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Ethylene (C₂H₄ also known as ethene) is a gaseous organic compound that is the simplest of the alkenes chemical structures (alkenes contain a carbon-carbon double bond). The hormone effects of ethylene on general plant growth were first noted in 1864 when leakage from gas street lighting systems caused stunting and deformation of nearby plants. In 1901 Neljubow identified the active component of the gas to be ethylene but it was not until 1934 that Gane identified that plants could synthesize ethylene and in 1935 Crocker proposed ethylene to be the hormone responsible for fruit ripening and senescence of vegetative tissues.

Ethylene play important role in many plant during development processes, including seed germination, vegetative growth, leaf abscission, flowering, senescence and fruit ripening. Ethylene also plays a role in response to water stress, chilling and mechanical injury.

Quality Control is very important in biofertilizer production, which determines the efficiency of microbial strains. Generally, the quality control based on BIS are voluntary in nature. However, some of the biofertilizers are brought under the ambit of Fertilizer Control Order 1985 (FCO) during 2006 (Yadav and Chandra, 2014). At present, biofertilizers are under the FCO with specific quality standards. Biofertilizer production and its sales can be regulated and is a mandatory requirement for registration of manufacturing unit with the State Fertilizer Controller (who is generally the Commissioner or Director of Agriculture Department) under the statutory provision of FCO. Moreover, some officers of the Agriculture Department have been declared as Fertilizer Inspectors at the district level, who are authorized to inspect production and storage facilities and draw samples for quality analysis. National Centre of Organic Farming (NCOF), Ghaziabad under the Govt. of India and its six Regional Centre’s located at Bhubaneswar, Bangalore, Jabalpur, Nagpur, Hissar and Imphal have been declared as testing laboratories. Under the provisions of the FCO act, State Governments can also develop their own quality control laboratories and notify them under the FCO (1985). Peat, lignite, peat soil, humus, wood charcoal or similar material favouring the growth of microbial strain could also be used. The FCO specifications for different biofertilizers are presented below:

23.1. Aim

To determine the total soluble solids in fresh and processed fruit and vegetable products.

23.2. Theory and principle

Total soluble solids (TSS) are determined by means of brix which measures the specific gravity or by using hand refractometer which measures refractive index. Brix is a measure of soluble solids only in case of pure sucrose solutions. Generally, the fruit juices contain more sugar than any other soluble constituent. Hence, brix provides a useful guide of soluble solids or sugar contents. Brix hydrometer is used to determine the percentage of brix in syrup while Abbe refractometer gives refractive index as well as degree brix. The Refractive index of the test solution is measured at 20°C using a refractometer and the soluble solid content is determined by the use of tables correlating refractive index with soluble solids. Generally, hand refractometer is used for determining TSS in food samples in fruit processing units (Table 3.1).

Horticulture includes variety and diversity of crops. Thus, it can be divided into several branches depending upon the crops it deals with. Following are the branches of horticulture.

1. Pomology: The term pomology is a combination of two Latin words pome i.e. fruit and logos i.e. science. Recently it has been designated as ‘Fruit Science’. It deals with the study of fruit crops. It includes all aspects of fruit crops e.g. importance, uses, origin and distribution, area and production, soil and climate requirement, botany, nursery raising, cultivation practices, plant protection measures, stage and methods of harvesting, post-harvest handling, marketing, export, import, etc. e.g. mango, banana, citrus, grape, apple, peach, pomegranate, fig, etc.
2. Olericulture: The term olericulture is also derived from the Latin word. Cultivation of vegetable crops. Recently it has been designated as ‘Vegetable Science’. Vegetables are said to be herbaceous plants of which edible plant parts are used for consumption either cooked or salad. It may be stem, root, leaf, flower, etc. It also includes all aspects of vegetable crops e.g. importance, uses, origin and distribution, area and production, soil and climate requirement, botany, nursery raising, cultivation practices, plant protection measures, stage and method of harvesting, post-harvest handling, marketing, export, import, etc. e.g. tomato, brinjal, chilli, cucumber, red pumpkin, watermelon, cabbage, cauliflower, etc.
3. Ornamental Horticulture: It includes various groups of ornamental plants used to decorate in-door and out-door areas. Ornamental horticulture is the study of growing, arranging and tending decorative plants and flowers. It is further divided into.

