eChapters

7.1. INTRODUCTION

Abiotic stress is a major limiting factor in crop productivity. Several stresses, such as high temperature, high light intensity, osmotic stress, heavy metals, and several herbicides and toxin lead to over production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), causing extensive cellular damage and inhibition of photosynthesis (Allen, 1997). ROS is produced in both unstressed and stressed cells. Plants have well developed mechanisms against ROS, involving both limiting the formation of ROS as well as instituting its removal. Under unstressed conditions, the formation and removal of O₂ are balance. Introduction of molecular oxygen (O₂) into atmosphere by O₂- evolving photosynthetic organisms, ROS has been the unwelcome companion of anaerobic metabolism. In contrast to O₂, these partially reduced or activated derivatives of oxygen (O₂¹, O2-, H₂O₂, and HO) are highly reactive and toxic and can lead to the oxidative destruction in tissues during stress.

Nine cyanobacterial strains viz., Anabaena variabilis, A. fertilissima, Nostoc muscorum, N. punctiforme, N. linckia, N. commune, Spirulina platensis, Westiellopsis prolifica and Hapalosiphon sp. were cultured in the laboratory. The growth curve for each culture was studied by growing them in Erlenmeyer flask using BG-11 growth medium. They were examined to determine the early stationary phases of their life-cycle, which are believed to be the most appropriate period for the production of secondary metabolites by an organism. After 23-25 days of incubation period, each culture was harvested and spent medium was collected by filtration of the biomass. Hexane, ethyl acetate, dichloromethane and methanol were used as the solvents for obtaining the extracts from biomass and spent medium of each culture which were then investigated against five pathogenic bacteria viz., Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Salmonella typhi. Antibacterial activity of different cyanobacterial sp. has been shown in various tables.

The primary target of genomics is identification and characterization of genes and gene products. Starting point of genomics may be a whole genome sequence, from which gene and protein structures can be predicted by computational and bioinformatics approaches (in silico genomics), or genes can be identified step by step starting from identification of a phenotype by induction and detection of mutation, construction of a genetic map demarkating the position of the character, physical location, identification of the gene, cloning and characterization of the gene or genome sequence by sequencing followed by expression analysis to correlate the phenotypic expression (in vivo genomics). Alternatively, genes can be identified by developing knockout mutants by random or site directed disruption of a reading frame and then determining the protein product as well as phenotypic expression.

    1.    Control points are the points in the food processing chain where it is possible to control or remove hazards.

    2.    Critical control points are the control points in the processing chain where it is essential to a hazard, usually because there is no later step at which to establish control.

    3.    Preventative measures are the actions and activities needed to remove hazards or control them by reducing them to acceptable levels.

    4.    Critical limits for critical control points are measurements such as temperature and time, that must be met, or characteristics such as appearance and texture. Critical limits need to be validated.

    5.    Monitoring is the regular measurement or observation of a critical control point to ensure it is not beyond its critical limits.

    6.    Take corrective action to bring the process back under control before the problem (‘deviation’) leads to a safety hazard. Consider proper management (disposition) of any adversely affected product.

    7.    Verification procedures are tests and programmes that make sure the HACCP system working properly

    8.    Record keeping and documentation systems must meet the needs of the business and be adequate to show that the food safety programme is working.

Among the temperate fruits, nuts have occupied an important position and can be grown in cold arid conditions on marginal lands of Indian hills without much care. In many countries, nut fruits are cultivated in marginal lands, hill slopes under rain fed conditions following the non intensive cultural practices by using cultivars selected to different environments using low quality ecotypes with poor yield. Although; these crops showed much potential to produce more yield provided cultivation in suitable environment condition along with high tech orchard management practices. The major nut fruits grown in world are almond, walnut, pecan, pistachio, hazelnut or filbert, chestnut and macadamia nut. In India, the full potential of almond and walnut has been exploited to great extent. The potential of other nuts are yet to be utilized and need special attention.

In India, nut fruits have not been given due importance in hills compared to pome and stone fruits although much potential exists. Amongst the nut fruits, the potentials of almond and walnut have been exploited to some extent but others are still in the underutilized condition. The main almond and walnut growing states of India are Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and North-Eastern states.

INTRODUCTION
 
The form genus Sclerotium was described by Saccardo (Saccardo, 1913) to include fungi that produce sclerotia and had sterile mycelia. Several fungi were inc1uded in this genus, and all were characterized by production of small, dark brown or black spherical sclerotia that were internally differentiated into a rind, cortex and medulla. Several plant pathogenic fungi with this sclerotial type and with no known sexual or conidial state were placed in the genus Sclerotium. However, as the teleomorphic states were discovered, affinities to the Basidiomycotina (Punja, 1988) or Ascomycotina (Krause and Webster, 1972) were established for some members of the form genus.

Abiotic Stress in Plants
             
World population is growing at an alarming rate and may reach about 6 billion by the end of the year 2050. Though, the agricultural productivity is also being increased world over, yet it is not keeping pace to meet the demand of food availability. The main reasons for limiting the agricultural productivity are water shortage, depleting soil fertility and mainly various abiotic stresses and climatic change. Minimizing these loses is of primary concern for all nations to cope with the increasing food requirement. The abiotic stress is defined as the negative impact of non living factors on the living organism in a specific environment and abiotic stress is the most harm full factor concerning the growth and productivity of crops worldwide. Researches have shown that abiotic stressors are at their most harm full when they occur together in combination of abiotic stress factors (Mittler, 2006; Bianco and Defez, 2011). Numerous stresses caused by complex environmental conditions i.e. drought, too high and too low temperatures, freezing, salinity, UV light, heavy metals and recently through smog (air pollution) leading to substantial crop losses worldwide (Mahajan and Tuteja, 2005). The abiotic stresses might increase in the near future even because of global climatic change.

1. Introduction

Fruit products have their unique identities having large content of micronutrients, polyphenols, vitamins, flavonoids and other nutritional compounds. Characteristic appearance and flavors distinguish among various fruit based products like juice, puree, jam, jelly, squash and other several varieties. Main concern of this fruit processing industry is the stability of the products throughout the post processing storage. Thermal treatment as mean of preservation of these products is the common process implemented so far. It ensures the safety of the product but lacks in retaining the nutritional intact that like of fresh fruit. Today’s consumer demand for minimally processed fruit products and “natural” fruit products tend to think of alternative thermal processing.

