AGRONOMY AND HORTICULTURAL

CROP PRODUCTION

LEARNING OUTCOMES
 Introduction of Agronomy/Horticulture
 Principles of Field Crop Agronomy/Horticulture
 Crop environment interactions
 Cropping systems
 Crop propagation
 Husbandry and production of economically important Tropical fruit crops
 Plant Nutrition
 Nutrient deficiency, symptoms and their remedy
 Nutrient requirement and fertilizers

DEFINITION OF AGRICULTURE
- ‘ager’ or ‘agri’ meaning soil
- ‘cultura’ meaning cultivation
- Agriculture covers; Crop Production, Livestock Production, Fisheries, Forestry

ORIGIN OF AGRICULTURE
- No single origin but started in different parts of the World
- Earlier than 10,000 BC-hunting and Gathering
- 8700/7700/6000 BC domestication of sheep, goat and cattle/pigs
- 7500/4000/3500 BC cultivation of wheat, barley, maize and potato
- 3000 BC Bronze was used to make tools
- 2900 BC plough was invented and irrigation farming started
- 2700 BC Silk moth domestication in China
- 1800/1725/1500 BC cultivation of sweet orange, sour orange

DEFINITION OF AGRONOMY
- ‘agros’ meaning field
- ‘nomos’ meaning to manage
- Agronomy is a branch of agricultural science which deals with principles and practices
of soil, water and crop management
Agronomy is now defines as the science of manipulating the crop environment complex with
dual aims of improving agricultural productivity and on understanding of the process involved.

Environment of Crop:
- Constitute of both soil and aerial as part of plant is inside the soil and other part is
exposed to the aerial atmosphere.
- Influences growth and development of crops.

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Soil Environment:
Soil environment is amendable through tillage, irrigation, fertilizer application.
1) Soil physical environment: Soil, air, soil water and soil temperature
2) Soil chemical environment: Soil solution pH, electrical conductivity, nutrient concentration
3) Soil biological environment: Living organisms which assist in mineralization and
immobilization

Aerial Environment
- Solar radiation has three principal characteristics that affect plant growth; Quantity,
Quality and Duration.
- Rainfall (water) is a primary component of photosynthesis. It maintains the turgor
pressure or firmness of tissue and transports nutrient throughout the plant.
- The temperature affects the productivity and growth of a plant depending upon whether
the plant variety is a warm-season or cool-season crop.
- Relative humidity is the ratio of water vapour in the air to the amount of water the air
could hold at a given temperature expressed as a percent.
- Wind velocity will have a great impact on plant growth-drying winds evaporate the
plants’ moisture to cause desiccation. Wind influences the physical status and health of
plant.

Crop Production
- Crop production is basically conversion of environment inputs like solar energy, CO 2,
H2O and soil nutrient into economic products as food (for human and animal) and
industrial raw materials.
- Soil management part of agronomy deals with the manipulation of soil environment for
better crop growth.
- The aerial environment can be manipulated with more difficulty.

Relation of agronomy to other sciences:

- Agronomy is a synthesis of several disciplines like soil science, agricultural chemistry,
crop physiology, plant ecology, biochemistry and economics.
- To modify the soil environment; the soil physical, chemical and biological properties of
the soil have to be understood.
- Understand physiology of crop to meet the need of the plant
- Economic analysis helps in production of crops economically
- The aim now is far better utilization of resources/approach is now towards cropping
systems rather than individualistic approach

SCOPE OF AGRONOMY
 With the advancement of knowledge and better understanding of plant environment
agricultural practices are modified and new practices development are of higher
productivity.
 Availability of inorganic fertilizer lead to method, quantity and time of application
 Same for herbicides whereby selectivity, time and method of application was carried
out.
 Water management practices lead to proper irrigation, avoid water-logging or salinity.
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  Inter-cropping was adopted together with high yielding varieties.
 Restoration of soil fertility, production of good seedlings, use of proper seed rates,
correct planting dates, proper conservation management of soil moisture, control of
weeds/making land resources.

DEFINITION OF HORTICULTURE
- ‘hortus’ meaning garden
- ‘cultura’ meaning cultivation
- Horticulture can be described as the practice of growing/ manipulating plant in an
intensive manner
Horticulture can be defined as the science and technology involved in the production,
processing and merchandising of fruits, flowers and ornamentals

SCOPE OF HORTICULTURE
 Initially, horticulture referred to growing crops within a protected enclosure
 Now, most of horticulture crops are grown as a business enterprise
 Crops grown for the food and/or vitamin and mineral content vegetables and fruits
 Crops grown for the beverage properties such as tea and coffee
 Crops grown to beautify the environment such as lawn
 Crops grown to express human sentiments-ornamentals, for perfumes and spices

CROP PROPAGATION
Crop propagation can be defined as the multiplication of plants.
There are two method of multiplying plants which are:
(i) Sexual Propagation
(ii) Asexual Propagation

Plant propagation is carried out for preservation of the unique of a plant or group of plants.
This depends upon the transmission from one generation to the next of one particular
combination of genes present on chromosome in the cell successful propagation depends on:
- The knowledge of the plant and structure
- The knowledge of mechanical manipulation and technical skills
- The knowledge of different kind of plant and suitable methods by which these plants
can be propagate or multiplied

Purposes:
1. To retain the desirable characteristics of the mother plant
2. To increase or multiply the number of plant rapidly
3. To shorten the bearing age of plants especially fruit trees.
4. Also, to prevent the plant species being lost or extinct
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 5. To produce superiors stains or disease resistant-plants that will be best suited under a
given climate and soil condition

MODERN PLANT PROPAGATION

Modern plant propagation industry is large, complex, multiplies plants for sale, distribution and
also provides services like leaching consultation and practical advices and also it involve in
regulation and research. The plant propagation is the key person who possesses the knowledge
and skill either to perform or supervise the essential propagation tasks for specific plants.

