eChapters

Some of the constraints in cashew production in the country which limits the productivity of cashew per unit area

• % Large area under cashew in the country is still covered with non-descript genetically inferior seedling progenies.

• % Cashew is a neglected plantation crop among the farmers and generally grown under neglected condition.

• % The land which is not suitable for other plantation crops only are available to cashew crop. Hence, the land which is available for cashew is usually eroded and degraded with poor soil fertility.

• % Farmers are not fully aware of the latest cashew production technologies due to inadequate transfer of technology.

• % Even if farmers are aware of the latest cashew production technologies, non adoption of recommended package of practices to the extent required.

• % Absence of compact and dwarf high yielding varieties, because of which high density planting cannot be adopted to realize the full potentiality of high density planting technology.

1. Introduction
 Laboratories form the backbone of research, clinical diagnostics and industrial quality control. Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) serve as the foundation for ensuring the quality, integrity, and reliability of scientific research, particularly in different pharmaceuticals drug testing, environmental studies and chemical testing. Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) in animal husbandry and dairy research play a crucial role in ensuring the accuracy and reproducibility of scientific studies related to livestock management, dairy production animal health and promoting animal welfare. Originally developed to prevent fraud and ensure regulatory compliance, GLP has evolved in response to advancements in technology, increased regulatory demands and the growing human and animals need for sustainability in laboratory operations. Laboratory settings are inherently fluid, with regulatory frameworks and technological progress constantly reshaping the environment. Studies indicate that even minor lapses in quality control can trigger significant inconsistencies in test results, outcomes that can have serious repercussions in both clinical and research domains. Therefore, cultivating a philosophy of ongoing improvement is crucial for addressing these evolving challenges, meeting the rising demand for safe, superior dairy products and embracing innovation. This article, synthesize the latest research findings and guidelines, delve into trusted best practices and outline practical strategies for embedding continuous improvement into everyday laboratory operations. A study published in the Journal of Laboratory Quality demonstrated that the adoption of structured quality indicators significantly minimized error rates and bolstered patient safety in clinical laboratories. Their research also provided a comparative analysis of different continuous improvement strategies, including the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle and Lean Six Sigma, highlighting their respective benefits in lab environments. Based on these insights, the authors advocate for a comprehensive quality management system that seamlessly integrates automation, comprehensive staff training and routine audits to enhance process efficiency. Ultimately, the findings underscore that continuous improvement is an enduring journey, one that evolves along with advances in science, technology and regulatory standards.

Abstract

Wild medicinal plants have been major source of therapeutic agents for alleviation or cure of human diseases since time immemorial. These are extensively utilized throughout the world in two distinct areas of health management i.e., modern medicine and or folk medicine. Some of the important medicinal plants grown and cultivated in India for medicine, phytochemicals, nutraceuticals, cosmetics and others are Abelmoschus moschatus, Aristolochia bracteata, Cassia alexandrina, Caralluma fimbriata, Gymnema sylvestre, Withania somnifera and other species. They have become important sectors of trade and commerce. However, in India, about 90% collection of medicinal plants is form wild source and since 70% of collections involve destructive harvesting, many plants have become endangered or vulnerable or threatened. The increasing demands of the pharmaceutical industry have created problem of supply and one of the major difficulties being experienced by the industry is that of obtaining sufficient quantities of medicinal plants for the manufacture of genuine medicine.

Fruits are living commodities which continue to respire and transpire even after harvest. The storage life of fresh fruits is indirectly proportional to the rate of their respiration which in turn depends on the atmospheric gas composition in which they are stored. Normal air contains about 20.9% oxygen (O2), 78.0% Nitrogen (N₂) and 0.03% carbondioxide (CO₂). Lower levels of O₂ and higher levels of CO₂ in the storage environment result in reduced rate of respiration, delayed ripening and increased storage life. The reduction in O₂ concentration and increase in CO₂ concentration in the storage room with precise control and maintenance of these gases throughout the storage period is generally referred as controlled atmosphere (CA) storage.

CA storage is generally used for long term storage or long distance transportation of fruits in combination with low temperature storage. The use of CA storage for extending the post harvest life of fruits has increased steadily worldwide during the past 60 years. This trend is expected to continue with the advancement of technologies in attaining and maintaining CA during transport, storage and marketing of fresh fruits.

Introduction

Perishable nature of horticultural produce is a major factor contributing in high post-harvest losses. The metabolic processes such as respiration, transpiration, and ethylene production remain active after the harvesting of produce, which drive ripening and senescence Fig. 1. Thus, an effective post-harvest handling is crucial to delay these changes. The rate of these processes depends on the produce’s physiological characteristics, composition, and storage conditions like temperature and humidity. Low-temperature storage is the simplest and most efficient method to slow down deterioration Escobedo-Avellaneda and Welti-Chanes, 2016. Combining low temperatures with methods that limit oxygen exposure, which fuels many enzymatic reactions, further extends shelf life and maintains food quality. Reduced oxygen levels decrease respiration and the activity of enzymes like polyphenol oxidase and peroxidase.

1). Stem Gall
Diagnostic Symptoms
• Symptom appears in the form of tumor-like swellings of leaf veins, leaf stalks, peduncles, stems as well as fruits.
• Infected veins show a swollen hanging appearance to the leaves.
• Initially the tumors are glossy which rupture later on and become rough. They are about 3 mm broad and up to 12.5 mm long.
• Badly affected plants may be killed.
• In the presence of excessive soil moisture, especially under shaded conditions, when the stem fails to harden and remain succulent, the tumors are numerous (Fig-1).
Etiology
Scientific Classification
Kingdom : Fungi
Division : Ascomycota
Class : Taphrinomycetes
Order : Taphrinales

Coriander aphid: Hyadaphis coriandri: Aphididae

Coriander aphids are yellow-green in color, dusted with grayish wax. They have short, dusky, slightly swollen, siphunculi (or cornicles). The Aphids form dense, damaging colonies on leaves, heads, and stems of their host plants.

