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Physiological Plant Disorders
Physiological plant disorders are caused by non-pathological conditions such as poor light, adverse weather, water-logging, Phytotoxicity, phytotoxic compounds or a lack of nutrients, and affect the functioning of the plant system. Physiological disorders are distinguished from plant diseases caused by pathogens, such as a virus or fungus. While the symptoms of physiological disorders may appear disease-like, they can usually be prevented by altering environmental conditions. However, once a plant shows symptoms of a physiological disorder, it is likely that that season's growth or yield will be reduced. Diagnosis of disorders Diagnosis of the cause of a physiological disorder (or disease) can be difficult, but there are many web-based guides that may assist with this. Examples are: ''Abiotic plant disorders: Symptoms, signs and solutions''; ''Georgia Corn Diagnostic Guide''; ''Diagnosing Plant Problems'' (Kentucky); and ''Diagnosing Plant Problems'' (Virginia). Some general tips ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diseased Vine Leaf @ Paarl, South Africa
A disease is a particular abnormal condition that adversely affects the structure or function of all or part of an organism and is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical conditions that are associated with specific signs and symptoms. A disease may be caused by external factors such as pathogens or by internal dysfunctions. For example, internal dysfunctions of the immune system can produce a variety of different diseases, including various forms of immunodeficiency, hypersensitivity, allergies, and autoimmune disorders. In humans, ''disease'' is often used more broadly to refer to any condition that causes pain, dysfunction, distress, social problems, or death to the person affected, or similar problems for those in contact with the person. In this broader sense, it sometimes includes injuries, disabilities, disorders, syndromes, infections, isolated symptoms, deviant behaviors, and atypical variations of structure and functio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Annual Plant
An annual plant is a plant that completes its life cycle, from germination to the production of seeds, within one growing season, and then dies. Globally, 6% of all plant species and 15% of herbaceous plants (excluding trees and shrubs) are annuals. The annual life cycle has independently emerged in over 120 different plant families throughout the entire angiosperm phylogeny. The evolutionary and ecological drivers of the annual life cycle Traditionally, there has been a prevailing assumption that annuals have evolved from perennial ancestors. However, recent research challenges this notion, revealing instances where perennials have evolved from annual ancestors. Intriguingly, models propose that transition rates from an annual to a perennial life cycle are twice as fast as the reverse transition. The life-history theory posits that annual plants are favored when adult mortality is higher than seedling (or seed) mortality, i.e., annuals will dominate environments with dis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manure
Manure is organic matter that is used as organic fertilizer in agriculture. Most manure consists of animal feces; other sources include compost and green manure. Manures contribute to the fertility of soil by adding organic matter and nutrients, such as nitrogen, that are utilised by bacteria, fungi, and other organisms in the soil. Higher organisms then feed on the fungi and bacteria in a chain of life that comprises the soil food web. Types There are in the 21st century three main classes of manures used in soil management: Animal manure Most animal manure consists of feces. Common forms of animal manure include farmyard manure (or farm slurry ( liquid manure). Farmyard manure also contains plant material (often straw), which has been used as bedding for animals and has absorbed the feces and urine. Agricultural manure in liquid form, known as slurry, is produced by more intensive livestock rearing systems where concrete or slats are used instead of straw bedding. M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Compost
Compost is a mixture of ingredients used as plant fertilizer and to improve soil's physical, chemical, and biological properties. It is commonly prepared by Decomposition, decomposing plant and food waste, recycling organic materials, and manure. The resulting mixture is rich in plant nutrients and beneficial organisms, such as bacteria, protozoa, nematodes, and fungi. Compost improves soil fertility in gardens, landscaping, horticulture, urban agriculture, and organic farming, reducing dependency on commercial chemical fertilizers. The benefits of compost include providing nutrients to crops as fertilizer, acting as a soil conditioner, increasing the humus or Humic acids, humic acid contents of the soil, and introducing beneficial microbes that help to suppress pathogens in the soil and reduce soil-borne diseases. At the simplest level, composting requires gathering a mix of green waste (nitrogen-rich materials such as leaves, grass, and food scraps) and brown waste (woody ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leaf Mold
Leaf mold (spelled leaf mould outside of the United States) is the compost produced by decomposition of shaded deciduous shrub and tree leaves, primarily by fungal breakdown in a slower, cooler manner as opposed to the bacterial degradation of leaves. Description Leaves shed in autumn tend to have a very low nitrogen content and are often dry. Their main constituents, cellulose and lignin, are two recalcitrant molecules resistant to degradation. Because of this, autumn leaves break down far more slowly than most other compost ingredients which may take a very long time on their own. Specialised biota, such as molds, produce extracellular enzymes which can easily break down those complex plant polymers(cellulose, lignin and hemicellulose) into biologically accessible forms enriching the soil environment. The importance of this decomposition of the leaves and other shed plant litter is that their degradation and decomposition forms a critical step in the mineralization of organic n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Potato