High pressure processing (HPP), a relatively new concept compared to conventional thermal processing, also sometimes known as high hydrostatic pressure (HHP), or ultra high pressure (UHP) processing, is a non-thermal food processing method that subjects liquid or solid foods, with or without packaging, to pressures ranging between 50 and 1000 MPa. HPP has already been established itself as an alternative to thermal processing. In food processing it is of great interest due to its ability to inactivate food borne microorganisms and enzymes, at low temperature, without the need for chemical preservatives and it is less detrimental than thermal processes to low molecular weight food compounds such as flavoring agents, pigments, vitamins, etc., as covalent bonds are not affected by pressure. Pressure-treated foods have sensory properties similar to fresh products, which is a major advantage in fruit processing as it matches consumer demand for healthy, nutritious and ‘‘natural’’ products. HPP of fruit products offers the chance of producing food of high quality, greater safety and increased shelf life (Hayashi 1989; Gould 1996; Butz and Tauscher 1998).

1. Introduction

Storage is an important part of any food grain processing chain. Storage of raw and processed food grain has been used by humans since time immemorial as a prerequisite for insuring food security due to off time availability, and for holding seed grain for long periods (Pande and Mishra, 2012). After harvesting grains may be required to be stored for long periods before these are marketed or used as food or seed. The grain storage is mainly carried out for three purposes viz (i) to retain a supply of food (ii) to service a trading system and (iii) to retain seed for planting the following season (Hall, 1980). Storage is, therefore, carried out by the producer, trader, processor, and the exporter and at all these levels the methods adopted affect the quality of food stuffs. The length of time grains can be safely stored will depend on the condition it was harvested and the type of storage facility being utilized. Grain storage and handling is a major concern for food grain growers and processers worldwide (Mohan et al., 2011; Pande and Mishra, 2012). Depending upon the condition and uses food grains may be stored in different storage structures using traditional or modern storage methods. Different storage structures are used by farmers with the traditional names like Gumma, Oliya and Jute bag. Caswell (1973) recorded 50 to 60% of insect damage on food grain after six months of traditional storage. A typical range of storage methods encountered in tropics and subtropics region is given in Table 1.

1. Introduction

India is a land of large varieties of fruits and vegetables due to its vast soil and climatic diversity. India is the second largest producer of fruits and vegetables in the world, with an annual production of fruits 45.5 Million tonnes and vegetables 90.8 Million tonnes. It contributes 10.23% and 14.45% of the total world production of fruits and vegetables (F&V) respectively (NHB, 2010). Though fruits and vegetables are grown only on 7–8% of gross cultivated area, these contribute more than 18.8% of the gross value of agricultural output and 52% export earnings from total agricultural produce. These have a high export potential of 20-30 times more foreign exchange per unit area than cereals due to higher yields and higher price available in the international market (Sen et al., 2012). According to estimates, the per capita consumption of fruits and vegetables in India is only around 46g and 130g which are far below the stipulation of a minimum of 92g and 300g respectively as recommended by the Indian Council of Medical Research and National Institute of Nutrition. The low availability is mainly due to considerably high post-harvest losses. About 15-20% of the fruits and vegetables are wasted every year in the country, due to poor post-harvest management and lack of infrastructural facilities for processing and storage, amounting to a revenue loss of over Rs. 625 billion.

The sensorial, nutritional, and organoleptic quality of fresh produce starts deteriorating after harvest as a result of soon after harvest the altered plant metabolism and microbial growth. The quality deterioration is the result of produce respiration and transpiration, senescence, ripening-associated processes, wound-initiated reactions, development of postharvest disorders, microbial proliferation leading to postharvest quality loss. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the respiration and ripening processes and the physiological and biochemical changes during ripening. The best way to reduce respiratory metabolism is to reduce the storage temperature. All biological processes proceed more slowly at lower temperature (Yahia, 2007). In general, O₂ levels must be reduced to less than 10 % to see a reduction in the rate of respiration. Respiration rate is temperature dependent; so, as the temperature reduces the amount of oxygen required also drops. Therefore, oxygen levels must be substantially reduced at low temperature for it to affect the rate of respiration. It must however, be ensured that O₂ levels do not fall below extinction point as anaerobic respiration and decay may occur. Tolerance to low O₂ varies between species and cultivars and is also time dependent. Commodities may be able to tolerate low O₂ for short periods of time. Low O₂ can also be tolerated when CO₂ is low.

1. Introduction

Foods are complex biologically and chemically active systems that require close monitoring of their manufacturing, distribution and storage conditions in order to maintain their nutritive value, safety and sensory qualities by suitable chemical. The determination of trace impurities in food system presents considerable difficulties owing to complexity as it contains thousands of major and minor compounds (Nilufer and Boyacio, 2002). The choice of the method of analysis depends on the sample, the analyte to be assayed, accuracy, limit of detection, cost and time to complete the analysis (Aboul- Eneim et al., 2000). The chemical methods employed for food analysis and quality control are generally time consuming and require tedious or destructive sample preparation. For development of the new detection method, emphasis should be on development of simplified, cost-effective and efficient procedures that complies with the legislative requirements (Stroka and Anklem, 2002; Enker, 2003).

The molecular spectroscopy is a fast, accurate, easy and non-destructive technique that can be used as a replacement of time-consuming methods. Near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy has proved to be a powerful analytical tool used in the agricultural, nutritional, petrochemical, textile and pharmaceutical industries (McGlone and others, 2002; Esteban-Diez and others, 2004). Infra red spectroscopy is based on the absorption of infra red light by the substance to be measured. This absorption excites molecular vibrations and rotations, which have frequencies that are the same as those in the infrared range of the electromagnetic spectrum (Pande and Mishra, 2015). This application uses a fiber optic coupled FT-NIR system operating in the 10,000 – 4,000 cm^-1 region in reflectance mode. It involves the analysis and quantification of molecular responses to introduced signals of known energy or frequency. All molecules (e.g. water, glucose, protein) have a definite amount of energy. When alternate energy (e.g. infrared radiation) is introduced, an energy exchange occurs between the introduced energy and the energy contained within the molecule. This is expressed as absorbance (energy is absorbed resulting in a loss of introduced energy), attenuated (energy is scattered resulting in a loss of introduced energy) or emitted (energy is released resulting in a gain on the introduced energy). As individual molecules and molecular groups (e.g. alcohols, nucleic acids, proteins, sugars and fats) have definite energy, by applying external energy of a known amount/type, one can structurally identify, quantify and even determine the natural state of these molecules within complex samples and mixtures.

