Physiological Processes Limiting Plant Productivity presents the proceedings of the Thirtieth University of Nottingham Easter School in Agricultural Science held at Sutton Bonington in England on April 2-5, 1979. Contributors focus on physiological processes limiting plant growth and development in the context of agricultural productivity. Emphasis is placed on the fundamental mechanisms that underlie crop production and their control. This text is comprised of 20 chapters; the first of which discusses the genetics of crop physiology in relation to agricultural production. The range of problems that plant physiologists must address is considered, followed by an assessment of what is happening in crop physiology. A number of chapters are devoted to the utilization of light by crop plants, plant nutrition, water relations, and the effects of an adaptation to unfavorable conditions including those imposed by air pollution. The reader is also introduced to the influence of photoperiodism on crop production; gas exchange in water-stressed plants; and the use of water, solar energy, and fossil fuels in crop production. This book will be of interest to agriculturists, plant breeders, and researchers working in relevant aspects of plant biochemistry, physiology, and genetics.

Woody plants such as trees have a significant economic and climatic influence on global economies and ecologies. This completely revised classic book is an up-to-date synthesis of the intensive research devoted to woody plants published in the second edition, with additional important aspects from the authors' previous book, Growth Control in Woody Plants. Intended primarily as a reference for researchers, the interdisciplinary nature of the book makes it useful to a broad range of scientists and researchers from agroforesters, agronomists, and arborists to plant pathologists and soil scientists. This third edition provides crutial updates to many chapters, including: responses of plants to elevated CO2; the process and regulation of cambial growth; photoinhibition and photoprotection of photosynthesis; nitrogen metabolism and internal recycling, and more. Revised chapters focus on emerging discoveries of the patterns and processes of woody plant physiology. * The only book to provide recommendations for the use of specific management practices and experimental procedures and equipment*Updated coverage of nearly all topics of interest to woody plant physiologists* Extensive revisions of chapters relating to key processes in growth, photosynthesis, and water relations* More than 500 new references * Examples of molecular-level evidence incorporated in discussion of the role of expansion proteins in plant growth; mechanism of ATP production by coupling factor in photosynthesis; the role of cellulose synthase in cell wall construction; structure-function relationships for aquaporin proteins

Environmental conditions and changes, irrespective of source, cause a variety of stresses, one of the most prevalent of which is salt stress. Excess amount of salt in the soil adversely affects plant growth and development, and impairs production. Nearly 20% of the world’s cultivated area and nearly half of the world’s irrigated lands are affected by salinity. Processes such as seed germination, seedling growth and vigour, vegetative growth, flowering and fruit set are adversely affected by high salt concentration, ultimately causing diminished economic yield and also quality of produce. Most plants cannot tolerate salt-stress. High salt concentrations decrease the osmotic potential of soil solution, creating a water stress in plants and severe ion toxicity. The interactions of salts with mineral nutrition may result in nutrient imbalances and deficiencies. The consequence of all these can ultimately lead to plant death as a result of growth arrest and molecular damage. To achieve salt-tolerance, the foremost task is either to prevent or alleviate the damage, or to re-establish homeostatic conditions in the new stressful environment. Barring a few exceptions, the conventional breeding techniques have been unsuccessful in transferring the salt-tolerance trait to the target species. A host of genes encoding different structural and regulatory proteins have been used over the past 5–6 years for the development of a range of abiotic stress-tolerant plants. It has been shown that using regulatory genes is a more effective approach for developing stress-tolerant plants. Thus, understanding the molecular basis will be helpful in developing selection strategies for improving salinity tolerance. This book will shed light on the effect of salt stress on plants development, proteomics, genomics, genetic engineering, and plant adaptations, among other topics. The book will cover around 25 chapters with contributors from all over the world. ​​

Abiotic stress factors frequently constrain the growth and productivity of major crop species. The single greatest abiotic stress factor that limits crop growth worldwide is water availability. While genetic increases in yield potential are best expressed in optimum environments, they are also associated with enhanced yields under drought and nitrogen deficiency. These gains are especially relevant given that further large increases in the area under irrigation are not expected, and land deterioration associated with intensive agriculture threatens those areas already irrigated. This book is intended to cover all known factors of abiotic stresses and their respective effects on some of the important aspects of physiological processes in plants. • Abiotic Stress and Crop Yield • Physiology of Grain Legume Yield Under Abiotic Stress • Photosynthesis and Physiological Parameters Under Intercropping Condition • Role of Growth Regulators Under Abiotic Stress • Plant Water Relationship Under Abiotic Stress • Dry Matter Partitioning Under AbioticS tress • Effect of Pesticides on Physiological Processes in Plants

Since photosynthetic performance is a fundamental determinant of yield in the vast majority of crops, an understanding of the factors limiting photosynthetic productivity has a crucial role to play in crop improvement programmes. Photosynthesis, unlike the majority of physiological processes in plants, has been the subject of extensive studies at the molecular level for many years. This reductionist approach has resulted in the development of an impressive and detailed understanding of the mechanisms of light capture, energy transduction and carbohydrate biosynthesis, processes that are clearly central to the success of the plant and the productivity of crops. This volume examines in the widest context the factors determining the photosynthetic performance of crops. The emphasis throughout the book is on the setting for photosynthesis rather than the fundamental process itself. The book will prove useful to a wide range of plant scientists, and will encourage a more rapid integration of disciplines in the quest to understand and improve the productivity of crops by the procedures of classical breeding and genetic manipulation.