eChapters

3.1 Introduction

Genetics deals with genes and cytogenetics with chromosomes that harbour genes. On the other hand, plant breeding strives to upgrade the genotypes of crop plants. So, the plant breeding methods should be based on genetic principles. Dear students, you should have clear understanding of genetics in broad sense so that you can appreciate the applicability of breeding methods. As I have already pointed out that you have been taught the course ‘Principles of Genetics and Cytogenetics’ in the first semester, only a brief discussion is followed for your review and better understanding.

3.2 Character

When we call ‘character’ or ‘trait’ in genetics, we mean any morphological, anatomical, biochemical or behavioural feature of an organism. For instance, flower colour, blooming period, leaf size, size of guard cells in stomata, vitamin C content, disease resistance etc. A single gene or a number of genes may govern the development of a character and, often it is influenced by the environment. Characters may be qualitative or quantitative.

2.1 Introduction

Dear students, you shall be taught plant biotechnology during the third semester in the course ‘Elementary Plant Biotechnology’. But, for understanding of non-conventional breeding methods/techniques you should acquire some knowledge of basic plant biotechnology. Hence, in this chapter plant biotechnology is introduced to you in brief.

2.2 Definition

The term ‘biotechnology’ stems from fusion of ‘biology’ and ‘technology’. It was coined by Karl Ereky, a Hungarian agricultural engineer, in the beginning of 20th century. According to him, all processes used to yield finished products from raw materials with the help of living organism come under biotechnology. It may be defined in number of ways. However, in simple terms, biotechnology may be defined as ‘the controlled use of biological agents, such as microorganisms, or cellular components, for beneficial use’ (U.S. National Science Foundation).

1.1 Introduction

The word ‘horticulture’ was first used in 1600’s, and is derived from two Latin words, ‘hortus’(garden) and ‘cultûra’(cultivation), and it means ‘the culture (cultivation) of garden plants’. Relf (1992) defined “horticulture as an applied science and art of growing fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices, nuts, tubers, aromatic and medicinal plants, plantation crops, mushrooms and ornamental plants which include shrubs, flowering plants and turfs stimulating minds, spirits and emotions of individuals, enriching health and wellness of communities, and linking human beings to nature and its landscaped exteriors for wellness and wellbeing”. Fruits and vegetables are nourishing and protective foods. It has been recognized that fruits are a rich source of antioxidants which protect us from dreadful diseases. Vegetables and fruits contain vitamin E, K, and  carotene in addition to minerals like zinc, copper and manganese. To meet the ever-increasing demand of the country for fruits, vegetables, tubers, spices, flowers, ornamentals etc., we must strive hard to deliver better cultivars in as many aspects as possible to the society so that human beings will be in sound health physically as well as mentally. To achieve this goal plant breeding in general, and horticultural plant breeding in particular will come to our help.

9.1 Introduction

Xeriscaping is the fine art of creating water-efficient landscapes by using plants that are appropriate to the natural environment. Xeriscaping (zer-i-skaping) is a word originally coined by a special task force of the Denver Water Department, Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado and Colorado State University to describe landscaping with water conservation as a major objective. The derivation of the word is from the Greek “xeros,” meaning dry, and scape meaning the pattern of the landscape – thus, xeriscaping. The term xeriscaping represents a practice or philosophy with the goal to establish and maintain an attractive and healthy landscape while reducing water usage. One of the prime practices in xeriscaping is the use of drought tolerant plants, but xeriscaping is more than that. It also includes changes in the landscape design, soil improvement, efficient irrigation, mulching, and other maintenance practices which contribute towards a water-wise landscape. But xeriscapes are not dry and dull. Well-designed xeriscapes are enchanting and beautiful. The best xeriscapes use a fraction of the water needed by traditional lawn-dominated landscapes. Some xeric plants require little or no supplemental watering once they are established. And xeriscapes require far less ongoing maintenance.

8.1 Introduction

One important aspect of bio-aesthetic planning is to landscape public places on a priority basis compared to private places. For this specific reason, the railway station and the railway lines should attract attention at the very outset for landscape gardening.

8.2 Definition

Bio-aesthetic planning means the proper utilization of the available flora and fauna in the beautification of the surroundings. The concept of bio-aesthetic planning is given by concept of Prof. Lancelot Hogben.

