Lockhart and Wiseman's crop husbandry - Eighth Edition

paperback  320 pages  ISBN 1855735490      £45.00

Lockhart and Wiseman's crop husbandry is widely recognised as the standard introduction to its subject for both students and practitioners. This major new edition has been comprehensively revised. The book has been totally reorganised and includes new chapters on the influence of climate, cropping techniques, integrated crop management and quality assurance, seed production and selection.

Part 1 looks at the basic conditions for crop growth with chapters on plant structure and growth, soil analysis and management, and the use of fertilisers and manures. There is also a new chapter on the influence of climate and weather.

Part 2 surveys general aspects of crop husbandry. As well as a discussion of cropping techniques, there are new chapters on the important new areas of integrated crop management and organic crop husbandry, as well as discussion of seed selection and production.

Part 3 then looks at how these general techniques are applied to particular crops, with chapters on cereals, root crops, fresh harvested crops, forage crops and combinable break crops.

Part 4 considers the use of grassland with chapters on classification, sowing and management, grazing and conservation for winter feed.

Lockhart and Wiseman's crop husbandry remains the standard text for general agriculture, land management and agri-business courses, and is a valuable practical reference for the farming industry.

Contents

Part 1: Conditions for crop growth

Plants

• Plant physiology
• Plant groups
• Structure of the seed
• Plant structure
• Plant requirements
• Legumes and nitrogen fixation
• The control of plant growth and development
• Further reading

Soils and soil management

• Soil formation
• Other factors in soil formation
• The physical make-up of soil and its effect on plant growth
• Soil fertility and productivity
• Farm soils
• Soil improvement
• Further reading

Fertilisers and manures

• Nutrients required by crops
• Trace elements
• Units of plant food
• Straight fertilisers
• Compound fertilisers
• Application of fertilisers
• Organic manures
• Residual values of fertilisers and manures
• Fertilisers and the environment
• Further reading

Climate and weather

• Introduction
• Solar radiation
• Rainfall
• Air and soil temperature
• Other aspects of climate and weather
• The effect of climate and weather on plant diseases
• The interaction between climate and soil
• Climate change
• Global warming
• Ozone depletion
• Acid rain
• Further reading

Weeds

• The impact of weeds
• Weed types and identification
• Control of weeds: General
• Weed control in specific crops
• Spraying with herbicides: Precautions
• Further reading

Pests of farm crops

• Insects and nematodes
• Other pests of crops
• Types of pest damage
• Methods of pest control
• Classification of pesticides for pest control
• Further reading

Diseases of farm crops

• Introduction to plant diseases
• Types of damage
• Some important pathogens
• Other disorders
• The control of plant diseases
• Further reading

Part 2: Crop husbandry techniques

Cropping techniques

• Drainage
• Irrigation
• Warping
• Claying
• Tillage and cultivations
• Control of weeds by cultivation
• Crop management: Key issues
• Break crops and crop rotations
• Further reading

Integrated crop management

• Introduction
• Definition
• Economics
• Crop rotations
• Soil management
• Crop nutrition
• Crop protection
• Food quality and safety in the food chain
• Wildlife and conservation
• Crop assurance schemes
• Further references

Organic crop husbandry

• Organic farming
• Achieving organic status
• Rotations
• Soil and plant nutrition
• Weed control
• Disease control
• Pest control
• Husbandry examples
• Other systems
• Further reading

Plant breeding and seed production

• Introduction
• Plant breeding methods
• Target traits in breeding
• Choosing the right variety
• Seed quality
• Seed production: Typical crops
• Seed production: Precautions
• Further reading

Part 3: The management of individual crops

Cereals

• Introduction
• Grain quality in cereals
• Cereal growth and yield
• Harvesting
• Grain
• drying methods
• Moist grain storage
• Cereal straw
• Wheat
• Durum wheat
• Barley
• Oats
• Rye
• Triticale
• Maize for grain
• Further reading

Root crops

• Potatoes
• Sugar beet
• Further reading

Fresh harvested crops

• Vegetable production on farms
• Harvested fresh peas
• Broad beans
• Green beans
• Carrots
• Bulb onions
• Cabbages
• Brussels sprouts
• Swedes (for the domestic market)
• Further reading

Forage crops

• Crops grown for their yield of roots
• Crops grown for grazing
• Crops grown for ensiling
• Further reading

Combinable break crops

• Introduction
• Oilseed rape
• Linseed and flax
• Sunflowers
• Soya beans
• Evening primrose
• Borage
• Combinable pulses
• Further reading

Part 4: Grassland

Characteristics of grassland and its species

• Types of grassland
• The nutritive value of grassland herbage
• Identification of grasses
• Identification of legumes
• Grasses of economic importance
• Forage legumes of economic importance
• Herbs
• Grass and legume seeds mixtures
• Further reading

Establishing and improving grassland

• Establishing leys
• Grassland improvement and renovation
• Improving a sward by changing the management
• Improving a sward by renovation
• Fertilisers and manures for grassland
• Irrigation of grassland
• Further reading

Grazing

• Stocking rate or density
• Principles of grazing management
• Grazing systems
• Strategies to minimise parasitism at grass
• The energy yield from grass to forage - The UME calculation
• Further reading

Conservation of winter feed

• Silage
• The silage-making process
• Hay
• Green crop drying
• Further reading

Appendices

• Soil texture assessment in the field
• Nomenclature of crops
• Nomenclature of weeds
• Insect pests
• Crop diseases
• Crop seeds
• Metrication - Agricultural land classification (ALC) in England and Wales

Index