1. Introduction

Intellectual property is a term referring to creations of the intellect for which a monopoly is assigned to designated owners by law. While intellectual property law has evolved over centuries, it was not until the 19^th century that the term Intellectual Property began to be used, and not until the late 20^th century that it became commonplace in the majority of the world.

Agriculture (including horticulture) and forestry are the two most important sectors in the land use system of India covering know 46.1% (141.2 m ha) and 22.2% (69.02 m ha), respectively of total geographic area of the country. Intellectual Property Right (IPR) was of limited significance in cultivation and improvement of agricultural, horticultural and forest crops and aggregation of these three sections comprises the Plant Genetic Resources (PGRs). IPRs were not applied to plants in earlier days. PGRs are the foundation for the development of food and nutritionally secured nation. Food is the foremost important to sustain life and livelihood followed by shelter and cloth. Thus, the slogan of 3Fs may be modified as, “Food, Frame (shelter) and Fibre (cloth)” instead of Food, Fodder and Fire-wood. All these 3Fs we get from PGRs.

    1.    Asepsis is a process of 
        a)    Removal of microorganisms    
        b)    Keeping out microorganisms
        c)    Hindering the growth & activity of microorganisms    
        d)    Killing the microorganisms
    2.    Self-decomposition of the food is prevented by
        a)    Inactivation of enzymes    b)    Delay of chemical reactions
        c)    a & b    d)    None
    3.    Commercially available fruit beverages are generally pasteurized at 
        a)    85°C for 25 to  30 min    b)    62.5°C for 25 to  30 min
        c)    71.1°C for 15 to  30 sec    d)    92.1°C for 15 to  30 min

2.1    Cereals
           Maize
    1. Turcicum leaf spot                
    2. Common rust
    3. Leaf spot or Leaf blight
    4. Head smut
    5. Common smut or Maize smut    
    6. Bacterial stalk rot
    7. Banded leaf and sheath blight
    8. Fusarium stalk rot of maize
    9. Downy mildew
      
    Bajra
    
    1. Green ear or downy mildew
    2. Ergot
    3. Smut
          
    Sorghum
    
    1. Anthracnose (foliar, head, root and stalk rot)
    2. Charcoal rot
          
    Pulses
           Moong/Mash
    
    1. Cercospora leaf spot
    2. Bean blight
    3. Anthracnose
    4. Web blight
    5. Powdery mildew
    6. Yellow mosaic disease
    7. Root rot
        
    Rajmash and Cluster beans
    
    1. Bean rust
    2. Bacterial wilt
    3. Common blight
    4. Halo blight
    5. Alternaria leaf spot
    6. Angular leaf spot
    7. Anthracnose
    8. Powdery mildew
    9. Rust
    10. Fusarium root rot
    11. Pythium root rot
    
    Cowpea
    
    1. Leaf spot
    2. Root rot
    3. Ascochyta blight
    4. Bacterial blight
    5. Brown rust
    6. Cercospora leaf spot
    7. Fusarium wilt
    8. Yellow mosaic virus
    
    Oilseeds
    Sesame or Til
    
    1. Phytophthora blight or stem blight
    2. Alternaria leaf spot
    3. Bacterial blight and bacterial leaf spot
    4. Phyllody
    
    Groundnut
    
    1. Collar rot
    2. Botrytis blight
    3. Charcoal rot
    4. Cylindrocladium black rot
    5. Circular leaf spot

INTRODUCTION

Banana (Musa species) also known as ‘Apple of Paradise’ is an important and commercial fruit crop of tropical regions of the world. It is the only tropical fruit traded to the extent, that it is the 5th largest agricultural commodity after cereals, sugar, coffee and cocoa in world market.

The word ‘banana’ is now applied to all table varieties. Formerly, it was applied to ‘Nendran’ banana of Kerala which was however called ‘Plantain’ by Westerners. The English used the word ‘Plantain’ to represent cooking banana while in parts of South India, even sweet fruited clones were called ‘Plantains’. The variant with persistent bracts and male flowers with large fruits held in lax manner and eaten after cooking were grouped under plantains. All other types which had small fruits, held compact in a bunch with softening of the pulp when ripe, dropping of withered bracts and staminate flowers as the banana. In other words plantain are starchy, not sweet and cooked as vegetable. They usually resembles green bananas, are longer and have thick skin. Bananas are sweet, shorter and have thinner skin. They are eaten as a fruit and have yellow colour when ripe.

INTRODUCTION

Pineapple [(Ananas comosus (L.) Merr., Bromeliaceae)] is a commercial, tropical American crop, popularly known as “Golden Queen” all over the globe. The name ‘pineapple’ was given in the mid-17th century because of its resemblance to ‘pine cone’. Its botanical name Ananas comes from ‘anana’, the Tupi word for the fruit, meaning “excellent fruit” and comosus means tufted and refers to the stem of the fruit.
 
Pineapple is a monocotyledonous, low-growing,herbaceous and perennial with a spiral of spiny sword-shaped leaves on a thick stem. It has 90 to 100 cm height with spreading leaves, which give the plant a rosette appearance.The plant bears a single fruit terminally on a peduncle protruding out from the centre of the rosette. The fruit is mostly a large juicy fruit containing aromatic, edible, yellow flesh surrounded by a tough segmented skin and topped with a tuft of stiff leaves.

4.1    Approaches for Drought Monitoring
    
4.2    Weather Network System in Different Countries
    
4.3    Drought Monitoring using Climatological, Hydrological and Combination Approaches in Different Countries
    
4.4    International Cooperation in Drought Monitoring
    
4.5    Drought Monitoring Mechanism in India
    
4.6    Early Warning and Decision Support System
    4.6.1    Software for Drought Detection, Monitoring and Early Warning
    4.6.2    Decision Support System for Droughts Developed Outside India
    
4.7    GIS and Drought Monitoring
        
References

3.1    Crop Water Requirements
    
3.2    Water Distribution in Soils and Wetting Pattern
    
3.3    Selection of Number of Distributors per Plant
    
3.4    System Capacity
    Questions & Problems
        
References

Definition and Concept Agro-Forestry

Agro forestry is an age-old practice of integrating farming with practices, preferably on the same unit of land on sustainable basis. Agro forestry systems have received increasing emphasis in the recent years because of their potential to yield fodder, fuel wood and small timber in addition of food. Shortage of fuel woods for construction and commercial purpose. Implementation of development activities like mining, quarrying and river valley projects are the other reason for deforestation. Shifting cultivation, which is practices in the North-Eastern zone of India, has also affected forest acreage.

