Agronomi og planteproduktion

En klassisk og videnskabelig funderet dyrkningsvejledning om den kontroversielle plante. Hampeplanten er i sin helhed anvendelig til alle mulige nyttige formål og burde genindføres som landbrugsplante i Danmark. Uændret genoptryk af tidligere udgaver, incl. forord af Ebbe Kløvedal Reich. Dog med nyt omslag og lidt større format.

For præcis 100 år siden rejste tre unge danske landmænd til Japan for at opbygge mønsterlandbrug på øen Hokkaido. De var udvalgte og inviterede af Japans regering, der søgte viden om dansk landbrugsdrift, andelstanke og højskolebevægelse.Emil Fenger, Morten Larsen og Peder Søndergaard var de udvalgte, der drog afsted med deres familier for at drive disse mønsterfarme og være forbilleder for udviklingen af en mejeriorienteret lokal kvægdrift. Men pionerindsatsen påvirkede de unge landmænd og deres familier, og de ofte svære og omkostningsfulde erfaringer var på både menneskeligt og økonomisk plan store.De danske pionerer skabte et stykke japansk Skandinavien, og de var medvirkende til, at den nordligt liggende japanske ø i dag er et mejericentrum i Japan.Bogen er en nybygger- og udviklingshistorie om japansk interesse for dansk og skandinavisk landbrugskultur, og om unge danske landbrugspionerer i et meget fremmed land og deres personlige livshistorier.Asger Røjle Christensen (f. 1956) er en erfaren dansk journalist, forfatter og foredragsholder. Han har fulgt udviklingen i Japan og Østasien i mere end 35 år. Han har i alt boet i Tokyo i 13 år af sit liv, hvor han har arbejdet som korrespondent, reporter og analytiker for en række danske og skandinaviske nyhedsmedier, arrangeret studieture og fungeret som rejseleder. Asger Røjle Christensen er forfatter til en række bøger, heraf flere om Japan og japansk kultur.

Biological farmers learn proper fertilizer uses to correct mineral and nutrient imbalances to feed plants and soil life. This is the farming consultant's bible and Gary Zimmer knows how to make responsible, sustainable farming work.

The gap between the world's future food demand and the growth rate of agricultural production is rising. Food production must increase by 1.75% annually to meet the estimated population of 10 billion by 2050 . But agricultural productivity is falling behind the future demand because of various biotic and abiotic factors. One of the major reasons behind this is volatile weather patterns in the com- ing decades due to climate change, especially in tropical environments. Exploring new arable crop lands, excessive application of fertilizers, chemical pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides may not be a sustainable way to enhance food production. Eco-friendly technological innovations are required to meet the future food demand. An insect is considered a pest if it threatens a resource valued by humans. Paddy crops are affected by hundreds of insect pests out of which twenty are more serious yield affecting pests. In the Indian scenario Yellow stem borer (YSB), Brown plant hopper (BPH), Gall midge, Leaf Folder (LF), Green Leaf Hopper (GLH), and White Backed Plant Hopper (WBPH) are causing around 86% of yield damage to paddy. Integrated pest management (IPM) is a process of resolving agricultural, urban, and wildland insect pest problems with the least possible risk to the environment. IPM focuses on deterrence of pests or reducing their damage through a combination of techniques such as biological and structural strategies.

Industrial crops offer farmers new market opportunities to increase their revenue by producing high-value products, focusing on fiber, forest, and energy crops, industrial oilseeds, rubber and resins, pharmaceuticals, and more. Technological innovations in agriculture have facilitated higher yields, but conserving crop genetic resources and diversity remains crucial for sustainable agricultural production. This poses a challenge that can be addressed through modern tools of biotechnology and genomics, utilizing the wealth of sequenced plant genomes. This book addresses the need for knowledge in managing the risks and conservation of genetic diversity associated with advanced technology. It provides comprehensive coverage of plant genomics and biotechnology, catering to post-graduate students, researchers, employees of seed and biotechnology companies, as well as instructors in plant genetics, breeding, and biotechnology fields.