In India, the theme of bio-aesthetic planning was propagated by Dr. M. S. Randhawa. Le Corbusier and his associates, Pierre Jeanneret, E. Maxwell Fry and Jane B. Drew had planned Chandigarh city as per the principles of bioaesthetic planning.

7.1 Introduction

Garden designing is an important and crucial step as whole aesthetic view of the garden depends upon it. A beautifully designed garden can attract plenty of viewers as well as fauna while a poorly designed garden can destroy the view of the garden as a whole. So, while designing a garden all the basic principles and elements of gardening should be kept in mind.

7.2 Steps in Preparation of Garden Design

Site identification

Generally, the site for garden development is provided by the client itself. So, in this case we should go for site analysis step directly. Site identification is always a choice of client/human. If landscape architect has liberty to identify a land for garden establishment, he should identify the site as per choice of the client, usage and special considerations of the client.

6.1 Introduction

Garden design encompasses the aesthetic beauty, artistry, knowledge of plant growth and development with basic maintenance of plants and other elements as required. Principles are the basic rules of designing a landscape. The basic principles of garden design are very simple; however, each is often referred to by more than one name. Principles of landscape garden keeps the garden lively and beautiful. The principles of gardening should be kept in mind always while designing a garden.

6.2 Axis

It is an imaginary line in landscape designs around which the garden is created striking a balance. In a formal garden the central line is the axis.

5.1 Elements of Landscape Gardens

5.1.1 Introduction

Elements of a garden are the basic units of any visual design which form its structure and convey visual messages. Elements are based on the art principles of landscaping. Process of landscape design includes concepts and elements of landscape designing. Generally, elements of a garden are divided into 2 types

4.1 Introduction

Many styles of gardens do not follow strict rules and so those are known as informal gardens. Some gardens evolved as informal garden in due course of time as per the choice of people but some gardens are informal in nature from origin. Informal gardens are:

English garden

Japanese garden

Hindu garden

Buddhist garden

3.1 Introduction

Many gardens follow strict rules. So those are known as formal gardens. Generally formal gardens include:

Italian gardens

French gardens

Persian gardens

Mughal gardens

2.1 Introduction

Generally, gardens are divided into different sections as per the rules and regulation followed in the placement of different elements and features in it. On the basis of this garden types are divided into 4 categories such as

1.1 Introduction

Irrespective of caste, creed, culture, sex, age or religion people like garden. A well-maintained garden serves as lungs of the city or locality as it is a prime source of plenty of oxygen and people enjoy the surrounding and feel happy by fresh air. In holy books of Hindu religion, the importance of plants as well as gardens are explained very beautifully. In the holy Bible it is mentioned that Adam and eve lived in garden. In Quran it is explained as the paradise on earth. So, scriptures of all religions explain about gardens. It shows gardens and plants are closely related to human from the origin of human belief.

All higher plants have some kinds of aroma or flavor in their various parts, which includes roots, stems, leaves, flowers and fruits. This flavor and aroma in a particular plant part due to the presence of some specific essential oils present in special glands in it (Chadha and Choudhury, 1989). Essential oils arethe concentrated liquid, which is highly concentrated and water insoluble liquid (hydrophobic) and it is also known as ethereal or volatile oils, which are fragrant oily liquid that are extracted from the various parts of the plants. Generally they are organic compounds like hydrocarbons likealcohols, aldehydes, esters, ketones and phenols. An essential oil is “essential” in case that it contains the essence of the different fragrance, and the properties of the plants from which they are derived. All though all ornamental plants have some aroma but only few of them are used commercially in perfumes, flavor and cosmetic industries. The essential oil demand by fragrance industry is 60%, flavour industry 20% and pharmaceutical industry 20%. In all the perfumes, rose oil is one of the best and costliest perfume. The first recorded reference of rose perfume is in CharakSanghita. The credit for discovery of rose perfume was given to Queen Noor Jehan mentioned in the book written by Md. Achem of King Jahangir’s regime.

The volatile oils showed the different kinds of biological activities including the antibacterial, antioxidant, antiviral, insecticidal, etc. These oils are also used for cancer treatment, while some other has been used for the food preservations, aromatherapy, and in the perfumery industries. Thus, in the day to day life a large spectrum of usage the essential oil and aroma industry has a bright future. Yet the known applications of essential oilsare opening up ofmore areas which will benefit the industry.