In its native land, Florida, USA, the life cycle of the coriander aphid is similar to that of other host-alternating aphids. Overwintering eggs occur on other hosts.  A fundatrix (or stem mother) hatches from the egg in the spring. Her offspring are parthenogenetic, and the winged-females are spring migrants. They colonize summer host plants in the family Umbelliferae.

1.0 INTRODUCTION
 
Coriander is a native of southern Europe and Asia Minor. In a treatise, Farrell (1999) has described coriander as indigenous to the Near East and Mediterranean region of North Africa and Southern Europe. According to early Sanskrit writings, coriander was known as far back as 5000 BC for its cultivation in India. Persia grew coriander 3000 years ago for adding fragrance to hanging garden of Babylon and seeds were found in Egyptian tombs of 960 BC. It has been used as an ingredient to traditional and folk medicine in the Middle East and Asia for more than 2000 years. There is archaeological evidence of coriander cultivation from Early Bronze Age in Macedonia (Fragiska, 2005)

The disease appears as tumour like swelling or galls on leaf veins, leaf stalks, peduncles, stems and on fruits. The galls on the vein give a swollen and hanging appearance to the leaves. These are elongated, looks glossy in beginning but later rupture to become rough and corky. When stems remain succulent, numerous tumours may form on them. In severe case, the plant may kill prematurely.

English name : Coriander
Botanical name : Coriandrum sativum L.
Family : Apiaceae
Chromosome number : 2n = 22
Centre of origin : Mediterranean region Coriander of commerce is the dried fruit of Coriandrum sativum L., an aromatic spice crop belonging to the Apiaceae (Umbelliferae) family. Coriander is an ancient flavouring agent documented in ancient Egyptian, Hebrew, and Roman literature dating as far back as 5000 BC. Its leaves, stems, and fruits have been utilized for culinary and medicinal purposes. The composition of coriander seeds includes 6.3% moisture, 1.3% protein, 24.0% carbohydrates, 0.3% volatile oil, 0.44% phosphorus, 1.2% potassium, 0.8% calcium, 0.02% sodium, and 0.006% iron. Additionally, they contain vitamins such as A (175 IU/100 g), B1 (0.26 mg), B2 (0.23 mg), niacin (3.2 mg), and vitamin C (12.0 mg). In contrast, fresh coriander leaves comprise 87.9% moisture, 3.3% protein, 0.6% fat, 6.5% carbohydrates, 0.14% calcium, 0.06% phosphorus, and 0.01% iron.

Problem: Cost of cultivation depending upon the seed and time. More yields can be obtained during right time of sowing, but net profit is very less due to the glut in the market. We can get more return from early or late sown crop during both the season due to the high cost in the market.

Anthracnose
Diagnostic Symptoms
• Pathogen infects the seedlings and produces small reddish circular spots on the cotyledons and primary leaves.
• Lesions develop on the collar region, stem may be girdled, causing seedling to wilt and die.
• In mature plants, the fungus attacks the stem, leading to stem splitting and shredding of bark.
• Most common symptom is boll spotting. Small water soaked, circular, reddish brown depressed spots appear on the bolls.
• The lint is stained to yellow or brown, becomes a solid brittle mass of fiber.The infected bolls cease to grow and burst and dry up prematurely(Fig-2).
Etiology
Scientific Classification
Kingdom : Fungi
Division : Eumycota

The disease i s seen at all crop growing stages. The fi rst symptoms appear at the time of emergence of seedlings, when the cotyledons are attacked. They become yellow and turn brown followed by wilting and drying of the affected seedlings. In the fi eld, the wilting symptoms appear in patches. First of all, the older leaves become yellow, loose their turgidity, wilt, turn brown and droop.

This is the commonest symptom of nearly all respiratory diseases and is indicative of an effort to expel a foreign substance causing irritation on any place in the cough reflex path.

The center is in the medulla close to the respiratory centers. This is activated reflexly by the afferent impulses traveling up mostly along the vagus and to a less extent, the vagus and the phrenic (to bronchi and diaphragm), the spinal accessory, intercostals and other nerves supplying the accessory muscles of respiration. The peripheral fibres of the vagus and the phrenic are also sometimes directly affected causing cough reflex.

The medullary center itself may also be excited or restrained by impulses from superior cerebella centers, so that cough may be induced or controlled by voluntary efforts.

ABSTRACT

Microbial contamination is perceived as the most serious threat faced by plant tissue culture research laboratories and commercial production units. A culture is often viewed as contaminated when obvious microbial growth incited by fungi, yeast or bacteria is noticed on the culture medium. On the other hand, there can be situations when microbes may be present in a covert or latent form with serious side effects on the cultures. The present investigations were taken up with the objectives of elucidating the cause of poor growth, lack of regeneration response or modification of rooting observed with visibly clean cultures of different horticultural crops. Apparently clean cultures of grape, banana, watermelon, eggplant, gerbera and chrysanthemum of recent origin or after long-term in vitro culturing were used in this study. Indexing the medium of such cultures using fungal/ yeast and bacteriological media brought out the covert association of one or more bacterial types with varying proportions of incidence in such cultures. Indexing of tissue revealed bacterial presence in different parts of in vitro plantlets. In some instances, bacteria showed endophytic colonization while being not detectable in the tissue culture medium subsequent to a disinfection or antibiotic treatment. Such bacterial association appeared to be the cause of in vitro decline observed with long-term micropropagated cultures, lack of reproducibility of tissue culture protocols, failure of in vitro rooting etc. besides being a threat to in vitro gene banks and germplasm exchange.

The cowpea aphid: Aphis craccivora: Aphididae

Hosts
 
Groundnut, red gram, peas, beans, safflower, lab-lab niger

Symptoms of damage
 
Both nymphs and adults cause the damage by sucking the plant sap from shoot tips, pods and leaves.  Infested pods become malformed and withered.  Severe infestation may result in complete drying of affected pods.  They also act as vector of virus diseases in pea. 

INTRODUCTION

Crataegus species, or hawthorn, are shrubs or small trees that have been widely and globally used for treating cardiac problems (arrhythmia, angina, hypertension and gastrointestinal ailments. Fruits of the plant are also consumed as food and nutritional supplement. Crataegus species has several pharmacological properties attributable primarily to presence of flavonoids and anthocyanins. The major flavonoids reported are hyperoside, vitexin, and glycosylated derivatives of these compounds. Crataegus has been listed as the plant for future in terms of its utility and significance. Though the species can be easily grown, its commercial cultivation is not yet popular. This presentation highlights the medicinal significance of the species for its greater utilization.

10.1. Origin and distribution

• Native of India and tropical South East Asia.

• Distributed throughout plains of India from Uttar Pradesh to Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

10.2. Economic importance

• King of bitters.

• Economic part - Dried leaves and tender shoots (Whole plant)

• Leaves contain three bitter principles: Deoxy andrographolide, Andrographolide and Neo andrographolide.

• Roots contain flavonoids like andrographin, panicothin, aplegenin etc.

INTRODUCTION

Himalayan region is known for the diversity of its cultural heritage and climate. In Indian part, this mountain range includes states of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. The climatic variability of the region,from sub-tropical to extreme dry temperate, offers great attraction to naturalists, all across the globe. The forest formations here are the natural habitats of a large number of flora and fauna. The flora found in these forests varies with the altitudinal gradient and is quite distinct. In the sub-tropical Himalayas, for example,the predominant vegetation is of deciduous type consisting of trees, shrubs, scrubs, climbers and xerophytes. Man-made Chir pine forests can also be witnessed. At middle elevation, the climate is sub-temperate and supports a mix of broad leaves and pines forests.In the high reaches including Trans Himalayas, climate is typically wet or dry temperate. In the wet temperate climate, evergreen forests are the predominant vegetation, whereas, the dry temperate areas do not support any significant vegetation.This variation in climate and altitude has a great impact on the biodiversity found in the region, and represents about seven percent of the country’s total biodiversity.

Among this diversity, many valuable and rare medicinal and aromatic plants grow wild in the region. The herbs which are traded from this region are of immense value for the preparation of Ayurvedic drugs in the form of monoherbal preparations or as multi-compound herbal formulations. Charak Samhita mentions that the herbs of the Himalayan forests excel in efficacy.

2.1 Introduction

Horticulture plays a pivotal role in global food production and is essential for ensuring food security and improving nutrition. However, the increasing pressure on agricultural resources, coupled with environmental challenges, necessitates the adoption of innovative technologies to enhance productivity and sustainability. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a powerful tool in this regard, offering unprecedented capabilities in data analysis, pattern recognition, and decision-making. In horticulture, AI holds immense potential for revolutionizing crop and soil monitoring practices, enabling more efficient resource utilization and better management strategies.

2.2 Foundations of Ai in Crop and Soil Monitoring

Artificial Intelligence (AI) forms the backbone of modern crop monitoring techniques, enabling the processing of vast amounts of agricultural data and the extraction of actionable insights. This section provides an in-depth exploration of the fundamental principles of AI, machine learning, and deep learning, elucidating their applications in crop monitoring within horticulture.

2.1.1 Understanding Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Definition and Scope: AI refers to the development of computer systems capable of performing tasks that typically require human intelligence, such as learning, reasoning, and problem-solving.

Types of AI: AI can be categorized into two broad types: narrow AI, which is designed for specific tasks, and general AI, which exhibits human-like intelligence across a wide range of domains. In the context of crop monitoring, narrow AI applications are more prevalent, focusing on tasks such as image recognition, predictive modeling, and decision support.

Introduction
  
Horticultural production can be highly profitable, increase employment opportunities, and bring about increasing commercialization of the rural sector. Horticulture thus has a role to play in a world where 1.1 billion people continue to live in extreme poverty on less than US$1 a day and another 1.6 billion who live between one and two dollars per day (Von Braun et al., 2004). While in past, priority to achieving self sufficiency in food grain production in our country, over the years, horticulture has emerged as an indispensable part of agriculture, offering a wide range of choices to the farmers for crop diversification. It also provides ample opportunities for sustaining large number of agro-industries which generate substantial employment opportunities. The horticulture sector contributes around 28% of the GDP from about 13.08% of the area and 37 % of the total exports of agricultural commodities (Annon, 2007).

ABSTRACT

Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moench. is a medicinal and nutraceutically important herb of American origin, extended its distribution to other parts of the globe in subtropical and temperate environment. This species is known for various biological properties such as antimicrobial, immuno-stimulatory and anti-inflammatory properties due to the presence to several bioactive compounds loaded in the form of phenylpropanoids, flavonoids, terpenoids, lipids, nitrogenous compounds, carbohydrates and others such as ascorbic acid, sitosterol, linoleic acid, cyanidin glycosides and sesquiterpene esters in different quantities. Published data reveals that its major chemical constituents possess anti-anxiety, anti-depression, cytotoxicity, anti-infective and anti-mutagenicity properties. Besides, plants respond to abiotic and climatic signals that are responsible for various adaptive responses at the cellular level and vary with ecosystem in which the species grows. It may behave differently in different ecological climates, thereby, modifying their gene expressions, and this reveals that the plant growth and the adaptability are mainly affected by microclimatic factors. Experimental trials conducted to collect data on growth phenology in relation to crop-weather interaction and investigated result is presented in this research. Studies on chemical evaluation of E. purpurea under two constrasting environment, subtropical and temperate climate, with reference to cichoric acid and chlorogenic acid undertaken for this plant is also presented. Future studies in relation to the application of biotechnological interventions and chemical evaluation at different time scale would be a great contribution to the science for this species as it has the tremendous potentials which may lead to development of various nutraceuticals and value added products in future for human health and medicines.

The types of crops and the practices used to grow them and the sequence in which they are grown altogether refers to cropping system. It comprises of all components required for the crop production and their relationships with the environment. Traditionally the cropping systems aim at maximizing the per unit area productivity, which can be done by growing improved high yielding varieties, by adequate and scientific crop management practices and by increasing cropping intensities with the help of different cropping patterns.

In today’s world cropping system should produce more, at the same time the practices should be ecologically and environmentally sustainable. There should be efficient utilization of land and water. It should be designed to conserve soil, soil moisture and improve soil resilience.

A cropping system refers to the type and sequence of crops grown and practices used for growing them. It is based on the available technologies of crop production. Cropping systems have been traditionally structured to maximize crop yields. Now, there is a strong need to design cropping systems, which take into consideration the emerging social, economic and ecological or environmental concerns for each ecosystem. The goal of a cropping system must be to conserve natural resources i.e. soil, water and sustain crop production. Conserving soil and water and maintaining longterm soil productivity depend largely on the management of cropping systems, which influence the magnitude of soil erosion and soil organic matter dynamics. Crop diversification is an important option in sustainable agricultural systems. Management of cropping systems implies management of tillage, crop residue, nutrients, pests, and practices for soil conservation. Difference between dry land and rainfed farming is as follows.

Spikeborer : Helicoverpa armigera : Noctuidae

Larvae of this polyphagous moth feed on the spikelets, flowers and developing seeds. The young larvae bite holes into the spikelets and the grown up ones attack the mature spikes

Diamond back moth: Plutella xylostella: Plutellidae
 
The adults of this moth are small, greyish brown having pale whitish narrow wings and with inner margins yellow. There are three pale whitish triangular markings on hind margins of each forewing. At rest, when both forewings come together, they form a dorsal median patch of three diamond shaped yellowish white spots that give them their name diamond back moth. Hind wings have a fringe of long hairs.

1. Alternaria leaf spot
Diagnostic Symptoms
• Spots are small, dark coloured.
• They enlarge, soon become circular & 1mm. in diameter.
• Under humid conditions groups of conidiophores will be formed in the spot.
• Spots develop concentric rings.
• Finally the spots coalesce leading to blighting of leaves.
• Pathogen is seed borne and cause shriveling of seeds and poor germination.
• Linear spots also appear on petioles, stems, pods & seeds (Fig.1).

Vegetable crops belonging to the family Cucurbitaceae are known as cucurbits. These include 950 species in over 90 genera, mainly distributed in the tropics and subtropics (Schaefer and Renner, 2011). Enormous diversity of cucurbit genetic resources has evolved in past centuries to cater the nutritional requirements of people in different geographical and climatic regions. A large number of cucurbitaceous vegetables coming from different centres of origin are cultivated worldwide (Table 1). However, these crops are challenged by several biotic and abiotic stresses. Cultivated varieties are constrained by market demands, the necessity for climatic adaptations, domestication bottlenecks, and in most cases, limited capacity for interspecific hybridization, creating narrow genetic bases for crop improvement. Genetic resources are the building block for any crop improvement programme and includes landraces, traditional varieties, wild, weedy and other related species constituting primary, secondary and tertiary gene pools. They are valuable sources of important genetic traits needed for developing resilient and climate smart crop varieties and therefore, important for food security. The success and pace of the development depends on the efficient use of plant genetic resources. Wild relatives are incredible genetic resources carrying several desirable attributes like nutritional quality, resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses etc. Most of the crop wild relatives of cultivated crops across the world are not receiving adequate attention for their effective utilization in breeding programs. It is therefore, of utmost priority to protect them in the wild, through in-situ conservation, where they can continue to evolve and develop these useful adaptations. ICAR-National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (ICAR-NBPGR) is the nodal agency for the management of national wealth of vegetable genetic resources speciallyworking for collections, characterization, identification and documentation of new germplasm. Besides, it also bears the responsibility for conservation of the germplasm for future through sustainable use. The Vegetable germplasm is being conserved both under in-situ and ex-situ genebanks. This chapter highlights the status of Cucurbit genetic resources and procedures to access the germplasm by various stakeholders for research use.
 

1) Downy Mildew
Diagnostic Symptoms
• Yellow, angular spots restricted by veins resembling mosaic mottling appear on upper surface of leaves .
• Corresponding lower surface of these spots shows a purplish downy xgrowth in moist weather.
• Spots turn necrotic with age.
• Diseased leaves become yellow and fall down .
• Diseased plants get stunted and die .
• Fruits produced may not mature and have a poor taste (Fig.-1).
Etiology
Scientific Classification
Kingdom : Fungi
Division : Eumycota

Fruit flies: Bactrocera cucurbitae:Tephritidae

This pest is more serious in bitter gourd, snake gourd and to a certain extent on ridge gourd. Other cucurbits are attacked to a lesser level. Damage by this pest causes losing the fruit quality, rotting and fruit drop. The adults lay many eggs inside the fruit sing their big ovipositor that hatch out into worm like apodous maggots. Feeding by the maggots on the pulp of fruits result in rotting, yellowing and fruit drop. The dropped fruits allow pupation by the maggots in the soil from where they emerge out as adults and start egg laying on fresh frits.

The Cucurbitaceae family consists of nearly 100 genera and over 750 species. Although most of them have Old World origin (Whitaker and Davis, 1962), many species originated in the New World and at least seven genera have origins in both hemispheres (Esquinas-Alcazar and Gulick, 1983). There is considerable genetic diversity within the family and the range of adaptation for cucurbit species includes tropical and subtropical regions, arid deserts and temperate locations. A few species are adaptable to production at elevations as high as 2000 m. The genetic diversity in cucurbits extends to both vegetative and reproductive characteristics. There is considerable range in the monoploid (x) chromosome number (Jeffrey, 1990) including 7 (Cucumis sativus), 11 (Citrullus spp., Momordica spp., Lagenaria spp., Sechium spp., and Trichosanthes spp.), 12 (Benincasa hispida, Coccinia spp., Cucumis spp. other than C. sativus, and Praecitrullus fistulosus), 13 (Luffa spp.), and 20 (Cucurbita spp.).
 
Archaeological evidence indicated that cucurbits were present in ancient and prehistoric cultures. Lagenaria was associated with man as early as 12,000 BC in Peru (Esquinas-Alcazar and Gulick, 1983). Archaeological expeditions in the Oaxaca region of Mexico have reported that Cucurbita pepo was associated with man as early as 8500 BC and cultivated by 4050 BC (Esquinas-Alcazar and Gulick, 1983). Written Chinese records describing the use of cultivated cucurbits have been found as early as 685 BC (Herklots, 1972).

Cucurbits form an important and a big group of vegetable crops cultivated extensively in this country. This group consists of a wide range of vegetables, either used as salads (cucumber) or for cooking (all the gourds) or for pickling (cucumber) or as dessert fruits (muskmelon and watermelon) or candied or preserved (ash gourd). They are of tremendous economic importance as food plants.

2.1. Ash Gourd (Benincasa hispida)

Ash gourd (Benincasa hispida L.) belongs to the family Cucurbitaceae. The winter melon, also called white gourd, ash gourd, or “fuzzy melon”, is a vine grown for its very large fruit, eaten as a vegetable when mature. It is the only member of the genus Benincasa. This is a monotypic genus and the only cultivated species is Benincasa hispida (Thunb) Cogn, commonly known as ash gourd or petha. It has a Sanskrit equivalent ‘Kooshmanda’ indicating its antiquity in India.

Originally cultivated in Southeast Asia, the ash gourd is widely grown in China, India and other parts of East Asia. The immature melon has thick white flesh that is sweet when eaten. By maturity, the fruit loses its hairs and develops a waxy coating, giving rise to the name wax gourd, and providing a long shelf life. The ash gourd is known by many other names in India regional wise like komora (Assamese), pethakaddu (Hindi), boodagumbala (Kannada), Kumbalanga (Malayalam), Kohla (Marathi), neer poosanikai (Tamil) and Boodida gummadikaya (Telugu).

Uses

Ash gourd have enormous medicinal properties as it makes a valuable place as a popular natural cure of ailments in traditional medicinal practice. Being low in calories it is an ideal vegetable for diabetic patients and good for weight control. It also acts as a good detoxifying agent.

As per Ayurveda, ash gourd is used to treat epilepsy, asthma, lung diseases, urine retention, internal haemorrhage, and cough. It is said that the fruit juice is also effective in cases of mercury poisoning and snakebite. It could also treat mouth cancer, protecting teeth and gums when a mouth gargle of the juice is done regularly. It is also effective in bleeding of gums. Ash gourd is easily digestible and keeps the body cool. It is a natural blood purifier.

1. Introduction

Medicinal plants play an important role in human life to combat various diseases. The rural folks and tribals in India even now depend largely on the surrounding plants/forests for their day-to-day needs. Majority of the medicinal and aromatic plants are still collected from wild for preparation of herbal drugs and perfumes/cosmetics. Rapid population growth and rising popularity of herbal drugs and natural essential oils have brought into focus the acute scarcity in availability of some of the plants due to indiscriminate and unregulated collection, habitat destruction through expanding agricultural lands, deforestation and urbanization. Fall in the supply of good quality, genuine raw material has resulted in price rise and deterioration in the quality of formulations. With growing demand and use of medicinal and aromatic plants, the important species have to be introduced into commercial agriculture.

The Indian annual turnover of herbal material has crossed Rs. 4000 crores mark, of which Rs. 300 to 400 crores worth is being the export market. The share of Indian trade in medicinal and aromatic plants is only 1.5 percent of the world market. India is one of the major exporters of crude drugs mainly to the developed countries like the USA, the UK, Germany, Japan, France, Switzerland, etc. The main crude drugs having good export opportunities are Aconite, Aloe, Dioscorea, Ephedra, Digitalis, Bach, Belladona, Cincona, Ergot, Isabgol, Opium, Vinca, Senna, Sarpagandha, etc. Of these senna leaves, isabgol husk/seed, and Cassia tora seeds are in maximum demand. China is the major producer of herbal plant material in the world. China earns US$ 5 billion per year from herbal trade besides meeting its domestic requirements. Though India has more potential of production of number of medicinal and aromatic plants than China, the contribution of India in the world market is very low because of the production of poor quality produce (Chadha and Gupta 2005).

1. Introduction

Cumin (Cuminum cyminum L.) crop belongs to the family Apiaceae and having diploid chromosome number 2n =14. It is also known as Jeera in Hindi. This crop is originated from Mediterranean region. It is an erect or sub erect, glabrous annual herb which grows to a height of 30-50cm. The leaves are alternate, compound and green, the blade consists of three slender filiform leaflets. The inflorescence is a compound umbel with white or pinkish flowers (Verma et al., 2018a). The typical pleasant aroma of the seeds is due to their essential oil and the main constituent in essential oil is cuminaldehyde. It is mainly cultivated in arid and semi arid parts of Gujarat and Rajasthan. The total area is about 12 lakh hectare with the production of about 8.5 lakh tons and total export of cumin is worth of more than Rs. 4200 crore during 2020-21 (Fig. 1 & 2). 

1. Introduction

There are around six hundred major and minor crop species but only two percent are cultivated commercially meeting the food (calorie) requirements. The most commonly cultivated food plants are even smaller counting to merely 20 crops (Wilkes, 1984). The huge number of underutilized crops may serve as potential fruit crops to meet the nutritional requirements of poor farming households in lesser common farming and subsistence agriculture. The adoption of underutilized crops on a commercial scale may not be possible without crop improvement, standardized agronomic and fertilizer management technologies, pre- and post-harvesting techniques and marketing (Bag Mal et al., 1997).

In practice, flowers are collected from wild plantations. Recently kewda has emerged as one of the important commercial commodities. A systematic cultivation practice is essential to develop a successful plantation and to increase the productivity.

Planting

Kewda suckers or crowns are generally planted during June-July. i.e. in the beginning of the monsoon, when the soil is not too wet. Planting in wet soil delayd the root formation and reduces the success level. Just after the first shower of rain or during the summer shower close to monsoon, kewda is planted.

In a full grown plant, stilt roots originate at a few feet above the ground to render a support for the huge canopy of the plant. Each part of the stem is capable enough for development of root initials, but it is retarded once the stem became old and leafless. The root initials develop at the terminal portion, where more leaves cluster, but they do not grow. Hence, the stem cuttings collected from the flowering or non-flowering shoots bear the rudimentary roots and when planted, they establish quickly.

In practice, the cuttings are collected and scattered on the ground for two to three days. Before planting, a few leaves closed to the base of the cuttings are removed to expose the root development sites. The cuttings are planted in trenches of 45 cm depth horizontally or at an angle of 30^o. The new leaves appear on the growing points one month after planting.

Kewda plants are usually planted on the field bunds for fencing and subsequently used for collection of flowers. A 30 years old plant can produce a crown of 6-7 m, for which it is difficult to develop a commercial plantation in a close spacing. It has been observed in the natural plantations that the plants may be spaced at 8-10 m distance to achieve a full length of plantation life. It is, therefore, suggested by the authors to follow a paired row method of planting maintaining a spacing of 4 m between plants and rows of a paired row and 6 m between two paired rows; which provides all facilities for plant growth upto 10-12 years and then pruning of a few branches are required. Hence, a plant population of 500 plants in the field and 150-200 plants on field bunds are maintained in a land of one hectare.

1. INTRODUCTION

Medicinal plants constitute considerably a large component of natural vegetation. Several of these species are in great demand for domestic consumption as well as for commercial use by the herbal industry. About 800 species are estimated to be in trade with a turnover of Rs.4000 crores per year. This high demand by the herbal industry has put enormous pressure on the wild populations leading to destructive collection of the produce as maximum species of medicinal plants are wild.

A medicinal plant is as any plant which contains substances that can be used for therapeutic purposes or which are precursor for chemo- pharmaceutical synthesis. The medicinal plants are useful as a drug or therapeutic agent, having different medicinal values in form of active ingredient. Medicinal plants may therefore be defined as a group of plants that possess some special properties or virtues which make them important as drugs, therapeutic agents and for medicinal purposes.

Medicines from India are used by about 60 per cent of the world’s population. These are not only used for primary health care not just in rural areas in developing countries, but also in developed countries as well where modern medicines are predominantly used. While the traditional medicines are derived from medicinal plants, the herbal drugs are prepared from medicinal plants only. Use of plants as a source of medicine has been an ancient practice and is an important component of the health care system in India. There are about 45,000 medicinal plant species in India, with concentrated spots in the region of Eastern Himalayas, Western Himalayas, Western Ghats and Andaman & Nicobar Island. India is the largest producer of medicinal herbs and is called the botanical garden of the world. In rural India, 70 per cent of the population depends on the traditional type of medicine, the Ayurveda. Ayurveda and Kabiraji (herbal medicine) are two important forms of alternative medicine that is widely available in India. It is estimated that about 80,000 species of plants are utilized in some form or other by the different systems of Indian medicine. Many herbs and spices are used in Indian cooking, such as onion, garlic, ginger, turmeric, clove, cardamom, cinnamom, cumin, coriander, fenugreek, fennel, ajowan (ajwain), anise, amchur, bay leaf, hing (asafoetida) etc. Ayurvedic medicine uses all of these either in diet or as a medicine.

4. 1. Origin and distribution

• Native to Egypt, Syria, Middle East and stretching east to India.

• In India, cumin is mainly cultivated in Western Indian states like Rajasthan and Gujarat.

4.2. Economic importance

• Important spice used in Indian kitchens for flavoring various food preparations.

• The flavor is due to chief constituent cuminol (Cuminaldehyde)

• Volatile oil is up to 2.5-3.5 %.

• Used in various ayurvedic medicines especially for the conditions like obesity, stomach pain and dyspesia.

• Many Latino, Vietnamese, United States and Thai foods recipes have cumin and many chilli recipe includes cumin.

• In India, cumin is a traditional ingredient not only curry, but also kormas, masalas, soups and other recipes.

• Used in some cheeses like Leyden cheese as well as some French breads.

1.0 INTRODUCTION

The cumin (Cuminum cyminum Linn.) belonging to family Apiaceace is an important seed spice believed to be indigenous to northern Egypt, East Mediterranean region, Iran, Turkey  and India (Amin, 2003; Raghavan, 2007). It is popularly known as safed jeera and is one of the most common spices of daily use in the Indian sub-continent. Cumin is well known to ancient civilization. It is one of the oldest spices known since biblical times, valued mostly for their digestive properties and for flaovouring bread and other dishes during the periods of ceremonial fasting. As early as 5000 BC, Egyptians preserved the bodies of their kings by mummifying them with cumin, anise and marjoram.

English name : Cumin
Botanical name : Cuminum cyminum L.
Family : Apiaceae
Chromosome number : 2n = 14
Centre of origin : Egypt, Syria and Turkey
Cumin (Cuminum cyminum L.), also known as Safaid jeera, is one of the oldest spices in history. It is derived from the mature fruit of a slender herb. Cumin seeds range from yellowish to greyish brown and emit an aromatic scent due to cuminol and aromatic alcohol, contributing to their distinct spicy and slightly bitter taste. These seeds are widely used as a condiment. The essential oil of cumin seeds contains various compounds, including a-pinene (14.3-19.7%), p-cymene (2.7-6.0%), terpinene (11.5-16.2%), cuminaldehyde (20-22.4%), p-menth-1,3-dien-7-al (11.1-13.5%), p-menth-1,4-dien-7-al (23.6-24.3%), cuminyl alcohol (2.7-72.2%), sabinene (3.38%), benzyl cinnamate (4.47%), and farnesol (2.98%). Cumin is an essential component of many spice blends and curry powders and is used to flavour soups, pastries, stews, sausages, pickles, cheese, and bakery products like bread and cakes. Cumin oil finds its place in soap making, perfumery, and flavouring alcoholic beverages such as liquors and cordials, with absolute oil being preferred for flavouring purposes. Cumin aldehyde is also utilized in perfumery.

Curing- Curing is a process in which produce is subjected to undergow through a special treatment to get the quality product.

Abstract

Sikkim is part of the eastern Himalayan hotspot. Rich biological diversity of the region is owing to its wide range of topography, varied climatic condition and high annual precipitation, inhabited by three major ethnic communities, the Lepchas, Bhutias and Nepalese. With its unique ethno-cultural diversity and equally rich Phyto-diversity, the region holds an immense ethno-botanical knowledge and potential. The collection of food, fodder, fuel wood, timber, herbs for folk medicine from wild is an integral and deep-rooted cultural component and for sustaining socio-economic condition of the people. Medicinal plants of this region have potential for value addition as well as domestication. The folk medicine practices of three ethnic groups are different, but in general there are strong beliefs system in relation of folk medicine with supernatural forces and deities; local people consider its mountain peaks, forest, lakes as sacred hence it helps in sustainable management of its natural resources traditionally. Developments activities, urbanization, overexploitation of important plants and not giving due importance to the traditional knowledge in the past decades leads to the potential depletion in wild and that bring concern for their conservation. A proper strategic plan is needed for conservation of these valuable resources and promoting the indigenous traditional knowledge for sustainable development. Conservation-linked with people participation has been initiated in Sikkim through Sikkim State biodiversity board (SSBB), with its biodiversity management committees (BMCs), and local activist and stakeholders. The research institution of the region and researcher from outside has contributed immensely in documentations of the ethno-botanical knowledge and phyto-diversity of this region. This chapter reviews the current status of traditional ethno-botanical knowledge system of Sikkim state and highlights the current scenario of biological diversity; conservation practices, threats and challenges.

Introduction

Vegetables are the vital sources of minerals, vitamins and dietary fibres and play an important role in supplying nutrition to human health. Vegetables require comparatively lesser quantities of agro-inputs to grow. Vegetables are rich source of vitamins, minerals and plant fibres which provide food and nutritional security. These also generate high income and employment, particularly for small farmers. Vegetables being a rich and cheap source of vitamins and minerals, occupy an important place in the food basket of Indian consumers, a majority of whom are vegetarian. This persistent vegetarianism coupled with rising per capita income is fuelling a rapid growth in consumption of vegetables. Presently, India is producing more then 70 types of vegetables which are capable of meet out the economic and nutritional requirement of the country (Table 1). There has been a revolution in the production of vegetables in the country in the last four decades.

Current Trends in Fruit Exports from India

Fruit culture in the Indian subcontinent dates back to the Harappan civilization when datepalm, pomegranate and lemon were domesticated. Fruits such as aonla, bael, jackfruit, karonda, phalsa, mango, pomegranate, almond, walnut and pistachio are mentioned in Charaka Samhita (300 BC) and Sushruta Samhita (400 BC), the oldest known texts on ayurveda. Owing to diverse agro climatic conditions, India can produce a wide range of tropical, subtropical, arid and temperate fruits. In the past few decades, India had made rapid strides in fruit production and is currently the second largest producer of fruits in the world, next only to China. The annual production is estimated to be about 81 million tonnes for about 12.6% of the total world production. However, India’s share in the global export of fresh fruits is less than 5 per cent. The major fruits exported in terms of quantity are grape, mango, banana and pomegranate. In value terms, grapes and mango earn the maximum foreign exchange for India.

6.1. Origin and distribution

• The plant originated in the Tarai region of Uttar Pradesh, India, and at present it is cultivated in Burma, Ceylon, China, Australia and the Pacific Islands.

6.2. Economic importance

• Curry leaves are a rich source of vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin C, vitamin B2, calcium, and iron, apart from a heavy distinctive odor and pungent taste.

• It helps in the treatment of dysentery, diarrhea, diabetes, morning sickness, and nausea by adding curry leaves to your meals.

6.3. Varieties

• Sen Kaampa, Dharwad-1 and Dharwad-2

6.4. Soil and climate

• Red sandy loam soils with good drainage are ideal for better leaf yield.

• Optimum temperature is 26° to 37°C.

Curry leaf (Murraya koenigii Spreng. Syn. Bergera koenigii Koen (N.O Aurantiaceae), Chaleas koenigii Curz ex. Swingle) is a perennial leaf vegetable. It belongs to family Rutaceae. Its genus name ‘Murraya’commemorates John Adam Murray, Professor of Botany at Gottingen and editor of many of Linnaeus’s works. (Fyson, 1977).

Origin and Distribution

The crop originated in the tarai tract of Uttar Pradesh (India), in the foothills of the Himalayas. Wild forms with less pungent leaves are seen along the plains and hills of Himalayas extending from Kumaon to Sikkim, in Bengal, Assam, Deccan plateau and in Western Ghats. At present, it is cultivated in Myanmar, SriLanka, China, Australia and Pacific Islands. The curry leaf grows throughout India including the Andaman Islands up to an altitude of 1500 m amol (Wealth of India, 1962). Dastur (1970) recorded its wild form in Garhwal hills in Uttaranchal, Sikkim, Bengal, Assam, Central India, Western Ghats, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.  Used as a flavourant and as a leaf vegetable by the early inhabitants, Dravidians, curry leaf was introduced to Southern India when the Dravidians moved southward after the arrival of Aryans from Persia. It is a backyard crop in many of the South Indian homesteads.  The spicy leaves of plants are used extensively for seasoning and flavouring dishes.

English name : Curry leaf
Botanical name : Murraya koenigii (Linn.) Sprengel
Family : Rutaceae
Chromosome number : 2n = 18
Centre of origin : India
Curry leaves come from the aromatic, often deciduous herb or small tree Murraya koenigii (Linn) Sprengel, which belongs to the Rutaceae family. They are widely used in cooking to enhance the flavour of dishes, although their nutritional value is often ignored, as they are typically discarded after being used as a spice.
The fresh weight composition of curry leaves includes 66.3% moisture, 6.1% protein, 1.0% fat (ether extract), 16.0% carbohydrate, 6.4% fibre, 3.1% iron, 4.2% mineral matter, 810 mg of calcium, 600 mg of phosphorus, 12,600 IU of carotene (vitamin A), 2.3 mg of nicotinic acid, and 40 mg of vitamin C per 100 grams. While the leaves lack thiamine and riboflavin, they are a rich vitamin A and calcium source. However, their nutritional availability is reduced due to the high oxalic acid content (1.35%, with 1.15% being soluble oxalates).

Genus Annona belonging to the family Annonaceae, contains more than seventy species of woody shrubs and trees, all of which produce aggregate fleshy fruits. Of these only a few produce edible fruits of commercial importance. Of all, Annona squamosa L. is probably the most popular fruit. It is also known as ‘Sitaphal’ or ‘Shariffa’. These can withstand drought better than many other fruit trees. Other species of the genus Annona providing edible fruits are A. reticulata L., A. muricata L., and A. cherimola L.

Custard Apple (Annona squamosa Linn.)

The custard apple, Annona squamosa L., also known as sweet-sop or sugar apple, is almost entirely eaten as a dessert fruit. Its pulp may be mixed with milk to form milk shake or made into ice-cream. The pulp has a pleasant texture and flavour. Several products like -squash, nectar, pulp butter, syrup, jam can be made from the pulp.

Custard apple is native to tropical America (Mexico). It is cultivated in Australia, Brazil, Chile, Egypt, India, Israel, Myanmar, Mexico, Philippines, Spain, Sri Lanka, South Africa, West Indies, USA and Cuba. In India it is popular in Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, Asssam, Bihar and West Bengal.

Cultivars: The cultivars vary in their shape, size, colour and eating quality. Some of the cultivars are Balanagar, Sangareddy Local, Chittorgarh, Barbados, British Guinea, Mammoth, Red Sitaphal, Yellow Sitaphal, Custard Apple Selection-1, Custard Apple Selection -2. Arka Sahan is a hybrid developed by ICAR-IIHR, Bangalore.