Organisation involved in plant propagation:

1. Amateur propagation
2. Non-profit organisation like Botanical Gardens and research and teaching institution
3. Germplasm (Repositories)
4. Commercial wholesale nurseries for ornamentals plant, for bedding plant, foliage
plants, fruit and nut trees and also forest plants
5. Tissue culture laboratories
6. Seed producers; commercial companies or certified True-to-type

Method of Propagation
1. Through the use of seeds and spores
2. Asexual method – use of different vegetative parts
3. Sexual method – use seeds from annuals-binnals-perinials
Asexual Method
- Apomictic propagules- nuclear embryo seed (citrus and mango) or adventitious
embryonic
- In vitro culture of citrus or embryo genesis
- Vegetative part of propagation:
 Cuttings: stem, root, bud, leaves
 Grafting: root grafting (apple, pear), budding (rose), layering, air-layering
 Runners
 Suckers: banana, auturium
 Separation: tulips, bulb lily
 Corm

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Sexual Method-through in Vitro-cultures systems
- Ovule Culture
E.g. Carnation, Tobacco and also petunia
- Embryo Culture
E.g. Iris, Olive
- Seed Culture
E.g. Orchids
- Pollen Culture
E.g. Tobacco
- Spores Culture
E.g. Pearls

SEXUAL PROPAGATION
- Involves the union of the male and female sex cells known as the gametes.
- Leading to the formation of the seeds
- Creation of the population of seedling individuals
- Finally, with a new different genotype
The cell division which produces the sex cell, pollen grain and megaspores ovule involves:
(1) Meiosis
This involves the reduction in chromosome and followed by mitosis producing the four
daughter cells, fertilization; to get all back chromosomes.

(2) Second male gamete unites with the polar nucleic to produce endosperm and the new
individual may either resemble either/neither parent or both.

Uses of seed in Propagation:

(1) Propagation – Seedling is the most efficient
– Reliable method provided genetic variability can be controlled within
acceptable limits
(2) Can be produced in bulk
- stored for a long period
- transported all over the world and can be mass propagated
(3) Most vegetable crops, many includes garden and florist crops are grown from seed
- It can be in extent nursery to provide root stock for grafting

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Condition Affecting Seed Viability
(1) Moisture Content
- Short leaf seeds lose the viability when stored at low moisture content
(2) Medium
- The long leaf seeds are tolerate to desiccation and must be dried to survive long storage
(3) Temperature
- Low temp. lengthen the seed storage life

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 VEGETATIVE PROPAGATION

Propagation by Propagation on Propagation

Apomistic Seed its own rooting on root systems
systems of other plant

Cutting Layering Grafting Budding

Propagation by
specialized vegetative
structures

Bulbs Tubers Rhizomes Corms Runners Stolon Offsets

Propagation by Apomictic Seed

- This is obtained when the embryo is not a result of meiosis and fertilization
- It is usually developed from the diploid cells of the seed
- The two types of Apomictic seed propagation are:
(i) Recurrent
(ii) Non-recurrent

(i) Recurrent
- When the embryo is formed from the diploid egg cell or from diploid cell of the embryo sac
without fertilization
- In this case, you have diploid number of chromosome
i.e. like the mother plant

(ii) Non-recurrent
- When the embryo develops wither from the haploid egg cell or some other haploid cells of the
embryo sac. Thus, it has only one set of chromosome and sterile in nature
- Plant that produces only one type of apomictic embryo is obligate
- Those plant that can produce both apomictic and sexual embryo are known as Facultative.
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Asexual Propagation
- Is the propagation using the vegetative part of the plant.
- It involves mitotic cell division that duplicate the genotype of plant such genetic
duplication is known as a clone.
- Is possible because every cell of the plant contains the genetic information necessary to
regenerate the entire plant.
- Can occur from the formation of adventitious roots and shoots or through the uniting of
the vegetative parts like grafting or budding
- Stem cutting and layers have the ability to form adventitious roots. Root cutting can
regenerate a new shoot.
- Leaf cutting can generate both new roots and new shoots.

Asexual Propagation Using Cutting

(1) Stem Cutting
Hardwood cuttings; decisions and evergreen plant
- Semi hardwood cutting
- Soft wood cutting
- Herbaceous cutting
(2) Leaf Cutting
(3) Leaf-bud Cutting
(4) Root Cutting

When placed under favourable environmental conditions, these plants are induced to develop
roots or shoots to form the new independent plant which is usually identical to the parents, i.e.
the genotype and phenotype.

Advantages of Cuttings:
1. It is simple, inexpensive, rapid and it does not require special technique.
2. It gets less space compared to other propagation (layering).
3. It gives uniform population and a large amount of plant can be propagated in this way

Disadvantages of Cuttings:
1. It can be sensitive to certain soil borne diseases.
2. It does not give the advantage of a root stock.
3. It does not give variability.

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For tender herbaceous cutting or cuttings;
Sometimes, to stimulate root formation, a plant root hormone have to be used.

RUNNERS
A runner is an aerial side shoot from a leaf axil of plant like strawberry.

Runners produce leaf clusters and adventitious roots at their tips, thus forming new plants
which can be exploited in commercial clonal multiplication.

BULBS
A bulb is a shortened stem with thick fleshy scales and like all leaves; these scales have bud in
their axil. Some of the axillary buds form new buds by developing their own fleshy leaf scale
and these daughter bulbs eventually separate from their mother plant and this method of
vegetative propagation is characteristics of ornamental such

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