Flower arrangement is the art of using plant materials and flowers to create an eyecatching and balanced composition or display. Among all art forms, flower arrangements today take as prominent a place. The art engages ones personal involvement in welcoming guests and bringing cheer to the surroundings. It is rightly said, “Flowers are the music of the ground. From earth’s lips spoken without sound. “Professionally designed floral designs, arrangements or artwork incorporate the elements of floral design: line, form, space, texture, and color, and the principles of floral design: balance, proportion, rhythm, contrast, harmony, and unity.

Composition of Arrangements

There are a few compositions of flower arranging that should be considered. Once we understand these we can create so many different styles and our floral designs will have that professional look.

Floriculture has flourished with a considerable growth and a useful crop diversification option, particularly for small farmers over the past three decades. The commercial production of the cut greens has started in India in recent years and has huge demand in the market. They are suited for year round production with low investment and less care and maintenance. Cut greens or fillers are an important component of the floricultural industry and their commercial value depends on vegetative characters, such as stem length, leaf colour, density and side branching. Cut foliages (leaves and stems), which are attractive in form, colour and freshness, are lasting and in great demand. They have various other uses in making attractive fresh floral designs and floral arrangements, such as bouquets, wreaths, decoration of house interiors, etc. Evergreen plants with green, silver or variegated leaves are usually used and species with berries are now also becoming popular. Fillers are critical components in most arrangements as the flowers themselves,used to increase the volume and size of the bunch and provide colour contrast. These floral produce have various other uses in making attractive fresh floral designs and floral arrangements, such as bouquets, wreaths, decoration of house interiors, etc. Colour, freshness, stem length, freedom from pests, fragrance and vase life are important quality aspects of fillers. In the International market, fillers accounts for about 16 percent of the total trade by volume with an annual turnover of more than Rs 800 crores including selling of ornamental leaves, filler flowers, dry and dyed flowers along with berries and capsules. On the contrary, fillers representvery less quantum with poor quality in the domestic market and are unsuitable for cut flower bouquets. Their share in the market is very low and fetches nominal rates.

Flowers and various parts of the plant have been used for decoration and to commemorate various religious, festive, matrimonial and social gathering events in day to day life. The main drawback of fresh flowers and foliage is being highly perishable and delicate which cannot retain their beauty for longer durations. Moreover fresh flowers are not available round the year which can be overcome by the dehydration and drying techniques. Since ancient times, in Egyptian pyramids, fragrant dried flowers and herb garlands were encased along with mummified bodies. Japanese people created “Oshibana”, the “preserved flower art” of enduring designs to retain the exquisite beauty of the living plants centuries ago.

Later on, this craft making technique spread from Japanese to Victorian England because of their beautiful long lasting appearance. During middle ages monks dried flowers, foliage, and herbs for use in decorative motifs or for colouring their handprinted books.

Dried flower arrangements have been popular in Europe for centuries, and as early as 1700 AD, colonial Americans used dried flowers to brighten their homes, especially during the dark winter months.

Earlier botanists practiced dried flowers in the form of herbarium for the purpose of identification of various plant species. Though drying of flower was well known even in the past but for the first time the flowers were dried commercially in Germany (Sankari and Anand, 2014).

Floriculture is a high value industry. It is increasingly regarded as a feasible diversification option from traditional field crops due to increased per unit returns and increasing habit of ‘Greeting with Flowers’ during all the occasions. With increasing awareness among consumers and pressure from the artificial floral products on the fresh flower industry, and continued competition even amongst the growers, whole salers and retailers, quality is becoming increasi ngly important. The aspects related to visual quality of the product are the main determining indices of consumer’s acceptability of flowers.

The important flower crops in the international market are rose, carnation, lisianthus, chrysanthemum, gerbera, hydrangea, gladiolus, gypsophila, bird of paradise, orchids, anthurium, tulip and lilies etc. Cut flowers have the highest economic value and are the most perishable. Their high respiration rates, rapid deterioration, and susceptibility to damage require the utmost care during postharvest handling for quality maintenance. The post-harvest losses can be both, quantitative as well as qualitative, which ultimately result in loss in terms of its monetary value.

