Crop Improvement: Challenges in the Twenty-First Century

by Manjit S. Kang

Overview

Learn to integrate molecular genetic techniques with traditional plant breeding methods!

This comprehensive book provides the latest authoritative scientific information on improvement of both temperate and tropical crops. Crop Improvement: Challenges in the Twenty-First Century brings together expert plant breeders and geneticists to address issues related to crop adaptability and stability across environments for important food and fiber crops. It emphasizes the need to integrate molecular genetic techniques with traditional plant breeding methods to develop hardier, more productive crops.

Crop Improvement includes the latest research on physiological and biochemical responses of plants to drought and heat stress, which should help breeders develop effective strategies for improving resistance to abiotic stresses. In addition, this helpful book elucidates the use of mixed models and best linear unbiased prediction. To make the book comprehensive, chapters discuss stability analysis in crop performance trials and genotype-by-environment interactions.

Crop Improvement includes detailed information on breeding specific crops, including:

• rice
  
• tropical maize
  
• sorghum
  
• common bean
  
• sugar beet
  
• bananas and plantain
  
• cotton

Crop Improvement offers both practical information and up-to-date research. It also suggests a vision of new directions and partnerships that are expected to evolve in this century. This book is an essential resource for practicing plant breeders and geneticists at universities, government agencies, and industry. It should also be of use to teachers and students engaged in crop breeding.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781560229049
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	01/28/2002
Pages:	408
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.38(h) x (d)

Table of Contents

Contents, About the Editor,, Contributors,, Foreword,, Preface,, Part I: Introduction—Vision,, Chapter 1. Crop Breeding in the Twenty-First Century,, Introduction,, Present Status,, Summary and Predictions,, Part II: Crop Improvement,, Chapter 2. Rice Improvement: Past, Present, and Future,, Introduction,, Post-Green Revolution Varieties,, Impact of Modern Varieties,, Future Challenges,, Conclusions,, Chapter 3. Tropical Maize: Innovative Approaches for Sustainable Productivity and Production Increases,, Introduction,, Tropical Maize-Growing Environments,, Challenges of Maize Improvement for the Tropics,, New Approaches and Research That Combine Conventional Breeding and Molecular and Biotechnological Tools,, Moving the Benefits of Maize Genetic Improvement to Farmers,, Conclusions: Tropical Maize Improvement Needs,, Chapter 4. Maize Improvement for Resistance to Aflatoxins: Progress and Challenges,, Introduction,, Contamination Process,, Reducing Aflatoxin Contamination in Maize,, Interrupting/Reducing Toxin Production Ability of the Fungus,, Concluding Remarks,, Chapter 5. Sorghum Improvement: Past Achievements and Future Prospects,, Introduction,, Sorghum Production, Production Areas, and Importance in the Global Food Systems,, Evolutionary Genetics and Germplasm Diversity in Sorghum,, History of Sorghum Improvement,, Breeding Tools,, Breeding Objectives and Achievements,, Current Progress in Biotechnology for Sorghum Improvement,, Challenges and Future Prospects,,

What People are Saying About This

Daniel P. Gorman

EXCELLENT. . . . EXCITING. THIS TEXTBOOK WILL MAKE AN EXCELLENT RESOURCE for all advanced plant breeding courses by giving students a ‘real world' look at the diverse challenges of crop breeding.(Daniel P. Gorman, PhD, Research Scientist, Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc., Cairo, Georgia)

Editorial Reviews

Plant breeders and geneticists offer 12 contributions addressing crop adaptability and stability in important food and fiber crops. Emphasis is placed on the need to integrate molecular genetic techniques with traditional plant breeding methods to develop hardier, more productive crops. Crops addressed in depth include rice, tropical maize, sorghum, common bean, sugar beet, banana, plantain, and cotton. Contributions are organized into three sections: crop breeding in the 21st century; crop improvement; and crop issues such as physiological and biochemical responses of plants to drought and heat stress; stability analysis in crop performance evaluation; and a mixed-model approach to multi- environment trials. Of likely utility for practicing plant breeders and geneticists at universities, government agencies, and industry as well as students and teachers engaged in crop breeding. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)