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Tree species are indispensable to human needs. Due to their long life cycle and environmental sensitivity, breeding trees for sustainable production is a formidable challenge on order to meet the demands of growing human population and industries. Fruit crops such as apple, cocoa, mango, citrus, litchi, pear, dates, and coconut or industrial crops including rubber and tea, improving yield under the optimal, sub-optimal and marginal areas call for a unified worldwide efforts.
While the uniqueness of coconut as a kalpavrikshaa (TM) (Sanskrit-meaning tree of life) makes its presence in every continent from Far East to South America, tree crops like cocoa, oil palm, rubber, apple, peach and walnut prove their environmental sensitivity towards tropical, sub tropical and temperate climates. Date palm is quintessential for desert climate. Thus, from soft drinks to breweries to oil to tyres, the value addition offers a spectrum of products to human kind, enriched with nutritional, environmental, financial, and trade related attributes. This volume is a compilation of information on breeding of tropical tree species and provides first hand comprehensive knowledge to research, teach, and make policies.
Preface.- Fruit and nut crops: Genetic improvement of Banana.- Mango Breeding.- Breeding Guava (Psidium guajava L.).- Breeding Papaya (Carica papaya L.).- Grape Breeding.- Breeding Date Palm.- Litchi Breeding for Genetic Improvement.- Avocado Genetics and Breeding.- Cashew (Anacardium occidentale L.) Breeding: A Global Perspective.- Oil crops: Coconut Breeding.- Oil Palm.- Olive Breeding.- Industrial Crops: Rubber.- Beverages: Breeding Coffee (Coffea arabica) for Sustainable Production.- Tea Breeding.- Genetic Improvement of Cocoa.- Index.
From the reviews: "Chapters are generally divided into several subsections, beginning with a botanical description of the crop and an overview of genetic resources available for breeding. The book highlights world production centers, crop uses, and value. ! Chapters also cover breeding techniques and the current employment of biotechnological applications for crop improvement. ! Each thoroughly referenced chapter provides an up-to-date review of literature that will be valuable for advanced readers. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students and above." (R. M. Warner, Choice, Vol. 46 (11), July, 2009) "This Tropical species volume of the Breeding plantation tree crops series ! aimed at providing 'comprehensive information on a package of conventional breeding, biotechnology and molecular tools to scientists, students and even policy makers and planters'. ! In conclusion, I would highly recommend this book to scientists (both breeders and plant biotechnologists), students, agronomists and ! tropical farmers too! It provides an updated vision on breeding and biotechnology applied to crop species of paramount economic interest for the tropical world." (Alain Rival, Annals of Botany, Vol. 104 (6), November, 2009)