Definition: The practices of including trees in crop or animal production agroecosystem. Agro forestry may be defined as an integrated self- sustained land management systems, which involves deliberate introduction / retention of woody components with agriculture crops including pasture / live stock, simultaneous or sequentially on the same unit land, meting the ecological and socio -economic needs of people. Or Agro forestry is a collective name of land use system and technologies where woody perennials are deliberately used form the same land management units as agricultural crops and or animals in the same form of spatial arrangement of temporal sequence. In agro-forestry systems, there is both ecological and economic interaction between different components.

A vitamin is an organic compound required by an organism as a vital nutrient in limited amounts. An organic chemical compound (or related set of compounds) is called a vitamin when it cannot be synthesised in sufficient quantities by an organism, and must be obtained from the diet. Thus, the term is conditional both on the circumstances and on the particular organism. For example, ascorbic acid (vitamin C) is a vitamin for humans, but not for most other animals. Supplementation is important for the treatment of certain health problems but there is little evidence of benefit when used by those who are otherwise healthy.

By convention, the term vitamin includes neither other essential nutrients, such as dietary minerals, essential fatty acids, or essential amino acids (which are needed in larger amounts than vitamins) nor the large number of other nutrients that promote health but are otherwise required less often. Thirteen vitamins are universally recognized at present. Vitamins are classified by their biological and chemical activity, not their structure. Thus, each “vitamin” refers to a number of vitamer compounds that all show the biological activity associated with a particular vitamin. Such a set of chemicals is grouped under an alphabetized vitamin “generic descriptor” title, such as “vitamin A”, which includes the compounds retinal, retinol, and four known carotenoids. Vitamers by definition are convertible to the active form of the vitamin in the body, and are sometimes inter-convertible to one another, as well.

Vitamins have diverse biochemical functions. Some, such as vitamin D, have hormone-like functions as regulators of mineral metabolism, or regulators of cell and tissue growth and differentiation (such as some forms of vitamin A). Others function as antioxidants (e.g., vitamin E and sometimes vitamin C).

Introduction

Water preceded all forms of life on earth and is believed to be the very origin of all organic life forms. For ages water was forming oceans, separating landmasses and shaping the terrain. It further influenced the emerging atmosphere of the young planet. The first organism formed and began to evolve in the primeval oceans. Mankind entered into the scene several million years later. The history is rather too long and infinitely complex. Variety of models with different degrees of certitude and consensus attempt to cogently explain what could have happened. But in spite of all the differences on the course of evolution, there is a universal consensus that water played a decisive role in the changes.

Across the globe, mankind managed to establish different civilizations with dissimilar cultural and material advancements much later. But then invariably all civilizations considered water holy and water bodies were sacred places. Holy wells, springs, rivers, cenotaphs were held in awe all through human history. The mysterious properties of water are studied from time immemorial. And water indeed is a strange compound! Availability of water for consumption and agriculture has determined the zenith and nadir of surviving and extinct civilizations.

Ancient Indian temples as part of design, have a prominent sacred well or a pond with an associated purana/myth narrating the mystical properties of the theertha / waterbody. It is still is a living tradition. In the west wishing wells survive from remote antiquity.

Introduction

Desertification, which is considered a major threat in the drylands of the world, is not about advancing boundaries of the existing deserts, but about land degradation in the arid, semi-arid and the dry sub-humid regions, which together form the drylands (Anon., 1995). Secular variation in climate that has resulted in periodic expansion and contraction of the desert boundaries and regional-scale changes in vegetation condition (Tucker et al., 1991; Nemani et al., 2003; Hickler et al., 2005) is one of the drivers of desertification. Human activities constitute the other major driver. According to Geist and Lambin (2004) the prominent core variables that drive degradation are climatic, economic, institutional, national policies, population growth and remote influences.

The research procedures followed in the study are reported under the following sub-heads viz. Selection of Farm Technology and Development of Farmer -Friendly Interactive Multimedia Compact Disc.

3.1. Selection of Farm Technology: Integrated Pest Management Practices for Coconut Eryophid Mite

3.1.1. Importance of Coconut

Coconut is one of the most widely grown plantation crops of the tropics. The palm is recognized as a multiproduct and termed as horticultural, plantation, food and even as an oil seed crop. It has diversified uses such as sources of food, drink and shelter and as a raw material for various industrial uses and thus serves as commercial crop.

The coconut is referred to as man’s most useful tree, synonymously the King of the tropical flora, tree of abundance, tree of heaven Kalpa Vrisha, tree of life and layman’s crop. Millions of people in India and other tropical regions depend upon the coconut plantations for their livelihood. More than 100 products are being made directly or indirectly from coconuts and their export earned India appreciable foreign exchequer.

Introduction

Livestock sector plays a significant role in the Indian economy, particularly for the welfare of rural population of India. The importance of livestock in India's economy can be gauged from the fact that 90 million farming families rear over 90 million milch animals. Of the total household in the rural areas, about 73 percent own some form of livestock, three-quarter of which are reared by small and marginal farmers.

Today, the overall growth rate in livestock sector is steady and is around 4-5%, despite the fact that investment in this sector is not substantial. This is possible due to the egalitarian distribution of the livestock as compared to land among landless labourers, small and marginal farmers thus resulting in balanced development of the rural economy particularly in reducing the poverty especially among the weaker sections of the society. Livestock also plays an important source of employment in rural India, especially for women. The rural woman plays a significant role in most of the animal husbandry operations related to feeding, breeding, management and healthcare of the livestock.

Livestock plays an important and vital role in providing nutritive food to families both in rural and urban areas. Since the dawn of civilization, mankind has been utilizing different animal species for a variety of purposes, viz., production of milk, meat, wool, egg and leather, draught power, companionship, entertainment, research experimentation, sports, security, etc. Livestock wealth is deemed to be as the oldest wealth resource for mankind and was once a symbol of economic status in the society. This is one sector where poor contributes to the growth directly instead of getting benefit from growth generated elsewhere. The effect of livestock sector growth on poverty is anecdotal, yet scattered evidence on livestock's contribution to income indicates that growth in livestock production is pro-poor.