Advances in Sustainable Applications of Microalgae discusses different mechanisms used by microalgae to treat various gaseous streams, wastewaters, and pollution bioremediation. In addition, the advantages of the application of microalgal biomass in the agricultural and food/feed sectors are presented and bioenergy from microalgae with a view to sustainability is explored. The present covers the use of microalgal cultures in various applications, such as: the treatment of gaseous streams by removing various contaminants, wastewater treatment through the removal of several pollutants, biomass valorization for agriculture purposes, bioenergy from microalgae, and industrial integration of all these processes in a biorefinery concept. Finally, the book emphasizes the importance of gathering scientific knowledge to overcome drawbacks related to microalgal production and develops the concept of biorefinery based on microalgal biomass for a more sustainable future.

Evapotranspiration in Agro-Ecosystems and Forestry: Spatio-temporal Applications presents the progress and advances made in terms of science and application of evaporation, transpiration, and evapotranspiration for various vegetation surfaces, water bodies, and bare soil under different soil and crop management (including different irrigation and tillage management) conditions. Sections on forest and wetlands evapotranspiration and grassland evaporative losses are included, as are the fundamentals of original Penman, Penman-Monteith, Shuttleworth-Wallace and ASCE-EWRI and FAO56 Penman-Monteith equations and their derivatives. The book is an excellent resource to better understand the progression and applications and dynamics of most recent evapotranspiration, evaporation and transpiration measurement and modeling technologies. Case studies will be provided in terms of how different technologies are currently deployed, how data are used for providing information and management decisions to the users.

Cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) is a sacred tree and noble resource from South America. The Mayans and other early civilizations in Central America used cacao beans as tokens, which were subsequently transported to Europe to nurture monarchies and elites. Based on the discovery of cacaös commercial potential and attributes, new cocoa plantations were established in other parts of the world, including Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean. Thus, cocoa has become an important cash crop in Africa, Central and South America, and Asia, where it is a major foreign exchange earner, industrial raw material, support for livelihood, and ecosystem services provision. Based on its global importance, there has been an increased need for the expansion of cultivation to meet the rising demand for cacao beans. Global environmental change, including climate change, variability, and weather extremes, has established new environmental boundaries with implications for area suitability for cocoa production and sustainability. Efforts to unlock the potentials of the established environmental boundaries may be built on the development and adoption of agrotechnological practices and integration of climate resilience for harnessing opportunities and potentials of the new environment, and thus, extension of the frontiers of cacao cultivation to meet the increasing global demand for cocoa beans. This book, ¿Shifting Frontiers of Theobroma Cacao - Opportunities and Challenges for Production¿ presents a comprehensive perspective of the interactions of changing environmental conditions, cocoa production, and sustainability. The book illuminates the challenges climate change presents for cocoa production and sustainability. It provides insights into the need for cocoa actors within the cocoa sector to strengthen climate mitigation and resilience building and to come to grips with the realities, magnitude, and inevitable persistence of climate challenges to cocoa production and sustainability.

This book aims at bringing out comprehensive information on cropping systems modelling in the world. The major focus of this book is to address the integration of soil, plant and environmental interactions for climate smart agriculture. This book covers aspects of application of Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) for climate smart agriculture. Step-by-step details of application of modelling approaches used for various cropping systems under changing climate are provided which are being adopted by farmers in the world. The book is enriched with figures or diagrams to show the various mechanisms involved to support the decision making for climate change adaptations. Essential information is given regarding crop models calibration, evaluation and application and every individual chapter is comprised of a specific cropping system. Further contents include integration of climate models and crop models for refining the decisions for sustaining the production of various cropping systems for climate smart agriculture. This book assists the agricultural scientists involved in research regarding climate smart agriculture for improving the standards of agricultural research for ensuring food security under changing climate. This is also equally useful for policy makers being involved in future planning.

