The adverse impact of plant diseases is felt around the world. In this book, the contributors analyze the nature and origins of pathogens that affect some economically important food and fiber crops.

This impressive new reference presents state-of-the-art biological, molecular, and immunological advances surrounding the causes and strategies for diagnosing and controlling virus diseases of stone fruits. The book's vivid color images aid in the visual identification of symptomatology while distribution data and improved laboratory techniques provide reliable information and tools for higher diagnostic accuracy. It includes information on economic impact, biology, distribution, taxonomy, genomes, epidemiology, pathogenicity detection, and control measures. This will be an important resource for anyone working with these high-value crops.

In Virus-Insect-Plant Interactions, the world's leading scientists discuss the latest breakthroughs in understanding the biological and ecological factors that define these complex transmission systems and how this knowledge might be used to our advantage in producing innovative, user and environmentally friendly approaches to controlling the spread of plant pathogens by insects. This is an invaluable reference work for researchers, teachers, and students. There are many quick-reference figures and tables, the contents pages include individual chapter abstracts, and each chapter ends with its own bibliography. - Presents the most significant research breakthroughs of the past two decades - Contains eighteen chapters by forty-two world-renowned researchers - Invaluable reference work for researchers, teachers and students - Each chapter ends with its own bibliography - Contents pages of forematter include individual chapter abstracts - Contains many quick-reference figures and tables

Many well-known specialists have contributed to this book which presents for the first time an in-depth look at the viruses, their satellites and the retrotransposons infecting (or occuring in) one plant family: the Poaceae (Gramineae). After molecular and biological descriptions of the viruses to species level, virus diseases are presented by crop: barley, maize, rice, rye, sorghum, sugarcane, triticales, wheats, forage, ornamental and lawn. A detailed index of the viruses and taxonomic lists will help readers in the search for information.

The book presents strategies for the management of crop diseases, and explores means of integrating various strategies to achieve desired levels of suppression. It describes methods of preventing introduction of microbial pathogens, cultural practices that suppress pathogen populations, alternative soil treatments, resistant cultivars, biocontrol a

This specially compiled, one-of-a-kind volume contains exemplary contributions from Wolf Prize laureates in agriculture. There is no higher prize than the Wolf Prize. Thus, the reader has the opportunity to learn from the very top in various aspects of this field. Indeed, the book includes a list of publications and the most important papers in plant and animal breeding, genetics, biochemistry and plant protection, biotechnology, as well as chemistry and the physics of soils. In this volume one can learn about the developments in particular fields in agriculture at the highest level through the scientific activities of its world-class contributors.

The coconut palm occupies a significant place in the world economy as an important subsistence and cash crop in all the areas where it is cultivated. Unfortunately, yields are generally well below potential, despite recent developments with improved planting stock and agronomic practices. In the last 50 years, both aspects have received considerable attention, but the focus is shifting to investigate how the use of recently developed biotechnological techniques can benefit the coconut industry. This volume is the first one published on coconut biotechnology; the papers were presented at a symposium on this subject held in Mexico in December 1997. The book describes recent research in three important areas of this field: (a) molecular markers, diversity and genetic improvement; (b) molecular detection and diagnosis of diseases; and (c) in vitro propagation. It also deals with the impact of biotechnology on the coconut industry, weighing the advantages and pointing out areas where work should be directed to stimulate further research.