Cooperative

A cooperative is a duly registered association of persons, with a common bond of interest that have voluntarily joined together to achieve a lawful common social or economic end, and making equitable contributions to the capital required and accepting a fair share of the risks and benefits of the undertaking in accordance with universally accepted cooperative principles.

Cooperative may be defined as an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly-owned and democratically-controlled enterprise. It is a business organization owned and operated by a group of individuals for their mutual benefit.

A cooperative may also be defined as a business owned & controlled equally by the people who use its services or who work at it.

The basic objective of every cooperative is to provide goods and services to its members and thus enable them to attain increased income and savings, investments, productivity and purchasing power and promote among them equitable distribution of net surplus through maximum utilization of economies of scale, cost-sharing and risk-sharing without however, conducting the affairs of the cooperative for missionary or charitable purposes.

Animal Genetic Resources

Agricultural biodiversity is the product of thousand years of activity during which humans have sought to meet their needs in a wide range of climatic and ecological conditions. Well adapted livestock have been an essential element of agricultural production systems. For livestock keepers, animal genetic diversity is a resource to be drawn upon to select stocks and develop new breeds. More broadly, genetically diverse livestock populations provide society with a greater range of options to meet future demands, so the wise management of the world’s agricultural biodiversity is becoming an ever greater challenge for the international community. The livestock sector in particular is undergoing dramatic changes as large-scale production expands in response to surging demand for meat, milk and eggs (FAO, 2008).

Animal genetic resources (AnGR) include all animal species, breeds and strains that are of economic, scientific and cultural interest to humankind in terms of food and agricultural production for the present or the future. Domesticated animals are considered to be those species that are bred in captivity and modified from their wild ancestors to make them more useful to humans, who control their reproduction (breeding), care (shelter, protection against predators) and food supply (Diamond, 2002; Mignon-Grasteau, 2005). Only about 40 animal species have been domesticated since the Pleistocene. Common species include cattle, sheep, goat, chicken, duck, pig, horse, buffalo, rabbit, camel, donkey, elephants, various poultry species, reindeer, etc. All these AnGR are vital to the economic development of the majority of countries in the world playing an important role in the subsistence of many communities. Although only a subset of the diversity present in the ancestral species survived in the domestic counterparts, domestic livestock diversity has been continuously evolving.

Introduction

Mangroves are the special group of plants or the ecosystem in a holistic scence on the inter-tidal coastal areas, edges of the islands and major estuarine mouths. The frequently tidal inundated forests on coastal areas, wetlands and the inter-tidal zones of sheltered bays or shore lines, estuarine mouths, sides of the tidal creeks, backwater, lagoons, marshes and mud-flats of the tropical and sub-tropical regions of the Globe are the major mangrove habitats or zones. Mangrove ecosystem form an important ecological asset and economic resources of the coastal marine environment. These mangrove ecosystem is the most productive ecosystem, which can efficiently fertilize the sea and estuarine water and also physically protect the coastal zone, estuarine mouth from frequent natural calamities and vitally serves as the breeding ground, nursery and grazing place of diverse species of fish, shrimps, prawns, crabs and vast group of other marine and off-shore species.

In India, the agricultural research and technology generation are supported in five agro-ecosystems, viz. irrigated agro-ecosystem, arid agro-ecosystem, rain-fed agro-ecosystem, coastal agro-ecosystem and hill & mountainous agro-ecosystem. Each system with its varied socio-economic and agricultural features, demands appropriate technologies to augment the productivity of various enterprises with sustainable development and economic returns. Unfortunately, the conventional development efforts, which often follow “top-down” approaches in planning and implementation, don’t address the constraints and developmental potentials of farm household systems in a comprehensive way. To overcome these shortcomings, reversal of approach, i.e. from “Top down” to “Bottom up” is recommended. This can be achieved through site-specific assessment and refinement of technologies with farmer’s participation where the farmers of different agro-ecosystems have right to plan, implement and own their developmental projects (Johnkutty et al., 2001).

INTRODUCTION

The rose is one of the oldest flowers in cultivation and most popular of all garden flowers throughout the world. It is one of the nature’s beautiful creations and is universally known as the Queen of Flowers.

Th e cultivation of th is f lower h as developed with the distillation of rose as mentioned in Ayurveda by Charaka around 100 A.D. At present, it has become the most important commercial flower. A large quantity of rose flowers is used for decoration purpose. Beside, it has been growing for centuries for the extraction of its essence. The rose water is frequently used for flavouring sweets and other food articles as well as for sprinkling over guests on festive occasions. Hips of some rose species are rich in vitamin C while its petals are used for preparing Gulkand and Pankhuri.

Domestic demand for roses has two components; the demand for stemless roses supplied by field grown roses and demand for stemmed roses, mainly grown under protected conditions. In most parts of India, rose flowers throughout the year, in a succession of flushes of blooms, without having any true dormant period. Good quality blooms are produced in winter when local market demand is good. There is a growing demand of value added floral extracts in world market, hence there is great scope for commercial cultivation of rose for production of floral extracts.

The fragrance of rose is said to be the only fragrance that never tires the human olfactory system. Export of rose water started in 8^th century from Iran and later in 9^th century from India and China, mostly to Arabian countries. Rose cultivation was introduced as an industry in Turkey in 17^th century and later spread to other countries like Egypt, Morocco, France, China, India, etc. About 80% of rose flower are utilized for rose water, 10% for attar, 1 to 2% for pankhuri and remaining for manufacture of gul-rohan and gulkand. Rose oil is used primarily as a fragrance component in pharmaceutical preparations e.g. ointments and lotions and is extensively used as a fragrance ingredient in perfumes, creams and soaps. Food products in which they are used include beverages, frozen dairy desserts, sweets, baked foods, gelatins and puddings.

Abstract

Genomics is playing an increasing role in generating new tools and databases with the rapid advances in genome technology which increases the eficiency and precision of crop improvement. With the emergence of new high-throughput technologies like next-generation sequencing (NGS) and reduction in their costs are bringing many more plants within the range of genomic and post genomic data along with the integration of information from the related fields of transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics and phenomics. Translating the vast abundance data produced by genome technologies requires large generic databases which hold specific data types for a broad range of species, which act as a resource for the crop improvement. The development of custom bioinformatics tools and advanced databases has become an expanding challenge which systematically helps in storing, organizing, manipulating and analyzing large amounts of biological information computationally. In this review, we outline some recent advances in the features of plant genome databases and various platforms with the recent advances in technology.

