the number of trial (or sample size), almost all the distributions e.g. Binomial, poission, Negative binomial, chi square, student’s t, and Snedenor’s F distributions etc. are very closely approximated by normal distribution. It is a continuous distribution with mean and variance as its two parameters.

The pineapple, botanically known as Ananas comosus Merr, is the most famous edible member of the Bromeliaceae family. It is native to southern Brazil and is known by a variety of names, including “pina” in Spanish, “abacaxi” in Portuguese, “ananas” in Dutch and French, “nanas” in Southern Asia and the East Indies, “po-lo-mah” in China, “sweet pine” in Jamaica, and merely “pine” in Guatemala (Morton, 1987). After banana and mango, the pineapple is the third most important tropical fruit of the world (Chen et al., 2019; Nath et al., 2019). The pineapple became a major cultural icon of luxury after its introduction to Europe in 17th century. Pineapple has been grown commercially in greenhouses and on many tropical plantations since the 1820s. Furthermore, it is the world’s third-largest tropical fruit producer. Hawaii was a major pineapple producer in the twentieth century, with Costa Rica, Brazil, and the Philippines accounting for nearly a third of global pineapple production. Pineapples grow as a small shrub, with the un-pollinated plant’s individual f lowers fusing to form multiple fruits. The plant is usually propagated from a side shoot or an offset produced at the top of the fruit and it matures in about a year.

Crop Improvement

Pineapple is usually propagated through asexual method by using slips, crowns or suckers. Sexual reproduction in pineapple is barely used due to its self-sterile nature and failure in formation of seeds. Seed set can occur in case of self-fertilization but the seedlings are with low vigour due to inbreeding depression (Robert et al., 2003). Pineapple is heterozygous in nature, on this wise hybridization is possible in this crop. Gametophytic self incompatibility is reported in this crop where pollen tube growth is repressed in the uppermost part of the style. Diploid chromosome number of the crop is 2n=50. The genome size of the crop is estimated to be 526Mb and total genes were anticipated to be around 25,862 in number (Zhang et al., 2014).

Introduction
The identification of crop varieties is crucial in improving agricultural productivity, ensuring quality control, and supporting breeding programs. The correct identification helps improve food security, conserve biodiversity, and manage pests and diseases. Traditionally, farmers were relying on visual traits and phenotypic characteristics, but these methods had their own limitations. Modern molecular techniques, such as DNA fingerprinting and genotyping, have revolutionized variety identification, rendering it both more accurate and efficient. This has allowed for early identification of varieties, assisting in the selection of desired traits and enhancement of crop resilience, thus contributing to more sustainable and productive agricultural practices (Azizi et al., 2021; Khan et al., 2024).
Importance of Crop Variety Identification in Agriculture
Crop variety identification remains one of the most important components in agriculture since it can improve crop production, enhance food security, and improve adaptability of the crops to diverse environmental conditions (Hasan et al., 2021). The major aspects related to correct identification of crop varieties include:
• Quality control and standardization: It is often to measure the quality of crops that could meet market demand, for optimum consumption, and for export.
• Biodiversity conservation: This helps to conserve native crop varieties and regards the preservation of genetic diversity that is key for breeding and in future agricultural resilience.
• Breeding program: It allows the identification of a variety for selecting traits such as disease resistance, drought tolerance, and yield potential for improving agricultural productivity through its effectiveness.
• Pest and disease management: It contributes to pest and disease management too since different crop varieties may express varying levels of resistance which also reflects in pest control strategy.
• Market preferences and economic value: This helps the farmers to supply some specific markets depending on the market demand of certain varieties so as to gain a profit (Hussain & Nisar, 2020; Sharma & Singh, 2021; Tazeb et al., 2018; Dheer et al., 2020; Jamali et al., 2019).