24.1 Aim

To determine the moisture content in fresh and processed products

24.2 Theory

Estimation of moisture in fresh and processed fruit and vegetable products is important for evaluating their nutritive composition as well as to optimize method for their processing like drying, preparation of different products viz; jams, preserve, candies etc. Moisture is determined by drying the weighed sample to a constant weight in hot air oven and measuring the loss in weight to express the moisture content in percent. This method is used for estimation of moisture in all food products which do not decompose at 100ºC. Moisture content of some commodities (Table 4.1) is as under:

Microbes present in the biofertilizer formulations help in microbial processes in the soil which augment the availability of nutrients to be taken up by plants. They are of different types based on their nature and function such as nitrogen fixing, phosphate solubilizing, phosphate mobilizing or biofertilizers for micronutrients. Plants use different strategies for growth promotion at different stages of plant growth and development. Biofertilizers are mass multiplied cultures of specific beneficial microbial strains which improves the fertility of soil and productivity. The nutrients are added through natural processes of nitrogen fixation, solubilization of phosphorus and synthesis of growth promoting substances to stimulate the plant growth. The main sources of biofertilizers are bacteria, fungi and cyanobacteria.

11.1. Bio-enrichment of chemical fertilizers- A new approach

Yield response of different host plant depends on the mineral fertilizer and its fertilizer use efficiency. Generally, such fertilizers are low in efficiency due to environmental and soil factors. A large portion of synthetic fertilizers are lost due to fixation, leaching, run-off, erosion, volatilization, denitrification and precipitation without reaching plants. Hence, there is an economic loss and water and environmental pollution.

Microbial inoculants applied to the soil enhances the uptake of nutrient by plants and increase the efficiency of synthetic or organic fertilizers. In this context, it is possible to impregnate mineral fertilizers with specific microbial strain. A new approach is to incorporate the microbes or microbial compositions into fertilizer compositions.

26.1. Aim

To determine the pH of food samples.

26.2. Theory

The hydrogen-ion concentration of a food is a controlling factor in many chemicals and microbiological reactions. Pure water has equal concentration of H+ and OH- ions, each having the value of 1×107g/litre at room temperature that is why water is regarded as neutral. The pH of pure water is 7.0, the solution having pH below 7.0 is regarded as acidic while solution with pH above 7.0 is alkaline. Most fruits and fruit products have pH below 4.0 while vegetable; milk and meat products have pH more than 4.0. The pH value of some fruits and fruit products is given in Table 6.1. Thus, with the increase in acidity in the solution, the pH value decrease and vice versa. However, presence of buffer salts helps in maintenance of pH. Estimation of pH of the food is important as the processing conditions for different food products are categorized on the basis of their pH.

ABSTRACT

The Cry2A proteins are promising candidates for managing the development of Cry1Ac resistance in insects. The Cry2A class of proteins is different from that of Cry1A, and experiments have shown that insects resistant to Cry1Ac are not cross-resistant to Cry2A proteins. However, the Cry2A proteins are less toxic than Cry1Ac to the polyphagous pest Helicoverpa armigera. Structure-based protein engineering of Cry toxins may pave the way for directed evolution of variants with broad spectrum of insect species specificity, enhanced potency, and stability. In the present study homology modeling of Cry2Ac was done using DeepView software. The template for Cry2Ac protein sequence (accession number X57252) was selected using ExPdb template search. The raw sequence of the Cry2Ac was superimposed over the Cry2Aa PDB template (1I5P). The superimposed model was submitted to the SWISS Model server. After receiving the Cry2Ac model, energy minimization was done using Gromos96. The threading energy and force field energy were calculated. The homology model of Cry2Ac made by us along with the Cry2Ac model from the SWISS-MODEL Repository was used for comparative analysis of receptor binding regions of Cry2Aa. Results showed variation between the two highly homologous Cry2A proteins in their receptor binding regions which may account for differences in spectrum of insecticidal activity.

Carrot (Daucus carota Stova condolle) is one of the most important and widely used root vegetable belonging to the family Umbelliferae. The seed production can be done during September – October in plains and in hills the sowing takes place in June and roots are replanted during the first week of October.