This edited volume provides state-of¿the-art overview of abiotic stress responses and tolerance mechanisms of different legume crops viz., chickpea, mung bean, lentil, black gram, cowpea, cluster bean, soybean and groundnut.Legumes play an important role in human nutrition and soil health through fixation of nitrogen. Legume production and productivity are vulnerable to different abiotic stresses. A proper understanding about the physiological and molecular basis of the legume crops is essential for genetic improvement of abiotic stress tolerance.  This book consists of 15 chapters covering physiological and biochemical basis, molecular physiology, molecular breeding, genetics, genomics, transgenics, epigenetics of drought, saline, high temperature and nutrient deficiency stresses, and the role of microRNAs in abiotic stress tolerance. This volume offers new perspectives in legume crop abiotic stress management, and is useful for various stakeholders, including post graduates students, scientists, environmentalists and policymakers.

MicroRNA Advances and Application in Plant Biology presents a broad range of tools and techniques used for microRNA identification and utilization for diversity analysis in plants, crop improvement, and gene regulation. With expert insights, this book addresses those concepts through curated chapters that are well-illustrated with informative data, tables, figures, and photographs. While biological microRNA database resources have been created for the better understanding of structural and functional properties of primary-microRNAs (pri-microRNAs) to mature microRNAs, there remains a need for foundation understanding of how microRNAs may play a very crucial role in a plant lifecycle as an regulatory and stress tolerance molecule. There are still many unanswered questions about the structural and functional properties of the microRNAs, like the role of microRNA in crop improvement, gene regulation, stress tolerance, disease resistance plant, plant communication, and environmental interaction.

"Gaurdian Of Green Neem_s Legacy " is a charming account that unfurls the significant story of the neem tree, a plant gatekeeper respected for its complex effect on biological systems, wellbeing, and economical practices. This story digs into the rich tradition of neem, investigating its social importance, biological commitments, and the logical wonders that make it a genuine watchman of the climate. Socially, the neem tree (Azadirachta indica) is profoundly imbued in the practices and fables of numerous social orders. Worshipped as an image of security and health in Indian culture, the neem tree is frequently alluded to as the "town drug store." Its leaves, seeds, bark, and oil have been necessary parts of conventional medication for a really long time, known for their antiviral, antibacterial, and antifungal properties. The neem tree's inheritance stretches out past restorative use, tracking down its direction into strict ceremonies, celebrations, and day to day existence, where its presence is thought of as favorable. Naturally, the neem tree remains as a sturdy gatekeeper of biodiversity. Flourishing in parched and semi-bone-dry locales, the neem's strong nature permits it to get through testing ecological circumstances, giving haven and food to a different exhibit of widely varied vegetation. Its leaves go about as a characteristic pesticide, shielding adjoining plants from destructive bugs. The neem's profound roots assume an essential part in soil protection, forestalling disintegration and advancing water maintenance. As a nitrogen-fixing tree, it enhances the dirt, cultivating a better and stronger environment. Experimentally, the neem tree's inheritance is enlightened by bioactive mixtures add to a scope of economical applications. Neem oil, extricated from its seeds, fills in as a strong and eco-accommodating bug spray, offering an option in contrast to synthetic pesticides that can unfavorably affect the climate. The restorative properties of neem have motivated research in drugs and cosmeceuticals, further laying out its heritage as a characteristic healer. With regards to supportable farming, the neem tree arises as a gatekeeper against bothers and an advertiser of soil ripeness. Its incorporation into agroecosystems upholds natural cultivating works on, diminishing the dependence on engineered synthetic substances and encouraging an agreeable conjunction with nature. This reasonable methodology lines up with the developing worldwide accentuation on eco-accommodating and socially dependable rural practices. "Gaurdian Of Green Neem_s Legacy " is a festival of the persevering through effect of the neem tree, a watchman whose heritage stretches out from the underlying foundations of social customs to the farthest parts of environmental supportability. As social orders progressively perceive the significance of living as one with the climate, the neem tree remains as a motivation and a model for reasonable living - a watchman of green whose inheritance proceeds to flourish and unfurl for a long time into the future.