The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern United States to southern Chile. Genetic studies show that the cultivated potato has a single origin, in the area of present-day southern Peru and extreme northwestern Bolivia. Potatoes were domesticated there about 7,000–10,000 years ago from a species in the '' S. brevicaule'' complex. Many varieties of the potato are cultivated in the Andes region of South America, where the species is indigenous. The Spanish introduced potatoes to Europe in the second half of the 16th century from the Americas. They are a staple food in many parts of the world and an integral part of much of the world's food supply. Following millennia of selective breeding, there are now over 5 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tomato
The tomato (, ), ''Solanum lycopersicum'', is a plant whose fruit is an edible Berry (botany), berry that is eaten as a vegetable. The tomato is a member of the nightshade family that includes tobacco, potato, and chili peppers. It originated from and was domesticated in western South America. It was introduced to the Old World by the Spanish in the Columbian exchange in the 16th century. Tomato plants are vines, largely Annual plant, annual and vulnerable to frost, though sometimes living longer in greenhouses. The flowers are able to self-fertilise. Modern varieties have been bred to ripen uniformly red, in a process that has impaired the fruit's sweetness and flavor. There are thousands of cultivars, varying in size, color, shape, and flavor. Tomatoes are attacked by many insect pests and nematodes, and are subject to diseases caused by viruses and by mildew and blight fungi. The tomato has a strong savoury umami flavor, and is an important ingredient in cuisines around ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Onion
An onion (''Allium cepa'' , from Latin ), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion which was classified as a separate species until 2011. The onion's close relatives include garlic, scallion, leek, and chives. The genus contains several other species variously called onions and cultivated for food, such as the Japanese bunching onion '' Allium fistulosum'', the tree onion ''Allium'' × ''proliferum'', and the Canada onion '' Allium canadense''. The name '' wild onion'' is applied to a number of ''Allium'' species, but ''A. cepa'' is exclusively known from cultivation. Its ancestral wild original form is not known, although escapes from cultivation have become established in some regions. The onion is most frequently a biennial or a perennial plant, but is usually treated as an annual and harvested in its first growing season. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mulch
A mulch is a layer of material applied to the surface of soil. Reasons for applying mulch include conservation of soil moisture, improving soil fertility, fertility and health of the soil, reducing Weed control, weed growth, and enhancing the visual appeal of the area. A mulch is usually, but not exclusively, organic in nature. It may be permanent (e.g. plastic sheeting) or temporary (e.g. barkdust, bark chips). It may be applied to bare soil or around existing plants. Mulches of manure and compost will be incorporated naturally into the soil by the activity of worms and other organisms. The process is used both in commercial crop production and in gardening, and when applied correctly, can improve soil productivity. Living mulches include moss lawnsMoss Myths/ref> and other ground covers. Uses Many materials are used as mulches, which are used to retain soil moisture, regulate soil temperature, suppress weed growth, and for aesthetics. They are applied to the soil surface, ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Irrigation
Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has been developed by many cultures around the world. Irrigation helps to grow crops, maintain landscapes, and revegetation, revegetate disturbed soils in dry areas and during times of below-average rainfall. In addition to these uses, irrigation is also employed to protect crops from frost, suppress weed growth in grain fields, and prevent soil consolidation. It is also used to cool livestock, reduce dust, dispose of sewage, and support mining operations. Drainage, which involves the removal of surface and sub-surface water from a given location, is often studied in conjunction with irrigation. There are several methods of irrigation that differ in how water is supplied to plants. Surface irrigation, also known as gravity irrigation, is the olde ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Horticultural Fleece
Horticultural fleece is a thin, nonwoven, polypropylene fabric which is used as a floating mulch to protect both late and early crops and delicate plants from cold weather and frost, as well as insect pests during the normal growing season. It admits light, air, and rain but creates a microclimate around the developing plants, allowing them to grow faster than the unprotected crops. British website page ''Using horticultural fleece on early crops'' (Archived) Methods of use Available in rolls of various widths, the fleece is laid across sown seedbeds or on the top of juvenile plants.[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cold Hardening
Cold hardening is the physiological and biochemical process by which an organism prepares for cold weather. Plants Plants in temperate and polar regions adapt to winter and sub zero temperatures by relocating nutrients from leaves and shoots to storage organs. Freezing temperatures induce dehydrative stress on plants, as water absorption in the root and water transport in the plant decreases. Water in and between cells in the plant freezes and expands, causing tissue damage. Cold hardening is a process in which a plant undergoes physiological changes to avoid, or mitigate cellular injuries caused by sub-zero temperatures. Non-acclimatized individuals can survive −5 °C, while an acclimatized individual in the same species can survive −30 °C. Plants that originated in the tropics, like tomato or maize, don't go through cold hardening and are unable to survive freezing temperatures. The plant starts the adaptation by exposure to cold yet still not freezing temperat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