Method of seed production

Carrot is a cross-pollinated crop and self-pollination occurs to the extent of 0-5%. Crosspollination is mainly through insects. Seeds should be allowed to set by cross-pollination in isolation. Seed production is done by seed to seed and root to seed method. In seed to seed method, the matured roots are left to produce flowers and seeds in the place where seeds are sown initially. In root to seed method, roots at edible maturity should be uprooted and the roots of true to varietal characteristics should be selected and transplanted to the well prepared field after proper trimming of roots and shoots. This root to seed method is preferred for seed production in carrot since the root rot infection is high in seed to seed method of seed production.

The isolation distance maintained between the fields of other varieties and the fields of the same variety not conforming to varietal purity requirements for certification is 1000 metres for foundation and 800 metres for certified seed production. During mother root production an isolation of 5 metres should be followed.

There are many manufacturers of biofertilizers in both government and private sectors. Only some of them have been listed here for the information

27.1. Aim

To estimate the titratable acidity of fresh and processed fruit and vegetable products.

27.2. Theory

Most of the fruit, vegetables and their products contain acid or mixture of acids. The acids may occur naturally in the fruit and vegetables or may be added during manufacture of different products or by lactic acid or acetic acid fermentation. Generally citric acid is added in most fruit products while in pickles, sauces and ketchup acetic acid is used. The acids are mainly responsible for the tartness or sour taste, thus estimation of acidity is used as the measure of tartness. They also help in preservation by lowering the pH of the finished products.

Sauropus androgynus, also known as katuk, star gooseberry, or sweet leaf, is a tropical shrub that is used as a leaf vegetable in some areas. It’s known as Chinese Malunggay in China, and madhura cheera in Kerala, India. It has several upright stems that can grow up to 2.5 metres tall and dark green oval leaves that are 5-6 cm long. It’s known as ‘Multivitamin Greens’ because of its great nutritional value. Chekurmanis, which may be found in practically every household kitchen garden in Kerala, has not been cultivated for commercial use on a significant scale. As a result, there are no data on the area and production of these vegetables.

The selection of the site has great importance for the establishment of a fruit orchard successfully. Establishment of orchard is a long term activity with huge investment. Hence, any mistake committed during site selection, it is difficult to rectify it later. Successful orchard is not only related with yield but also its economic production and efficient disposal of produce. For economic orchard establishment; some of the points which need to be considered, while selection of site. These are as follows.

1. Climate and soil: These are two important natural factors, which decide the success or failure of orchards. Before selection of site, climate and soil requirement for selected fruit crops needs to be studied thoroughly and accordingly site must be selected. On the other hand if a site has already been selected; then fruit crop selection needs to be done as per the existing climate and soil of that selected site.
2. Topography: Slope of site more than 15% makes the land almost unsuitable for cultivation. Land with 4% slope may be kept clean without much loss. Uneven land involves heavy expenditure in leveling. Southern slopes are generally warmer and affect the plant growth in a manner different from the northern slopes. It is due to the difference in quantum of receiving sunlight. Hence, the site with southern slopes may be selected for sun loving plants.

29.1. Aim

To estimate ascorbic acid in fresh and processed fruit and vegetable products.

29.2. Theory and Principle

Fruit, vegetables and their products are important sources of ascorbic acid. The ascorbic acid is present in sufficient quantity in aonla, guava, grapefruit, lemon, pineapple, strawberry fruits etc. Barbados cherry is the chief source of vitamin C. The products manufactured from these fruits are also considered as rich in ascorbic acid and the contents available in the commodities can be detected by using 2, 6 dichloro-phenol - indophenol visual titration method.

Botany: French bean has tap root system with poor nodule formation. Leaves are trifoliate. Though a self-pollinated crop, French bean offers wide variability for plant growth (bushy / climbing), colour of pod (green / waxy coloured), cross section of pod (flat / oval / round), pliability (stringed / string less) etc.

