With new discoveries and inventions in science, application of botany has attained many dimensions. Besides the conventional application of botanical sciences, forensic botany; nanobotany; phytoremideation and phytominimg; environmental impact assessment, seed quality enhancement through priming are the new dimensions of applied botany. The industrial applications of botany are in paper pulp, rubber, dye and gum industries. At social front, besides providing the livelihood and employment through cultivation of crops, the branches of botany like community forestry are playing major role in the upliftment of folks. Use of mechanisms of carnivorous plants in plant protection; and management of invasive plants for economic gains and conservation of biodiversity are new challenges in applied botany.

Science education is experiencing a revitalization, as it is recognized that science should be accessible to everyone, not just society’s future scientists. One way to make the study of science more substantive to the non-major is to require a laboratory component for all science courses. The subject of applied botany with its emphasis on the practical aspects of plant science, the authors believe, will be appealing to the non-major as it exemplifies how a basic science can be applied to problem solving. Laboratory Manual for Applied Botany will make students realize that the study of plants is relevant to their lives and that they can participate in the discovery process of science. Although the manual includes much of the basic plant anatomy found in standard botany manuals, it differs in taking a practical approach, examining those plants and plant products that have sustained or affected human society.

The fungal kingdom consists of a wide variety of organisms with a diverse range of forms and functions. Fungi have been utilized for thousands of years and their importance in agriculture, medicine, food production and the environmental sciences is well known. New advances in genomic and metabolomic technologies have allowed further developments in the use of fungi in industry and medicine, increasing the need for a compilation of new applications, developments and technologies across the mycological field. Applied Mycology brings together a range of contributions, highlighting the diverse nature of current research. Chapters include discussions of fungal associations in the environment, agriculture and forestry, long established and novel applications of fungi in fermentation, the use of fungi in the pharmaceutical industry, the growing recognition of fungal infections, current interests in the use fungal enzymes in biotechnology and the new and emerging field of myconanotechnology. Demonstrating the broad coverage and importance of mycological research, this book will be of interest to researchers and students in all biological sciences.

"Global papaya production has grown significantly over the last few years, mainly as a result of increased production in India. This is the first comprehensive book authored by an international team of experts at the forefront of research and covers botany, biotechnology, production, postharvest physiology and processing"--