Vegetables belonging to the family Brassicaceae (Syn: Cruciferae) are known as Cole crops.  These are the most widely grown vegetables in temperate and sub-tropical zones.  The word ‘Cole’ comes from abbreviation of word ‘caulis’ meaning stem.  Cole crops are a group of highly differentiated plants originated from a wild plant Brassica oleracea var. oleracea (=B. sylvestris L.) commonly known as “Wild cliff cabbage” or “colewort”, through mutation, human selection or adaptation. Cole crops include cabbage, cauliflower, knol khol, Brussels sprouts, Chinese cabbage, sprouting broccoli, kale etc. of which cabbage and cauliflower are the most popular and widely grown.

Since floricultural and ornamental crops are grown for aesthetic purpose and are non-edible there is likely to be less concern in bio safety issues compared to other food crops. Hence there is considerable potential for developing transgenics in ornamental crops. Advances in transgenic technology provide new opportunities for manipulation of the genome. These will have significant impact on expanding and diversifying the gene pool of crop plants, introducing specific genes and shortening the time required for the production of new varieties or hybrids. Molecular breeding is beneficial to increase the production and quality by creating plants with enhanced resistance to diseases, insects or viruses and increased tolerance to environmental stresses like salinity, temperature or drought. Through this technique genes for shelf life, flower colour and architecture may be directly transferred to develop new varieties that are tailor made to customer preferences. Bioluminescent orchids and blue roses are the significant outcomes of the genetic transformation studies in ornamentals (Swarnapiria, 2009).

Coffee is grown at higher elevation across the Western Ghats between 750 and 1200 m amsl. It requires a certain degree of shade for its better performance.  The annual rainfall over the coffee growing tracts varies between 1400 and 2600mm, having uni/bi-model rainfall with prolonged dryspell from November to May. It is more so over North of the Western Ghats. The mean annual maximum temperature varies between 24 and 300C while the minimum between 15 and 180C. The difference between maximum and minimum temperatures (temperature range) varies between 5 and 160C across the coffee tract. The ‘Monsooned Malabar Coffee’ is a specialty coffee produced from the erstwhile ‘Malabar Region’. It undergoes certain changes in physical and biochemical characters when the coffee beans are processed during the summer monsoon (June to September). It is processed at Mangalore, located in Coastal Karnataka. The processing location experiences heavy rainfall of more than 1000 mm in July, followed by 950 mm in June and 600 mm in August. Out of 3264 mm of annual rainfall, 2852 mm is received during the monsoon period. It accounts more than 80 per cent of annual rainfall. The maximum temperature during the coffee monsooning period varies between 28 and 30°C while night temperature revolves between 22 and 24°C. Being located in the tropics along the West Coast, the crop processing environment in terms of surface air temperature is relatively uniform and moderate with a characteristic feature of heavy clouds and continuous rainfall during the monsoon period. These monsoon features are more predominant from the middle of June to August during which the coffee beans are subjected to monsooning. The coffee beans
bulge in the process of monsooning and the volume increases significantly due to absorption of atmospheric moisture. It is directly related to the monsoonal wind during which coffee beans are processed. The bulging was less in all the samples processed during monsoon 2003, which varied from 2.1 to 2.7 ml/100 number, while it ranged between 2.7 and 5.8 ml/100 number in the samples processed during monsoon 2004.

Previous Year Questions

1. Different Classes of Seeds?

2. Various parameters of field & seed standards for breeder seed production?

3. Factors that affect the longevity of seeds during storage in warehouses?

4. Initial Seed Quality?

5. Seed Testing?

Different Classes of Seeds

1. Nucleus Seed: It is handful of seed maintained by concerned breeder for further multiplication. The nucleus seed will have all the characters that the breeder has placed in it and it is of highest genetic purity. The quantity of nucleus seed is in kilograms.

2. Breeder Seed (BS): Breeder seed is a seed or vegetative propagating material directly controlled by the originating or sponsoring plant breeder of the breeding programme or institution and or seed whose production is personally supervised by a qualified plant breeder and which provides the source for the initial and recurring increase of foundation seed. Breeder seed is exempted from certification. However, the breeder seed crop is being inspected at appropriate stages by a Monitoring Team consisting of breeder, representative of NSC and representative of Seed Certification Agency. The breeder seed lots are affixed with Golden Yellow tags. The genetic purity of breeder seed crop should be maintained at 100 per cent.