Varieties

1. Arkakomal: Plant is bushy. 70 days for flowering.
2. Blue pod medium: It is a white seed variety. It has bluish black spots on pods.
3. Bountiful: Introduction from US comes up in September to February. Seeds are Brown sweetish. It is resistant to common disease.
4. Contender: Tolerant to powdery mildew and mosaic.
5. Pant anupama: Developed from pantnagar. Bushytype
6. Pusaparvathi: Developed by X ray radiation of American variety IARI

30.1. Aim

To estimate the salt contents in given samples by using Mohr method.

30.2. Theory and principle

Common salt is used during preparation of pickles, sauces, ketchup, fruit chutney and appetizers. Besides, imparting taste, the salt in appropriate concentration also acts as a preservative. In different products, it is estimated by using Mohr method. The sample is titrated with standard solution of silver nitrate for estimation of salt by using potassium chromate as an indicator. From the titre the concentration of salt is estimated by using a standard expression.

31.1. Aim

To estimate the sodium benzoate contents in fruit and vegetable products.

31.2. Theory and Principle

Sodium benzoate is used as a class II preservative in preservation of pickles, sauces, squashes etc. Its estimation is important as the quantity of class II preservative shall not exceed maximum limit prescribed under FSSAI. In a sample containing NaCl, the benzoic acid is converted into water soluble sodium benzoate by addition of NaOH. When the Sodium benzoate solution is acidified with excess of HCl, water insoluble benzoic acid is formed which is extracted with chloroform. The chloroform is removed by evaporation and the residue containing benzoic acid is dissolved in alcohol and then titrated with standard sodium hydroxide.

In India marigold is one of the most commonly grown flowers and used extensively on religious and social functions in different forms. Because of their ease in cultivation, wide adaptability to varying soil and climatic conditions, long duration of flowering and attractively coloured flowers of excellent keeping quality, the marigolds have become one of the most popular flowers in our country. Flowers are sold in the market as loose or as garlands. Due to its variable height and colour marigold is especially use for decoration and included in landscape plans.

The estimation of moisture in foods is one of the most important and most widely used measurements in the processing and testing of food products. It is used to determine the nutritive value of food, to express results of analytical determinations on a uniform basis, and to meet compositional standards or food laws. The level of moisture in different fruits and vegetables varies widely. Most fresh fruits contain more than 85-90% moisture in edible portions. Broad range of moisture content in common fruit, vegetables and their products as general guideline are given in Table 3.1.
Estimation of Moisture content in food products: Moisture content in foods can be estimated by following methods.
i. By Drying in an oven
ii. By distillation with an immiscible solvent
iii. By Chemical and physical methods (Infra-red heating method)

Botany :Annual Chrysanthemum is a winter annual that can be grown either as pot plants or in groups as bed plants for various ornamental purposes. There are two types of annual Chyrsanthemums: Chrysanthemum Segetum and C.coronarium. Major varieties of Chrysanthemum segetum L. are Morning Star, Evening Star, Eastern Star, Blanca, Eldorado, Gloria, Isabel, Romeo, and yellow Stone while popular cultivars of C. coronarium L. include Nivea, Oreon, Albo, Golden Crown, Luteum, Tom Thumb Golden Gem, Tom Thumb-Primrose Gem and Tetra Comet. In addition to this, there is another type of annual Chrysanthemum, i.e. C. carinatum. Popular varieties of C. carinatum S. are Merry, Atrococcineum, Burridgeanum, Eclipse, Flammenspiel, John Bright and Northern Star.

Propagation

Annual Chrysanthemums can be propagated by seeds. Their sowing time depends upon climate. It varies in different parts of India. In the Northern plains, winter season annual Chrysanthemums are sown during September–October. The seeds are sown in nursery beds, earthen pots, seed pans or wooden seed trays. The seed compost should consist of one part each of garden soil, coarse sand, farmyard manure and leaf-mould. For preparing the nursery beds, the soil should be dug up thoroughly and sufficient farmyard manure, should be mixed in soil. Raised nursery beds of convenient size (normally 60cm wide and 15cm high) should be prepared. If soil is heavy, some quantity of sand may be added. It is better if the soil of nursery bed or earthen pots is sterilized with 2% formalin. For this, soil is drenched with formalin solution and is covered with polythene sheet for 45hr. Afterwards, the polythene is removed and soil is dried before sowing the seeds.