1.    Evolutionary relationships between groups of organisms are determined using comparisons of

(a) Biochemical pathways

(b) Nucleotide sequences

(c) Structural features

(d) All of these

2.    The different bacterial species can be subdivided into

(a) Serovarieties

(b) Biovarietites

(c) Subspecies

(d) All of these

3.    Kingdom Prokaryotae include

(a) Bacteria

(b) Protozoa

(c) Fungi

(d) None of these

1. Size reduction is also referred as

(a) Extraction

(b) Communication

(c) Leaching

(d) Distillation

2. Size reduction causes

(a) Decrease in the temperature of the product

(b) Increase in temperature of the product

(c) Increase in pressure

(d) Decrease in surface area

1.     Which of the following micro-organism is the most heat-resistant in low acid canned foods and its destruction is considered the criteria for successful heat processing?

(a) B.subtilis

(b) C.botulinum

(c) C.sporogenes

(d) B.mycoides

2.    D value represents

(a) Doubling time

(b) Generation time

(c) Decimal reduction time

(d) Decimal reduction temperature

Introduction

Precision Farming (PF) revolves around the idea that any agricultural land contains wide spatial variations in soil types, nutrient availability, and other important factors. If these variations are not taken into account, then there may be a loss in productivity. Precision farming is one of the most scientific and modern approaches to sustainable agriculture that has gained momentum in 21^st century. Consider the situation: ‘A farmer goes to his/her field with his/her Global Positioning System (GPS) guided tractor. The GPS senses the exact location of the tractor within the field. It sends the signal to a computer on the tractor that has a Geographical Information System (GIS), storing the soil nutrient requirements map in it. GIS, in consultation with a Decision Support System, decides what is the exact requirement of the fertilizer for a given location and then commands a variable rate fertilizer applicator, attached with the tractor, to apply the exact dose at that precise location. All this is done within a second, before the tractor moves further.’ This may sound like an excerpt from a scientific fiction, but this is what precision farming means to the large growers of the United States or European countries and day is not far off when it will be feasible for large Indian farmers as well.

PF refers to a developing agricultural management system that promotes variable management practices within a field according to site or soil conditions. Within a short span of time, this concept has been described with various names viz. farming by soil; farming soil, not fields; farming by the foot; spatially prescriptive farming; computer aided farming; farming by computer; farming by satellite; high-tech sustainable agriculture; soil-specific crop management; site-specific farming; and site-specific crop management.

Bitter Gourd

Genetic Resources

Bitter gourd or balsam pear (Momordica charantia L.) is one of the most popular cucurbitaceous vegetable, commonly cultivated in many countries. Probably, India is the centre of origin and secondary centre of diversity of this crop. Bitter gourd is an annual monoecious herb, belongs to the genus Momordica that comprises 60 species. Out of these, only M. charantia, M. cochinchinensis, M. dioica, M. balsamina (balsam apple), M. cymbalaria (syn. M. tuberosa) are under cultivation. Momordica charantia is grown all over the country in tropical and subtropical climates and rich genetic diversity occurs in northern plains including tarai region, the northern-western plains, the central region/plateau and the western and eastern peninsular regions. Kakrol (M. dioica) is cultivated in West Bengal, Assam, parts of Bihar, while sweet gourd (M. cochinchinensis) is popular particularly in Tripura, Assam, Andaman Nicobar, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal. M. denundata (Thw) Clarke (syn. M. dioica var. denundatais) is found abundantly in Kerala, M. macrophylla in Assam and M. sabangulata Blume is commonly found in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Meghalaya and Sikkim. In India, NBPGR , New Delhi, and IIVR, Varanasi, are actively engaged in the collection of bitter gourd germplasms.The NBPGR, New Delhi, has evaluated 33 collections for 37 characteristics. Variability has been reported in vine length (105-335 cm), number of primary branches (3-7), number of fruits/plant (1-25), fruit girth (8-27 cm), fruit length (9.5-20 cm) and fruit yield/plant (0.5-2.8 kg). Accessions, UB-22, UB-66, IC-74158, C-1621 and K-3374, have been found better yielder. At IIVR, Varanasi, 121 genotypes have been evaluated for yield and yield-contributing traits. VRB-40 & IC-44415A have been identified as promising lines. Accessions showing better charecters for different traits are given below (Ghosh and Kalloo, 2000):

6.1 Introduction

In general, the terms drying and dehydration are interpreted as the removal of moisture from a food product. Removal of moisture from a food product offers an excellent protection against most common causes of food spoilage. The drying or dehydration process achieves such protection by reducing the moisture content of the food product to levels which are adequate to limit microbial growth or other adverse chemical reactions. During drying, heat and mass transfer occur simultaneously (Figure 6.1). Heat is transferred from the bulk gas phase (i.e. hot air used for drying) to the solid phase (i.e. food product to be dried), where part of it is utilized for vaporization and the remainder is taken up by the solid phase as sensible heat. Mass (i.e. moisture of food product) is transferred in the form of vapour through various resistances, first from the interior of the solid to the surface, then through vaporization at or near the surface and finally in transport of the vapour into bulk gas phase. Dehydration is the removal of moisture close to bone dry condition.

Abstract

The present study was conducted to develop ready to eat extruded snack food based on germinated flour of wheat, Bengal gram and green gram. A Central Composite Rotatable Design (CCRD) for five variables at five levels was used for experimental combinations and optimization of the process parameters. Experimental design with green gram flour (5 to 20%) and bengal gram flour (1535%) in wheat flour, moisture content (14-18%), screw speed (200-300 rpm) and barrel temperature (126-134°C) as independent variables having 32 different combinations of snack formulations that were studied using response surface methodology to investigate the effect of these variables on product responses (Lateral expansion, bulk density, Water absorption index, water solubility index and sensory characteristics). Sensory analysis was carried out of all extrudates for texture, color and overall acceptability. Multiple regression equations were obtained to describe the effects of each variable on product responses. The optimum operating conditions for development of germinated wheat, green gram and Bengal gram flour extrudate were 132°C of barrel temperature, 275 rpm of screw speed, 17 % offeed moisture, 6.5% of green gram flour and 23.1% of Bengal gram flour. The responses predicted by the software for these optimum process conditions resulted lateral expansion of 169.59%, bulk density, 0.263g/cm³; water solubility index, 19.08; water absoption index, 13.88g/g; and overall acceptability value of 7.38.