Introduction
Plant protection is a critical component of modern agriculture, aimed at safeguarding crops from diseases, pests, and weeds that can significantly impact yield and quality. Chapter 10 explores the science of plant protection, focusing on the various disciplines that contribute to maintaining healthy crops and ensuring food security. The chapter begins with an overview of plant pathology, the study of plant diseases caused by pathogens such as fungi, bacteria, viruses, and nematodes. Key principles of plant pathology are discussed, including the nature of plant diseases, their modes of transmission, and the factors that influence disease development. This section also highlights the importance of accurate disease diagnosis, which is essential for implementing effective prevention and control measures. Entomology, the study of insects and their interactions with plants, is another crucial aspect of plant protection covered in this chapter. The principles of entomology are examined, with a focus on the identification and management of insect pests that threaten crops. Various pest management strategies, including biological, chemical, and cultural methods, are explored, emphasizing the need for a holistic approach to pest control. Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is a central theme in plant protection, combining multiple strategies to manage pests in an environmentally sustainable manner. The chapter discusses the advantages of IPM, such as reduced reliance on chemical pesticides and minimized environmental impact, as well as the challenges associated with its implementation. Integrated Disease and Pest Management (IDPM) is also introduced, which integrates plant pathology and entomology principles to develop comprehensive management strategies that address both diseases and pests. The chapter further explores the role of pesticides in plant protection, including their benefits and potential risks. Safety measures for pesticide use are emphasized to protect both human health and the environment. Integrated Weed Management (IWM) is also discussed as an essential component of plant protection, with strategies for managing weeds that compete with crops for resources. The importance of plant protection sciences in food security is highlighted, particularly in the context of pest management, disease control, and weed management. These disciplines contribute to sustainable agriculture by enhancing crop yield and quality while promoting environmental sustainability.

Importance

Ajwain is an important seed spice and is also useful for its medicinal values. It is a traditional potential herb for curing many ailments in human and animals. It is usually used as a digestive aid, relieves abdominal discomfort due to indigestion and antiseptic. The seeds of ajwain is bitter, pungent and contain 2-4.4% brown coloured oil known as ajwain oil. The main component of this oil is Thymol, which is used as gastrointestinal ailment, lack of appetite and bronchial problems. Thymol is also used in toothpaste and perfumery (Joshi, 2000). Seeds are also used for curing abdominal pains, abdominal tumors and piles (Krishnamoorty and Madalgeri, 1999). In southern parts of India dry ajwain seeds are powdered and soaked in milk, which is then filtered and fed to babies as it relieves colic in babies. It can be used as digestive mixture in large animals.

ABSTRACT

Approximately 30 % of fruits and vegetables are getting wasted each year in country like India. Not only that, there is a huge loss of agro based commodity during industrial processing and will be considered as industry generated waste. Utilization of such unexplored nutrients from agro processing sectors for making a sustainable food system will be a healthy approach to bring food security and nutrition to all of us. With this aim the present work addresses the utilization of jackfruit seeds, an agro-waste, to value added products. Jackfruit seed flour has a great potential in new food formulation along with wheat flour. The 15% (w/w) blending of jackfruit seed flour with wheat flour could be used in bread and the substituted bread is protein and fibre enriched. This attempt in developing such bakery items with blended flours could address the scarcity problem of non-wheat producing countries. Present study also looks into the alternate source of starch from spice processing industries. The nutrient starch could be explored for isolation from a nonconventional source from turmeric processing sector. The isolated starch could also be modified to enhance some of its functional properties and may be utilized in preparing value added product with a better acceptability and nutrition.Thus, the isolation of nutrients and value-added products out of fruits and vegetables and spice-processing waste would be a stepping stone to an initiative to zero hunger.