Maize is one of the versatile emerging crops with wider adaptability under varied agro-climatic conditions. Globally, maize is known as queen of cereals because it has the highest genetic yield potential among the cereals. It is cultivated on nearly 150 m/ha in about 160 countries having wider diversity of soil, climate, biodiversity and management practices that contributes 36 % (782 m/t) in the global grain production. The United States of America (USA) is the largest producer of maize contributes nearly 35 % of the total production in the world. It is the driver of the US economy. This book talks about the improvement, production, protection and post harvest technology of the maize crop. Note: T& F does not sell or distribute the Hardback in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
Nitrogen in the Environment: Sources, Problems, and Management is the first volume to provide a holistic perspective and comprehensive treatment of nitrogen from field, to ecosystem, to treatment of urban and rural drinking water supplies, while also including a historical overview, human health impacts and policy considerations. It provides a worldwide perspective on nitrogen and agriculture. Nitrogen is one of the most critical elements required in agricultural systems for the production of crops for feed, food and fiber. The ever-increasing world population requires increasing use of nitrogen in agriculture to supply human needs for dietary protein. Worldwide demand for nitrogen will increase as a direct response to increasing population. Strategies and perspectives are considered to improve nitrogen-use efficiency. Issues of nitrogen in crop and human nutrition, and transport and transformations along the continuum from farm field to ground water, watersheds, streams, rivers, and coastal marine environments are discussed. Described are aerial transport of nitrogen from livestock and agricultural systems and the potential for deposition and impacts. The current status of nitrogen in the environment in selected terrestrial and coastal environments and crop and forest ecosystems and development of emerging technologies to minimize nitrogen impacts on the environment are addressed. The nitrogen cycle provides a framework for assessing broad scale or even global strategies to improve nitrogen use efficiency. Growing human populations are the driving force that requires increased nitrogen inputs. These increasing inputs into the food-production system directly result in increased livestock and human-excretory nitrogen contribution into the environment. The scope of this book is diverse, covering a range of topics and issues from furthering our understanding of nitrogen in the environment to policy considerations at both farm and national scales.
To face the double pressures from the changing environment and increasing demand of the growing population globally, maize plays an essential role in securing food safety due to its strong adaptability. With climate change, the severity of extreme environmental stresses is projected to be more frequent, which affects maize growth, physiological processes, and productivity. It is important to explore the physiological mechanisms and regulatory measures in response to abiotic stresses. The interactions between crop and environmental stresses are multistep and complex. The stress resistance response of maize is still an extremely complicated process. Studies on responses of maize growth, yield, or quality under stress conditions are growing exponentially, but the description at a physiological or biochemical level is still unclear. In addition, new knowledge of maize hybrids with adversity resistance has not been deeply excavated. Hence, it is necessary to capture current knowledge on the impact of abiotic stress on maize, especially the mechanisms and regulation of maize responses under multiple stresses, and to provide potential solutions that will ensure a sustainable supply of nutritious food to meet the demand from an increasing population under a changing climate.