Bulbous and rhizomatous plants refer a large group which include both flowering and foliage types. Plants having underground modified stems in the form of bulb, corm, rhizome and tuber generally come under this category. This group effectively contributes beautification of the gardens by their flowers and is very popular. BuIbous and rhizomatus plants are perennial in nature, hardy and require less maintenance. In summer when there are few flowers in the garden, these plants help to keep the gardens in a presentable form by their magnificent flowers. Large number of bulbous and rhizomatous plants are in use for this purpose. The common flowering genera include - Amaryllis, Anthurium, Canna, Cooperia, Crinum, Eucharis, Gladiolus, Haemanthus, Hedychium, Hemerocallis, Lilium, Narcissus, Ornithogalum, Pancratium, Polianthes and Zephyranthus. Some of the popular genera of foliage type are - Alocasia, Asparagus, Caladium, Calathea, Kaempferia.

Classification

According to the climatic requirement for growth and flowering, these are grouped into following two main classes.

Warm Climate - These bulbous plants produce flowers during summer-rainy season. The important ones are - Amaryllis, Crinum, Canna, Haemanthus, Hedychium, Hemerocallis, Ornithogalum, Pancratium, Polianthes, Zephyranthus etc.

Introduction

Since times immemorial, world agriculture is following the traditional agri-horticultural methods for livelihood support. With unusual growth of population and faster development of industrial sector, a steep competition surfaced among the domestic, industrial and agricultural sectors for land, water and other natural resources. Though agriculture uses a major chunk of land and water for crop production, it becomes insufficient to provide food, nutritional and aesthetic security to the growing millions at global level in general and the third world nations in particular. Hence, there lies a need to take the avenue of Integrated Farming practices by following the logics of Precision Farming. All over the world, farmers work hard but do not make money, especially small farmers because there is very little left after they pay for all inputs (seeds, livestock breeds, fertilizers, pesticides, energy, feed, labour, etc.). The emergence of Integrated Farming Systems (IFS) based on horticulture farming could help to develop a framework for an alternative development model to improve the feasibility of small sized farming operations in relation to larger ones. Integrated farming system (or integrated agriculture) is a commonly and broadly used word to explain a more integrated approach to farming as compared to monoculture approaches.

Introduction

Honey bees are the most fascinating creature found in the nature and are very closely associated with our cultural heritage. They have been evolved with structural perfection and behavioral instinct to render their service as the best pollinator and enable to realize the potential yields of several cross pollinated crops under various agro-ecological situations. They are indispensable for human survival. The words of the great scientist Albert Einstein quoted below is very pertinent in this context “If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe, then man would only have four years of life left. No more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man”.(Thakur, 2011). Thus, starting from honey hunting since time immemorial to traditional bee keeping and its present transformation to scientific bee keeping has been a continuous endeavor of human for harnessing both direct and indirect benefits from bee keeping activities. Bee keeping has been a very popular agro based enterprise which does not compete with any resource of farming system rather acts as an integral component of Integrated farming system. Now-a-days it has not only attracted the attention of a diverse group of people, administrators and institutions for various purposes but also it has been the point of attraction of the rural poor and youth for their livelihood improvement.

According to “Artha-sastra”, first book on Governance, Agriculture, cattle breeding and trade, world?s first meteorological Instrument, a “Rain Gauge”, apparently a circular vessel with 20 fingers equivalent width and 8 fingers equivalent depth were installed by Kautilya (Chanakya) during 350-281BC throughout the Mauryan empire (Rainfall measurement:: 1 adhaka = 12mm, I drona = 40 to 50 mm). He is the first person to identify country?s economy depends on Rainfall. Good yield of rain-fed crop requires rainfall of 16 dronas was essential and 4 dronas rainfall is sufficient, also identified rainy season July to December wherein 2/3 annual rainfall receives during Mid-August to October end, now as per IMD norms Southwest monsoon season. He also identified his empire consists of FOUR CLIMATIC zones Tundra/Tropical Rain forest/Semiarid and Arid zones. With the modern seafarers, Columbus (1451-1506) Americus Vespucius (1454-1512) Italian Explorers, James Cook (1728-1779), British Explorer, Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1529), Vasco-de-gama (14601524) Portuguese Explorer and other Navigators of 15th to 18th Century faced severe cyclonic storm and rough weather over high sea felt the need of Meteorological and Navigational equipments. Inventions of modern day instruments started. For Navigators, Quadrant, Mariners Campus (dry), Sand glasses for time measurement (800-900AD) and accurate mechanical Watch (1759) were invented. From the term “NAVAGATHI”, modern term of “NAVIGATION” born. With the introduction of Hot air balloon flight in 18th Century, Air flights (after 1903) our knowledge of weather of upper levels of the atmosphere – knowledge of heights of standard pressure altitudes, Upper Air Temperature, Humidity, Wind direction and speed upto Troposphere. Radio-sonde ascents were commenced in 1936. Radars and Satellite images further increased knowledge about weather and assisting for the preparation of weather inferences useful for Seafarers, flight operators and General Public, Agriculturists, Live-stock managements, national level planners, trade and economists.

Measurement of water used in irrigation ensures the application of required amount of water in crops. Knowing the rate of flow the adjustment to period of control at gates, etc. can be done to regulate the water at different branches of canals. To get the total control over the supply of water there should have the provision of water measurement at the critical points in irrigation systems.

Units of Measurement

Water is measured at rest or in motion. The water of reservoir, ponds, tanks, etc. at rest is measured in volumetric unit as liter, cubic meter, hectare-meter and hectare-centimeter. Water flowing in rivers, canals, channel, etc. is measured in liter/s, liter per hour, meter per second and hectare-meter per hour or day.

11. 1 Introduction

Agricultural drainage is the removal of excess water from the farmland for the purpose of providing favorable soil air environment for plant growth. Removal of water may take place form the surface or below the surface of the land. The practice of lowering ground water table below the root zone depth to improve the plant growth or to reduce the accumulation of salts in soil is also called as drainage.

Drainage system is broadly classified as surface and subsurface drainage. Removal of excess water over the land surface is known as surface drainage and that of removing water below the surface is known as subsurface drainage. The flow of water in the form of evaporation or evapotranspiration also play important role in improving drainage situation. It gives the idea of the time required to get the wetland workable though it is not called a type of drainage as because this is very slow process and cannot be controlled by the human activities. However, using of certain tree plants e. g. , Eucalytus, Poplar, Casurina or similar species in wet fields, which transpires at high rate and improves the drainage problem by lowering the shallow water table is the new idea known as bio-drainage.

