Detecting Mineral Nutrient Deficiencies In Tropical And Temperate Crops

This book deals an essential aspect of crop management in identification of deficiencies of plant nutrients and their diagnostic methods. The book provides soil and tissue analysis standards critical in plant nutrition.

Nutrient imbalance in soils is an emerging threat to sustainable agriculture: intensive cultivation, use of poor quality groundwater, depletion of soil organic matter and excessive use of fertilizers are major reasons for poor soil fertility worldwide. This necessitates correct diagnosis of plant nutrient deficiencies to avoid further use of pesticides in cases where pests or pathogens that are not in fact the cause of poor crop health. Richly illustrated with 600 colour photographs, this book is a visual field identification guide for symptoms of most common nutrient deficiencies in field crops, covering all their stages of occurrence. Detailed descriptions and suggested for management practices are given with each entry.

Like all living things, plants require nutrient elements to grow. The Plant Nutrition Manual describes the principles that determine how plants grow and discusses all the essential elements necessary for successful crop production. The nutritional needs of plants that add color and variety to our visual senses are addressed as well. Altogether, nutritional requirements are given for 143 plants grouped in seven categories from food crop plants to ornamentals. The text begins with an introduction to the basic principles of plant nutrition. Chapters 2 and 3 describe the roles of the major elements and micronutrients. The last two chapters describe techniques for determining the nutrient element status of growing plants through plant analysis and tissue tests. The Plant Nutrition Manual is loaded with information on what plants need for normal vigorous growth and development-free of nutritional stress.

Rice ecosystems; Nutrient management; Mineral deficiencies; Mineral toxicities; Tools and information.

Plant Analysis: An Interpretation Manual 2nd Edition is an easily accessible compilation of data summarising the range of nutrient concentration limits for crops, pastures, vegetables, fruit trees, vines, ornamentals and forest species. This information is valuable in assessing the effectiveness of fertiliser programs and for monitoring longer term changes in crop nutritional status. New to this edition: *Volume and scope of information accessed from the literature has expanded several-fold. Interpretation criteria for 294 species have been compiled in the tables from more than 1872 published papers. *New chapter on nutrient criteria for forest species. *Includes guidelines for collecting, handling and analysing plant material. An entire chapter is devoted to the identification of nutrient deficiency and toxicity symptoms.

Agroecosystems of South India is a unique treatise that deals with the relevance of natural resources, genetic stocks, fertilizers, and agronomic practices on the productivity of agroecoregions. Within the context of this book, an agroecosystem has been defined as a conglomerate of small cropping zones, which may be mono-cropping expanses or intercrops that occur in various geographic regions of South India. South India abounds with several such agroecosystems that encompass field crops, vegetables, cash crops, plantations, and forest species. However, the main emphasis within this volume is restricted to agroecosystems that include major cereals, legumes, and oil seed crops. There are 10 chapters in this volume. The first, on historical aspects, traces important events related to domestication, introduction of crop species, agricultural implements, development of soil fertility and crop husbandry procedures. An introductory chapter on Agroecosystems delineates various agroecoregions of South India. Their classification based on physiography, soils, and climatic parameters have been dealt with in great detail. Descriptions on natural resources such as soils and their fertility conditions; water resources; climatic conditions including precipitation patterns; and crops and their genotypes are available in chapter 2. The impact of soil fertility and nutrient dynamics on ecosystematic functions and productivity of crops in an agroecosystem forms the central piece of discussions within chapters 3 to 9. Historical background, geographical settings, agroclimate, soils, cropping systems, and productivity trends have been provided for each cropping ecosystem. Recent advances and details on aspects of nutrient dynamics, such as soil nutrients, their availability, physico-chemical transformations, nutrient fluxes, inorganic fertilizer supply, organic manures, crop residue recycling, nutrient carry over and nutrient balances/imbalances form the core of each chapter. The impact of beneficial soil microbes such as Rhizobium, Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria and Arbuscular Mycorrhizas, on nutrient dynamics in soil has also been discussed. More recent developments dealing with modeling nutrients in cropping ecosystems, computer based-simulations, precision farming and site-specific nutrient management have been emphasized. Forecasts on the impact of nutrient dynamics on the future course of agroecosystems are also available. Overall, this book is a scholarly edition that aims at providing an excellent exposition of recent developments within various agroecosystems of South India to a global audience. It highlights the importance of soil fertility and nutrient dynamics within agroecosystems to total food grain and fodder production in South India. It will be a useful book to researchers, professors, and students dealing with agriculture, environmental science, ecology, and plant science.