Ben Bareja Sugar crops are plants that are natural sources of the sweet substance called sugar in large quantities.
These natural sweeteners are found in or extracted from different organs such as the roots of sugarbeet, tubers of Jerusalem artichoke, the stems of sugarcane, sorghum, and sugar maple, inflorescences of certain palms, the grains of corn, and many fruits (Hill 1972).
The durian tree (Durio zibethinus, syn. Durio acuminatissima) is a tropical fruit crop that is adapted to elevations up to 800 masl having an optimum temperature of 25-35 C, relative humidity of 80%, and annual rainfall of 1,500-2,000 mm which is well distributed throughout the year.
It prefers deep, sandy loam and clay loam soils with high organic matter and which are well-drained and slightly acidic (pH 5.5- 5.6).
In the Philippines, durian trees are grown as a mono-crop or intercropped with coconut and other fruit trees.
The durian fruit is popular in the tropics due to its strong aroma and unique taste.
Many find it repulsive but for those who relish the fruit, it is often described through the following saying: “It smells like hell, but it tastes like heaven.”
The characteristic odor of the fruit is from thiols or thioethers, esters, and sulfides.
Potted bamboo needs plenty of care just like other house plants.
Where miniature bamboos or bamboo bonsai are desired, the sizes of the plants can be further reduced by applying bonsai techniques.
What is agronomy?
This is another question that is as important as “what is horticulture?” in relation to the study and practice of plant agriculture.
For those who desire to specialize in either agronomy or horticulture, the two main divisions of crop production, it is important to be able to distinguish between the two, or at least learn when both terms may apply to the same crop, or when an outright answer has to be deferred.
It will be embarrassing to find oneself stammering when suddenly asked to explain what is agronomy or required to give its definition (or horticulture, or agriculture).
Familiarity with the terms and their scope will also simplify literature research.
For example, anyone who wishes to find information on cereal crops can likely find the same from books on agronomy rather than on horticulture.
Below is a partial list of vegetables (or vegetable crops) with edible botanical roots.
The scientific names, family, and other relevant information are likewise supplied.
This is Page 1 of five web pages providing the list of vegetables.
This page provides some examples of vegetable crops having a vegetative part (roots) that is used in the preparation of “vegetable” dishes or recipes.
Those with other edible vegetative parts (stems and leaves) and reproductive parts (flowers, fruits, and seeds) are treated on other separate pages.
Row planting as applied in conventional horizontal farming or gardening is a system of growing crops in linear patterns in at least one direction rather than planting without any distinct arrangement.
It is practiced in most crops whether direct-seeded, transplanted, or grown from vegetative planting materials, both in monocropping and multiple cropping.
Crops are planted in rows or straight lines, either singly or in multiple rows, mainly to enhance maximum yields as well as for convenience.
East-west row orientation is preferred to maximize light absorption, but this is not always possible.
In many cases, the topography that includes the shape, terrain, and slope of the land, as well as the location of existing vegetation, roads, irrigation lines, buildings, and physical barriers, dictates the row orientation.
Julius Robert Mayer (1814-1878). Julius Robert von Mayer was a German physician and physicist.
He was the first to state the Law of the Conservation of Energy: energy is neither created nor destroyed.
He stated that the sun is the ultimate source of energy for both plants and animals and that when absorbed plants convert this light energy to chemical energy through the process of photosynthesis (Devlin 1975).
Jan Ingenhousz (1730-1799). Ingenhousz was born in Breda, Holland.
He obtained a degree in medicine from the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium, summa cum laude, in 1753.
From 1768 to 1788 he lived in Vienna as a physician to the Austrian court (Rook 1964; Egerton 2008).
He discovered that the ability of plants to purify the air, now known to result from photosynthesis, occurred only when the green parts of plants were exposed to sunlight.
He showed that green plants expel oxygen in the presence of sunlight, but under shade or in the dark they produce carbon dioxide.
For three months in 1778 when he was in England, he conducted about 500 experiments the results of which were published the following year (1779).
He conducted experiments on air purification following Priestley’s methods and arrived at the same conclusion as Priestley’s that green plants could purify contaminated air.
However, he found that it occurred in just hours and not days.
The climatic factors are abiotic or non-living components of the environmental factors (outside of genetic factors) that affect plant growth and development.
They are elements of climate.
There are other abiotic environmental factors, that is, topography and soil, which are treated on a separate page.
Under favorable conditions, gene expression is maximized. Ultimately, enhanced growth and development translate into high crop yields.
These climatic factors are enumerated below and either discussed briefly or a link is provided for specific elucidation.
What is horticulture?
This is a common question that confronts both students and workers in plant agriculture.
Indeed, it is important to be able to distinguish between the two main divisions of crop production, horticulture, and agronomy, in order to acquire a better theoretical understanding and skills in either specialized field.
The proper delineation of the two divisions will likewise facilitate efforts in research and development directed at certain groups of plants.
However, it is quite impossible to give an exact definition of horticulture.
Neither is it easy to enumerate its scope with definiteness.
Nonetheless, substantial enlightenment on the concept, scope, and definition of horticulture can be obtained from the writing of various authorities in the field.