Production of Seed and Planting Materials of Horticultural Crops  (English, Hardcover, L. C. De)

India is endowed with wide range of agro-climatic condition and it has good potential for growing a wide range of horticultural crops such as fruits, vegetables, potato, tropical tuber crops and mushrooms, ornamental crops, medicinal and aromatic plants, spices and plantation crops like coconut, cashew nut, cocoa, etc. The government identified horticulture crops as a means of diversification for making agriculture more profitable through efficient land use, optimum utilisation of natural resources and creating skilled employment for rural masses, especially women folk with the past efforts rewarding. Changes in food habit, increase in per capital income and quality life styles have accelerated the demand for diversified horticultural commodities. The single dominant factor which would contribute to rise in production of horticulture crop is availability of quality planting material of improved cultivars. Hi-tech nurseries mechanisation is the need of the hour to facilitate various operations like pulverising, mixing and sterilising, growing media in pots or trays, filling seedling trays or pots for transplanting, seed sowing through precision techniques and irrigation through dripplers, micro-sprinklers etc.

The present book is planned in 15 interesting chapters vividly highlighting various aspects covering basics of plant propagation, physiology of plant propagation, nursery management, growing media, nursery tools and structures, pollination and fertilisation of fruit plants, asexual propagation of vegetable crops, seed viability, certification and storage, production of seeds and planting materials of 22 major fruit crops and 51 minor fruit crops, 24 major vegetable crops, 13 exotic vegetables and 41 underutilised vegetable crops, 19 commercial flowers, 17 annuals, 61 ornamental shrubs, 10 ornamental climbers, 31 herbaceous perennials, bulbous ornamental, aquatic ornamental, house plants, ornamental palms and bromeliads, cacti and succulents, lawn grasses, 7 plantation crops, 6 major spices, seed spices and 4 tree spices and 14 medicinal and aromatic plants. It may be humbly claimed that this is the most comprehensive book on production of seed and planting material of horticultural crops and will be useful to teachers, students, scientists, nurserymen, landscape designer, planners, amateurs and professional gardeners and above all farmers.