16.1 Introduction

Food safety is most important issue in today's global environment. To safeguard food supply is a very difficult and challenging responsibility, as a consequence of which the world's largest food companies, retailers, and manufacturers have placed very high food safety standards. Although the safety of food has improved exponentially but progress is uneven and food borne outbreaks due to microbial contamination, pesticides, antibiotics chemicals and toxins are common in many countries. International trade statistics (2007) by World Trade Organization (WTO) reported that Europe has accounted for 46% of world exports of agricultural products, where food represents 80% of agricultural exports. The trading of contaminated food among countries increases the risk for outbreaks and consequently, health risks due to microbial pathogens in food are of major concern to all governments.

Biosensors are an important option in the agricultural and food sectors to control production processes and ensure food quality and safety by dependable, fast and cost effective methods. Biosensors have plenty of advantages over conventional analytical tools since they offer advantages in size, cost, inherent specificity, selectivity, rapid response, accuracy and sensitivity. Food microbiologists are always in search of rapid and reliable automated systems for the detection of biological activity. Biosensors provide sensitive, miniaturized systems that can be used to detect unwanted microbial activity or the presence of a biologically active compound, such as glucose or a pesticide. Immunodiagnostics and enzyme biosensors are two of the leading technologies that have had the greatest impact on the food industry. The use of these two systems has reduced the time for detection of pathogens such as Salmonella to 24 hour and has provided detection of biological compounds such as cholesterol or chymotrypsin. The another useful application for biosensors, is detection of genetically modified organisms (GMO), since several countries have laws regulating the commercialization of GMO products and their derivatives. Biosensors are also useful in the implementation of hazard analysis and critical control points (HACCP) plans by verifying process developments and correcting errors in due time. There is joint application of Biosensor technologies and nanotechnologies in many food and agricultural applications such as the development of nano-scale tools for biosafety, nanoscale compounds for food packaging, and nano-sensors for pathogen detection in animals and plants. These are helpful tools in the detection and control of potential food contaminants by the agricultural and food industries.

Plant hormone is an organic compound synthesized in one part of the plant body and translocated to another part where in very low concentration it causes a physiological response. However, this definition could not demarcate the vitamins and other growth influencing substances from hormones. For this reason, the term Phytohormone was introduced with included vitamins, growth hormones and flowering hormones. Phytohormone can be defined as an organic substance produced naturally in higher plants, controlling growth or other physiological functions at a site remote from its place of synthesis and active in minute amounts, whereas, an organic substance, which promotes growth, i.e., irreversible increase in height or volume, when applied in low concentration to the shoots of plant is known as growth hormone.

The plant hormones are naturally occurring as they are synthesized by the plant. On the other hand, there are several manufactured chemicals, which often resemble the hormones in physiological action and molecular structures, are called growth regulators. Generally, there are five classes of phytohormones.

The phytohormones universally present in all plants are classified as under:

Plant viruses, like all other viruses, are obligate intracellular parasites that do not have the molecular machinery to replicate without the host. The plant viruses are defined as viruses pathogenic to higher plants. The discovery of plant viruses causing disease is accredited to Beijerinck who determined in 1898 that the plant sap obtained from tobacco leaves with the mosaic disease remained infectious even after passing through a filter. This was in contrast to bacteria, which were retained by the filter. Beijerinck referred to the infectious filtrate as a contagium vivum fluidum, thus, he used modern term virus.

Viruses occasionally cause significant problems in vegetable crops. However, the prevalence and severity of viral diseases differ from year to year. Aphids spread many of the viral diseases observed in vegetables. There are two types of viral transmission by aphids, i.e., persistent and non-persistent transmission. It is important to understand the difference between these two because persistent and non-persistent viruses differ both in their uptake and behaviour within the insect vector, consiquently, tactics used to limit their and spread vary considerably. In persistent transmission, the aphid usually carries the virus for life. Uptake of virus requires extended feeding and after an incubation period of several hours or days, the virus replicates and circulates within the insect. Because of the time required for feeding before acquisition by an insect vector, the spread of persistent virus is favoured by colonizing aphid species that spend time in the crop. Controlling the aphid vectors with insecticides can reduce the spread of persistent plant virus significantly. In contrast, aphids can acquire non-persistent viruses (NPV) within a few seconds after sampling an infected plant. Winged migratory aphids can move quickly from infected plants onto healthy ones, transmitting the virus in the process. Aphids rapidly lose the virus particles from their mouthparts, which are cleaned when they feed on the next available plant and are unable to transmit disease to additional plants. Because of the speed in which aphids acquire and transmit non-persistent viruses, insecticides are not usually effective in controlling their spread. One of the most common viruses found in many vegetable crops is cucumber mosaic virus (CMV). This is transmitted by several aphid species in a non-persistent manner. There are several strains of CMV that can infect over 775 different plant species in 85 families including snap bean, peppers, tomato, lettuce, tobacco and sugar beets. Symptoms vary depending upon the plant species infected but range may be from yellow-green mottling on leaves and fruits to severe stunting of plants. The viral diseases affecting different vegetable crops are being discussed below:

Introduction

Floriculture is a fast emerging, rapidly expanding industry in the present scenario. The importance of flowers has been realized throughout the world and now it has been developed into an intensive form of agriculture. Flowers play an integral role in life of each and every human being. They are the part and parcel of day to day activities. There is common saying with flowers that a man is born with flowers, live with flowers and dies with flowers. This shows the importance of flowers in our lives since time immemorial. The flowers create an atmosphere of beauty, happiness and harmony. With the fast changing lifestyles, floriculture can become a lucrative business in India in view of low labour cost, varied agro climatic conditions and large collection of plant wealth.

Among flowers, loose flowers hold an important place in terms of high demand for usage in various religious and social ceremonies. They are mainly used for worshipping, making floral garlands, floral decorations in wedding, religious functions, interior decoration, self adornment etc. The earlier trend of using flowers for aesthetic value is changing slowly into business with the realization of its vast economic potential as value addition of flowers by drying, extraction of essential oils, colouring pigments, antioxidants etc. is also gaining importance.

In India, mostly loose flowers dominate the domestic market. Marigold, jasmine, tuberose, crossandra and china aster are the major loose flowers grown in India. Production technology of these flowers is described as: