eChapters

1. Introduction

Thermal processing used extensively in the food industry for preservation and shelf life extension of the products (Arnoldi 2001). Heat treatments remain most important in food processing unit operations, not only to achieve desirable changes in eating quality but also for preservative effect by inactivation of microorganisms, destruction of enzymes and insects.Heat is applied in various unit operations through adifferent mode of heat transfer such as conduction, convection, and radiations. 

A neurotic headache, usually reflex in origin and paroxysmal in character.

The causes are many and varying in kind, making both the diagnosis and treatment the most difficult the general practioner encounters,

Migraine is clearly a hereditary condition, and the inheritance is passed down through the females rather than the males. Nervous abnormalities of the female generative organs are the most frequent of the exciting causes. Eye strain; shock; grief; worry; gastro-intestinal irregularities; mental emotions, i.e., anger, fear, love, jealously and remorse may cause migraine at one time and hysteria at another.

Many patients have lived, to suffer from the disease, for fifty years. On the other hand, many are permanently cured. The time needed to complete the cure will depend upon your ability to determine the tissue or organ, which is the cause of the disease, and the faithfulness with which the patient will follow directions.

Next to epilepsy, no disease so frequently presents premonitory symptoms as Hemicrania. These may be blurring of visions, flashes of light, balls of fire, etc.; chilliness; flashes of heat; dizziness; depression or excitation; confusion of ideas; numbness, etc. then comes the pain which is usually one sided, and may be any or all sensations, sharp or dull, continuous or intermittent, etc. There may or may not be tenderness of the affected part.

1. Introduction

Man (Homo sapiens) since his appearance on the sylvan Blue Planet started his search for healthcare and beautycare, besides food and shelter. Eventually, he also became conscious about his mind and attempted at ‘mindcare’. He employed leaves, flowers, fruits, etc. or some plant products altering his mind to remain aloof from his heavy worldly affairs, stress or even incurable diseases. He also endeavoured to use plants for his amusement. He exerted more pressure on local biodiversity, modified his study and observations on biodiversity which resulted into ‘cultural biodiversity’. He intensified his method of ‘trial and errors’ to search new sources or biodynamic chemicals. In recent times, he is emphasizing value-addition of the products in hand for his welfare. After food, medicine was his next priority to sustain life in primitive societies. Naturally, his study and research laid emphasis more on food and medicine in comparison to mind-altering bioresources. Even the modern man also paid more attention on the former rather that the latter. These trends have perforce led in partial negligence of research for psychoactive plants in his ambience. The present author, therefore, extended efforts to prepare an inventory of the mind-altering vis-à-vis psychoactive plants in the state of Maharashtra.

10.1. Preservation through canning

• Process of sealing food stuffs hermetically in containers and sterilizing them by heat for long storage

• In 1804, Appert in France invented this process.

• Also known as appertizing.

• Saddington in England - First to describe a method of canning of foods in 1807.

• In 1810, Peter Durand obtained first British Patent on canning of foods in tin containers.

• In 1817, William Underwood introduced canning of fruits on commercial scale in U.S.A.

• Fruits and vegetables are canned in season when raw material is available in surplus.

• Canned products are sold in off season for better returns to grower.

10.1.1. Principles and process of canning

Greens and salad crops are grown for their foliage and are used since antiquity in soups, boiled, pickled or eaten raw and are recognized as important ingredients in the diet. Stephen Switzer, in Practical Kitchen Gardner (1727) identified 30-40 species as raw salads. Plants like Purslane, Burdock, Orache, Borage, Salad Burnet, Sea Kale, Dandelion, French Sorrel, Alexanders and many other plants are used as greens.
 
Greens and salads are very well represented in the garden works of John Randolph and Joseph Prentis in Williamsburg who  described that markets carried a wide selection of greens making available to the general public. But the salad greens were not mentioned in local diaries as often as common vegetables like cauliflowers, artichokes or melons, because they were used more as a garnish than as a main dish.
 
The popularity of individual varieties of greens changed over time. Many of the minor greens, like Purslane and Alexanders were common in the 17th century and before, but largely disappeared by the 18th century. Rocket, or Arugula, was listed by all authors in 16th and 17th century works but fell out of favor in England by the middle of  18th century.

Introduction
Japanese mint (Mentha arvensis) was first introduced in India at Regional Research Laboratory, Jammu during 1952 from Japan (Kapoor et al., 1955); and then to Drug Research Laboratory, Jammu at Chakrohi farm. Subsequently, it was introduced to CIMAP Northern Zonal Research Station at Haldwani in Nainital district (U.P.) during 1963-64. In India,  the crop is mainly grown in Tarai districts of U.P. (Nianital, Badayun, Bilaspur, Rampur, Moradabad and Bareilly); extending to parts of Indo-Gangetic plains (Barabanki and Lucknow); and parts of Punjab (Ludhiana and Jalandhar) in the north-western India. Mint or Pudina comes under a small genus Mentha of aromatic perennial herbs which belongs to family Labiatae (Laminaceae), distributed mainly to temperate and sub-temperate regions of the world. It has blue, laverder or white flowers in whorls.
Peppermint (M. x piperita) and spearmint (M. spicata) are largely cultivated in America, mainly in Oregan, Indiana, Idaho and south Michigan states. It was introduced in India during early 1980s. Uses
The above-ground herb (foliage) on distillation yields essential oil containing a large variety of aroma chemical command a large and world-wide demand in industry as given below.

Introduction
Japanese mint (Mentha arvensis) was first introduced in India at Regional Research Laboratory, Jammu during 1952 from Japan (Kapoor et al., 1955); and then to Drug Research Laboratory, Jammu at Chakrohi farm. Subsequently, it was introduced to CIMAP Northern Zonal Research Station at Haldwani in Nainital district (U.P.) during 1963-64. In India,  the crop is mainly grown in Tarai districts of U.P. (Nianital, Badayun, Bilaspur, Rampur, Moradabad and Bareilly); extending to parts of Indo-Gangetic plains (Barabanki and Lucknow); and parts of Punjab (Ludhiana and Jalandhar) in the north-western India. Mint or Pudina comes under a small genus Mentha of aromatic perennial herbs which belongs to family Labiatae (Laminaceae), distributed mainly to temperate and sub-temperate regions of the world. It has blue, laverder or white flowers in whorls.
Peppermint (M. x piperita) and spearmint (M. spicata) are largely cultivated in America, mainly in Oregan, Indiana, Idaho and south Michigan states. It was introduced in India during early 1980s. Uses
The above-ground herb (foliage) on distillation yields essential oil containing a large variety of aroma chemical command a large and world-wide demand in industry as given below.

7.1. Origin and distribution

• Originated in the Mediterranean basin and spread to rest of world by both natural and artificial means.

• USA - major producer of pepper mint and spear mint

• Bergamot mint - native of Europe and naturalized in eastern USA

• Grows successfully in temperate and subtropical region of India.

• India - Japanese mint - Terai region, extending to parts of Indo Gangetic plains and parts of Punjab in North-Western India.

7.2. Economic importance

7.2.1. Japanese mint or corn mint or field mint (M. arvensis), 2n: 36, 72.

Scientific name: Mentha spp.
Family: Lamiaceae
Mint belongs to the genus Mentha and is part of the Lamiaceae family, including popular herbs like basil, sage, and rosemary. There are several commercially grown mint species, each with unique chemical compositions, aromas, and uses.
Origin and distribution
Mint originated in the Mediterranean region and spread globally through natural and artificial means. Japanese mint is widely cultivated in Brazil, Paraguay, China, and India, while peppermint is grown in the USA, Morocco, Argentina, and Australia.
Botany
Japanese mint (Mentha arvensis) is a perennial, ascending herb that typically grows to a height of 60-80 cm, with the potential to reach up to 100 cm under favorable conditions. This herb is primarily propagated through its stolons, which enable it to spread and establish new plants. The leaves of Japanese mint are lanceolate-oblong in shape, featuring sharp teeth along their edges, and are supported by small petioles approximately 5 mm in length. The leaf lamina itself measures between 5 to 15 cm in length. Notably, the lower surface of the leaves is densely covered with hairy growths of glandular trichomes. The plant produces an abundance of small, purplish flowers in axillary and terminal verticillasters. These flowers are characterized by a corolla measuring 4-5 mm in length and a calyx that is narrowly deltoid and acuminate, measuring 2-3 mm. Japanese mint is sterile and does not produce seeds, relying solely on vegetative means of propagation.

Edaphology is the study of soil properties in relation to plant higher production.

Pedology refers to study of origin of soils in their natural environment, classification and description.

pH is the negative logarithm of the concentration of H+ ions in soil solution.

Soil profile is a vertical exposure of horizon sequence.

Soil texture is not changed by cultural management.

Cation exchange capacity (CEC) is defined as sum total of exchangeable cations that a soil can absorb.

Mites are small arthropods which attack number of crops damaging different parts of the plants (leaves, buds, flowers and fruits) and due to short duration of life cycle and high fecundity, their population increases at a fast rate and when feeding in large numbers they become serious pest of many crops. Since last few years the menace of mites is on the increase in Indian sub-continent causing enormous losses. One of the probable reasons for it is attributed to excessive use of broad-spectrum pesticides, which have led to the development of resistance in mites. Further, owing to their deleterious effect on non target organisms, especially natural enemies of the mites in the ecosystem there is often a spurt in the population of mites which otherwise may be of minor pest category. Because of their small size, the infestation goes unnoticed in the beginning and by the time prominent symptoms appear a lot of damage has already been done.

FRUIT CROPS

In fruit crops, being perennial in nature, the infestation of mites not only affects the trees at a particular time but their overall vigour gets reduced which is reflected in reduction in production as well as poor quality of the fruit in the years to come. The identification characters, nature of damage and the symptoms must be well understood in order to manage the mite pests effectively. A number of mites are associated with various fruit crops and those infesting major fruit crops are discussed herewith.

ABSTRACT

The potato is one of the most important food crops both in developed as well as in developing countries. Developing countries today produce 37 per cent of world’s output of potatoes. Potato is an important food crop in India. Both area under potato cultivation and production has increased manifolds during past decades. The efforts are being made to improve potato quality and its post harvest life as well.

An experiment was conducted to isolate mitochondria from potato tubers and succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) assay and protein profiling were performed in the tissue. Three varieties namely, Kufri Bahar, Kufri Lauvkar and Kufri Jyoti were taken into consideration for the present investigation. Kufri Bahar showed the minimum values for SDH activity and Kufri Jyoti the maximum SDH activity. On the basis of SDH activity, the mitochondria in Kufri Jyoti were seemed to be more viable, functional and coupled as compared to Kufri Bahar and Kufri Lauvkar. This finding also suggested that the respiratory degradation of starch in Kufri Jyoti was higher as compared to Kufri Bahar and Kufri Lauvkar. Thus these result showed that the shelf life of Kufri Jyoti was less as compared to Kufri Bahar and Kufri Lauvkar. Protein profiling performed by SDS-PAGE was found to be similar in all the potato tubers.

Ingredient of 1kg mixed pickles: Cauliflower + diced carrot + turnip slice + vegetable pea each in equal amount of 1kg, salt 100g, ginger chopped 20g, onion chopped 50g, garlic chopped 10g, red chilli powder, black pepper, turmeric, cardamom large, aniseed powder, cumin, fenugreek powder each of 10g, clove headless 5 number and mustard 50g, vinegar 200 ml and mustard oil 450 ml.

1. Introduction

Mixing is a fundamental and widely practiced operation in many fields, such as chemical, pharmaceutical, and food processing industries. The mixture’s primary aim is to increase the homogeneity of the material in bulk (Uhl and Gray, 1986; Patterson et al., 2004). Mixing means the random distribution of two or more ingredients throughout a system, which differs from the term’ agitation,’ which is defined as establishing a particular flow pattern with the liquid, especially in a circulatory motion within a container. Mixing is a necessary step in the context of food processing operations. 

Horticulture includes fruits, vegetables, floriculture, spices, tubers, plantation crops, medicinal and aromatic plants and mushrooms. The sector has established its importance in improving land use, promoting crop diversification, generating employment and above all providing nutritional security to the people. Even though India is the second largest producer of horticulture produces in the world, our per capita consumption of fruits and vegetables are very low.

6.1 Introduction

The process by which living beings give rise to the progeny of similar kind is called reproduction. Reproduction allows both multiplication and maintenance of a genotype/line/cultivar/species. So, the process of reproduction is also called propagation, and the plant part used for this purpose is called propagule. The way progeny originate is known as mode of reproduction (also called breeding system or reproductive system). The mode of reproduction of a crop determines its genetic composition which, in turn, is the deciding factor to develop suitable breeding methods. Knowledge of mode of reproduction is also essential for its artificial manipulation to breed improved types. The methods to be adopted for multiplication and maintenance of improved cultivars are also governed by the mode of reproduction. Especially in undertaking breeding investigations with new plants the nature of reproduction must be known before efficient breeding plans can be developed. The mode of reproduction has been well established for most of our important crop species.

6.2 Mode of Reproduction

Mode reproduction in crop plants may be sexual or asexual. In sexual reproduction (also called amphimixis), specialized reproductive cells called gametes are formed by the process of gametogenesis. Fusion of the male and female gametes leads to the development of an embryo and eventually the seed. In asexual reproduction, fusion of the male and female gametes does not occur, and new plants arise from unfertilized gametes (but not from zygote), or from specialized vegetative organs such as rhizome, tuber, bulb, corm, runner, sucker, stolon, bulbil etc., or by various artificial means of propagation such as rooting of stem and root cuttings, layering, grafting, gootee, etc., or tissue culturing.

The different modes of reproduction applied in vegetable crops are

Asexual

In this case the vegetative parts of the plants viz. rhizomes, corms, tubers, bulbs etc whole or part there off are utilized to produce new individuals. The typical examples are potato, sweetpotato, parwal, artichoke, colocasia, zinger, turmeric elephant foot yam, etc. There are some vegetative crops which can be reproduced through bcth vegetative part as well as seed e.g. asparagus.

ABSTRACT

Magnolia campbelii Hook.f. & Thomson is a deciduous tree species belonging to Magnoliaceae and is highly valued for its ornamental uses. The species is threatened by habitat degradation as well as its utility as timber. It is distributed in the eastern Himalaya, southern Myanmar, and Yunnan province of China. However, its exact distribution in the eastern Himalaya is unknown owing to rough terrain and remote location of the Himalayas. We modelled the environmental niche and delineated the potential habitats and distribution areas of the species in this study using ENVIREM dataset and Maxent software. Thermicity Index and Topographic Wetness were the critical environmental variables determining the species distribution in the eastern Himalaya as revealed by Jackknife analysis. Geographical projection of the modelled environmental niche indicates that most suitable areas for its distribution are the western part of Arunachal Pradesh, few pockets in Sikkim, and the central part of Bhutan. The results of the study have implications for in situ conservation of the species as well as identifying suitable areas for reintroduction.

Cultivated plants in general including the spice crops observed today have been evolved through selections from their weedy and wild types. Apart from this, there had been another force which could bring the wild forms into cultivated forms named human intervention which is actually the process of domestication. Natural mutations and genetic recombination after selfing and crossing also played a significant role in the entire process. Whereas, natural forces take a long time to come into act, the techniques of plant breeding was devised and fine tuned throughout passing of times, essentially to accelerate the speed of evolution using these natural phenomenons. It was, therefore, mandatory for us to know the modes of reproduction and pollination to create variability in natural population and make all thise happen to what we see today in organised cultivated forms. Moreover, knowledge on reproduction of different plant species helps the breeder to choose the right breeding procedure to be used for crop improvement. Modes of reproduction help to evaluate the genetic constitution of crop plants by determining the extent of homozygosity or heterozygosity which, in turn, are unanimously applicable to any plant. To comprehend modes of reproduction in spice crops effectively, understanding about the floral biology is absolutely necessary. Plant reproduction, a process by which one species gives birth to its offsprings, may be of two types

The shift from vegetative to reproductive phase in plants is the result of multiple gene cascades in response to photoperiodic and temperature dependent pathways, gibberellic acid pathway, vernalization pathway and autonomous pathway. The environmental cues are initially detected in the leaves and the mRNA of the flowering signal integrator FT gene, moving to the shoot apical meristem, acts as a long-distance signal for floral meristem identity. At SAM, FT-FD protein complex, based on signals from above said pathways in association with the signals from age-dependent and miRNA pathways, leads to the activation of master regulator gene of flowering AP1. The activation of genes involved in ABCDE model of floral organ differentiation, based on the directions of various cadastral genes lead to the development of floral organs. Thus, the sequential action of floral meristem identity genes, floral organ developmental genes, floral meristem size and organ number genes, floral organ pattern genes and cadastral genes leads to the flower development. This chapter sums up the gene interactions happening in leaf and SAM, leading to the development of a complete flower.