Floriculture industry is facing main problem due to highly perishable nature of its flowers which demand for appropriate post-harvest handling techniques to maintain the quality. With changing scenario in international floriculture trade, perfection in post-harvest technology is mandatory to offer quality plant products to the consumers round the year. The post-harvest life of cut flowers and flowering pot plants can be extended relatively by a range of treatments and technologies. Quality factors that influence the post- harvest keeping quality and flower longevity are environmental factors as well as the influence of the pathogenic organisms. Due to perishable nature of cut flowers, huge post-harvest loss is there which ranges from 30-50 per cent. Qualitative losses which include consumer acceptability of fresh produce are much more difficult to measure than quantitative losses. Quantitative losses can occur during the entire post-harvest and marketing chain due to lack of proper post harvest handling (Bhattacharjee, 2006). These losses could be on a higher side, which might be due to lack of knowledge on ‘post-harvest handling’ of cut flowers and proper infrastructure for post-harvest management and storage. However, all these losses can only be minimized by proper technique of harvesting, post-harvest handling, packaging, storage, marketing and value addition of flowers.

Lotus being a national flower of India, is closely associated with religion and culture. It is a perennial, aquatic crop that is grown and consumed throughout Asia. The edible parts of lotus are Leaves, flowers, seeds and rhizomes, and the flowers are also used in religious ceremonies. Lotus flowers are also, used for extraction of perfumes. It is one of the oldest plants in the world Archaeologists in China found Lotus seeds with estimated ages of 5,000 years in 1972 in Yunnan Provincelagoons.

During the pre-historic period, the South India Dravidians used lotus flowers (pundarika) as their food, much earlier than the people of the Indus Valley civilization (3000-2000 BC). However, there is no evidence of lotus being present during the Indus Valley culture of the Mohenjo Daro and Harappa period in northern India. The Rigveda reference that lotus was made by the Aryans (2000-1500 BC) wherein it is also mention that lotus can be used as food. Subsequently, lotus was mentioned in the Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, Slokas, plays and other ancient Sanskrit literature. The lotus symbol is not only mentioned in the scriptures of Hinduism but it also occurs in the Buddhist and Jainism literature.

In the Arthasastra (350-300 BC) by Kautilya, the great diplomat during the golden age of Chandra Gupta, it is recorded that one of the varieties of sandal wood possesses the fragrance of lotus. The Mughal kings were also attracted towards the beauty of lotus. While describing Agra, the Mughal king Jehangir (1605-1627 AD) in his memories Tuzuk-i-Jehangiri, mentioned a memorable scene of a tank full of exquisite red lotus flowers, the like of which he had not seen before.

Marigold (Tagetes spp.) is an important annual flower crop; native to Central and South America especially Mexico and belongs to family Asteraceae (Compositae). It is commonly known as “Gainda” in India and also called as “Friendship Flower” in United States of America. Loose flowers of marigold are in great demand throughout the year. It is commercially grown in tropical and subtropical regions of India owing to its ease in cultivation, hardy nature, wider adaptability and year round availability of single, semi-double and double flowers of vibrant colours. Marigold is grown over an area of about 66.09 thousand hectares with production of 603.18 thousand MT loose flowers in India. Major states involved in loose flower production of marigold are Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Haryana and Chhattisgarh. In India, Assam is the only state, which produces marigold for both cut as well as loose flower purpose on an area of about 0.61 thousand hectare (Anonymous, 2016a).

Marigold is a cross-pollinated flower crop and it is pollinated by insects (Kaneko et al., 1990). It bears terminal and solitary inflorescence, known as head or capitulum, which possesses long and hollow peduncle with swollen apex and campanulate involucres (Setshogo, 2005). Capitulum consists of peripheral ray florets and central disc florets. Ray florets are pistillate, ligulate, sessile, epigynous and zygomorphic, whereas, disc florets are bisexual, tubular, sessile, epigynous and actinomorphic (Subrahmanyam, 1996 & Setshogo, 2005).

