This volume will be the only existing single-authored book offering a science-based breeder’s manual directed at breeding for water-limited environments. Plant breeding is characterized by the need to integrate information from diverse disciplines towards the development and delivery of a product defines as a new cultivar. Conventional breeding draws information from disciplines such as genetics, plant physiology, plant pathology, entomology, food technology and statistics. Plant breeding for water-limited environments and the development of drought resistant crop cultivars is considered as one of the more difficult areas in plant breeding while at the same time it is becoming a very pressing issue. This volume is unique and timely in that it develops realistic solutions and protocols towards the breeding of drought resistant cultivars by integrating knowledge from environmental science, plant physiology, genetics and molecular biology.

This publication opens with the inevitable introduction, moves on to the present traditional approach to breeding for yield stability, and then enumerates a detailed discussion of the physiological approach to breeding for resistance to specific stresses. Not all environmental stresses are covered, omitting those for which little can be said today on practical breeding solutions.

Drought, arguably the greatest threat to food production worldwide, was the focal point of a high-level, weeklong workshop supported by The Rockefeller Foundation and CIMMYT, held in May 2004 in Cuernavaca, Mexico.

Global demand for wheat, rice, corn, and other essential grains is expected to steadily rise over the next twenty years. Meeting this demand by increasing production through increased land use is not very likely; and while better crop management may make a marginal difference, most agriculture experts agree that this anticipated deficit must be made up through increased crop yields. The first resource of its kind, Physiology and Biotechnology Integration for Plant Breeding assembles current research in crop plant physiology, plant biotechnology, and plant breeding that is aimed toward improving crop plants genetically while supporting a productive agriculture ecosystem. Highly comprehensive, this reference provides access to the most innovative perspectives in crop physiology – with a special emphasis on molecular approaches – aimed at the formulation of those crop cultivars that offer the greatest potential to increase crop yields in stress environments. Surveys the current state of the field, as well as modern options and avenues for plant breeders and biotechnologists interested in augmenting crop yield and stability With the contributions of plant scientists from all corners of the globe who are actively involved in meeting this important challenge, Physiology and Biotechnology Integration for Plant Breeding provides readers with the background information needed to understand this cutting-edge work, as well as detailed information on present and potential applications. While the first half of the book establishes and fully explains the link between crop physiology and molecular biology, the second part explores the application of biotechnology in the effective delivery of the high yield and environmentally stable crop plants needed to avert the very real possibility of worldwide hunger.

Plant Breeding Reviews presents state-of-the-art reviews on plant genetics and the breeding of all types of crops by both traditional means and molecular methods. Many of the crops widely grown today stem from a very narrow genetic base; understanding and preserving crop genetic resources is vital to the security of food systems worldwide. The emphasis of the series is on methodology, a fundamental understanding of crop genetics, and applications to major crops. It is a serial title that appears in the form of one or two volumes per year.

Improving Water and Nutrient Use Efficiency in Food Production Systems provides professionals, students, and policy makers with an in-depth view of various aspects of water and nutrient us in crop production. The book covers topics related to global economic, political, and social issues related to food production and distribution, describes various strategies and mechanisms that increase water and nutrient use efficiency, and review te curren situation and potential improvements in major food-producing systems on each continent. The book also deals with problems experienced by developed countries separtaely from problems facing developing countries. Improving Water and Nutrient Use Efficiency emphasizes judicious water and nutrient management which is aimed at maximising water and nutrient utilisation in the agricultural landscape, and minimising undesirable nutrient losses to the environment.

With near-comprehensive coverage of new advances in crop breeding for drought and salinity stress tolerance, this timely work seeks to integrate the most recent findings about key biological determinants of plant stress tolerance with modern crop improvement strategies. This volume is unique because is provides exceptionally wide coverage of current knowledge and expertise being applied in drought and salt tolerance research.

The basic concept of this book is to examine the use of innovative methods augmenting traditional plant breeding towards the development of new crop varieties under different environmental conditions to achieve sustainable food production. This book consists of two volumes: Volume 1 subtitled Breeding, Biotechnology and Molecular Tools and Volume 2 subtitled Agronomic, Abiotic and Biotic Stress Traits. This is volume 2 which contains 18 chapters highlighting breeding strategies for specific plant traits including improved nutritional and pharmaceutical properties as well as enhanced tolerance to insects, diseases, drought, salinity and temperature extremes expected under predicted global climate change.

Evidence grows daily of the changing climate and its impact on plants and animals. Plant function is inextricably linked to climate and atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration. On the shortest and smallest scales, the climate affects the plant’s immediate environment and so directly influences physiological processes. At larger scales, the climate influences species distribution and community composition, as well as the viability of different crops in managed ecosystems. Plant growth also influences the local, regional and global climate, through the exchanges of energy and gases between the plants and the air around them. Plant Growth and Climate Change examines the major aspects of how anthropogenic climate change affects plants, focusing on several key determinants of plant growth: atmospheric CO2, temperature, water availability and the interactions between these factors. The book demonstrates the variety of techniques used across plant science: detailed physiology in controlled environments; observational studies based on long-term data sets; field manipulation experiments and modelling. It is directed at advanced-level university students, researchers and professionals across the range of plant science disciplines, including plant physiology, plant ecology and crop science. It will also be of interest to earth system scientists.