African marigold (Tagetes erecta L.) is a diploid species (2n = 2x = 24), while, French marigold (Tagetes patula L.) is a tetraploid species (2n = 4x = 48) with basic chromosome no. of x = 12 as revealed by breeding work of various researchers (Towner, 1961, Chen and Lin, 1981, Chen and Lin, 1982, Serrato-Cruz et al. 2000, Zhang et al., 2011). Tagetes erecta and Tagetes tenuifolia are diploid species, whereas, Tagetes patula, Tagetes minuta, Tagetes biflora and Tagetes remotiflora species are tetraploid in nature (De, 2017). On the basis of floral morphology; three different types of male sterile systems i.e. apetaloid, petaloid and gynomonoecious types was observed in African marigold (Prakash et al., 2016). Out of these, apetalous male sterility (femina type) is more reliable and preferred over petalous male sterility because later is more prone to break down (Goldsmith, 1968 & Janakiram, 2004). Apetaloid male sterility was controlled by single recessive gene (Prakash et al., 2016). A monogenic recessive male sterile apetalous mutant was detected from T. erecta population by Khoshoo (1979). Cyto-genetic male sterility is also found in marigold (De, 2017). Petaloid and gynomonoecious male sterile systems were controlled by cytoplasmic inheritance (Prakash et al., 2016). In marigold, cytoplasmic genetic male sterile lines were also developed for commercial production of F_l sterile hybrids (Pratibha et al., 2000).

Jasmines constitute a group of traditional flower crops which are commercially grown for their fragrant flowers and essential oil production. There are trailing, climbing, and erect growing species and cultivars in the genus Jasminum. The genus Jasminum comprises of more than 200 species which are known to occur in different tropical and subtropical regions of the world. The countries growing Jasmines on a commercial scale are India, France, Italy, Morocco, Algeria, North Africa, Egypt and Spain. More than 80 Jasminum species are found in India, of which only four species viz., Jasminum sambac (Mogra / Gundumalli), Jasminum auriculatum (Jui / Mullai), Jasminum multiflorum syn Jasminum pubescens (Kunda / Kakda) and Jasminum grandiflorum (Jai / Pitchi) are widely used for commercial cultivation. Jasmines are commercially grown in many parts of the country as a dry land crop. The leading states in jasmine production are South Indian states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. In India, the commercial cultivation of jasmines are popular in Athoor, Coimbatore, Dharampuri, Dindigul, Erode, Krishnagiri, Madurai, Nilakottai, Periakulam, Salem, Thiruchirapalli, Thirunelveli, Thiruvallur, Tirumanagalam, Vellore, Virudhunagar etc. in Tamil Nadu; Bangalore, Bellary, Kolar, Mysore, Shimoga, Tumkur etc. in Karnataka ; Hyderabad, Khammam, Mahbubnagar, Mancherial, Ranga Reddy, Sangareddy, Vikarabad, Warangal Rural, Yadadri etc. in Telangana; Anantapur, Chittoor, Cuddapah, East Godavari, Guntur, Krishna, Kurnool, Nellore, Prakasam, West Godavari etc. in Andhra Pradesh; Ahmednagar, Aurangabad, Pune, Sangli etc. in Maharashtra; Ahmedabad, Anand, Bharuch, Bhavnagar, Kutch, Vadodara etc. in Gujarat; Gazipur, Jaunpur, Kannauj etc. in Uttar Pradesh; Ajmer, Jaipur, Kota, Udaipur etc. in Rajasthan; Panskura Ranaghat etc. in West Bengal; Guwahati, Hoja, Jorhat etc. in Assam ; and parts of Punjab and Delhi. Jasmines contributes markedly to the national economy and it is estimated that annually more than 20 crores worth of jasmine flowers are produced and traded in India and are also exported to countries like Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, UAE and United States (Safeena et al., 2017).

Statice, botanically known as Limoniumis very highly demanded ornamental plant. It is also known as ‘Sea Lavender’ owing to its color and place of growth. The genus name Limonium is from Greek name ‘leimon’ which translates to origin ‘a meadow’, most suitable as many species are found growing near marshy lands or salty areas of sea shore. The statice plants have very wide adaptability and can be seen growing under a wide range soil and climatic conditions like sea shores, marshy lands, deserts and plains etc. Statice figures in top 20 cut flowers sold worldwide but information on its trade, volume, export-import and number of stems sold etc. is not available. The reason for this may be attributed to classification systems, data collection categories and frequently changing nature of the assortments in the international flower market. Comprehensive trade statistics are difficult to locate for Statice. However, Statice figured in top 10 imported products in the Netherlands way back during 2013, 2014 and 2015. Though it is presently not among the top 10 flowers category, still it enjoys the immense popularity among the growers owing to its ease in cultivation and other characteristics. It is cultivated as annual as well as perennial crop, as different species have been domesticated for this purpose.