There are an estimated 500 million smallholder farmers across the world, of which a suggested 60-80% are women. Despite this overwhelming majority, women smallholders remain largely unsupported and their contribution to agriculture is often devalued because of their sex.Women and smallholder farming: Addressing global inequities in agriculture provides a comprehensive overview of the main obstacles and challenges women smallholders continue to face, such as restricted access to markets and education, as well as a lack of control over assets and property rights. The book also assesses the impact of sociocultural factors on women smallholder farmers in different regions around the world, including Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. In highlighting these issues, the book considers how key stakeholders across the agri-food supply chain can support, empower and sufficiently compensate women smallholder farmers for their contribution to agriculture.Edited by two internationally-renowned experts on gender and agriculture, the book will be a standard reference for university and other researchers studying smallholder farming systems in departments of agricultural science, gender studies, international development, politics and development economics, as well as government and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) involved in development programmes focussing on women smallholders.Dr Carolyn Sachs is Professor Emerita of Rural Sociology at The Pennsylvania State University, USA. She serves on an expert panel to the United Nations Programme on Gender, Water and Sanitation and is involved in several extension and outreach programmes, including the Pennsylvania Women's Agricultural Network (PAWAgN), in which she provides agricultural, entrepreneurship and leadership training. Emerita Professor Sachs has held previous positions as Visiting Professor at Charles Sturt University, Australia and Visiting Professor at the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization, Rome, Italy. She has published widely on gender and agriculture, contributing books, chapters and journal articles, and in 2020, she co-edited the Routledge Handbook of Gender and Agriculture with Dr Paige Castellanos and other notable researchers.Dr Paige Castellanos is Senior Manager of Gender Justice and Inclusion at Oxfam America, USA. Before moving into her new role in 2022, Dr Castellanos was previously Director for the Gender Equity through Agriculture Research and Education (GEARE) Initiative at The Pennsylvania State University, USA. From 2016-2019, Dr Castellanos acted as Project Manager for the Women in Agriculture Network (WAgN): Honduras - a project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to improve women's participation in the horticulture value chain in Honduras. She has published widely on gender, empowerment and agriculture and co-edited the Routledge Handbook of Gender and Agriculture alongside Emerita Professor Carolyn Sachs and other notable researchers in 2020.

Agricultural Water Management in Africa: Lessons Learned and Future Directions provides an overview of the status of irrigation development and AWM practices and technologies in Africa and the global south. In addition, it provides guidelines, scenarios, and investment plans to guide the prioritization and operationalization of irrigation development and AWM under climate change. The African Union (AU) is driving investment and improvement in agricultural water management and transformation in Africa through the operationalization of the AU Irrigation Development and Agricultural Water Management in Africa (AU-IDAWM). The AU-IDAWM provides a framework that identifies four development pathways for enhanced agricultural water management practices across Africa. The pathways are as follows: (1) Pathway 1: Improved water control and watershed management in rain-fed farming, (2) Pathway 2: Farmer-led Irrigation Development (FLID), (3) Pathway 3: Irrigation scheme development and modernization, and (4) Pathway 4: Unconventional water use for irrigation.

Wheat Wild Relatives: Developing Abiotic Stress Tolerance under Climate Change presents a state-of-the-art outline of the problem, including issues, opportunities, and modern developments in the utilization of Wild Wheat Relatives (WWR) and related neglected species for wheat crop improvement, specifically focusing on environmental constraints. The book comprehensively discusses different wheat wild relatives, including major genus Triticum and Aegilops and their utilization in mitigating different environmental constraints using agronomic, physiological, and molecular approaches. Chapters provide insights into the advancement in the deployment of wheat genetic resources, including wild relatives and neglected species for crop improvement towards environmental issues. Wheat is a major staple food crop that has largely been focused for fulfilling the food requirements of world population during the Green revolution. Since then, it has come to cover more agricultural land than any other commercial crop. Continuously changing climatic conditions have drastically affected wheat production, with yields largely limited by environmental constraints. Theses production losses caused by crop vulnerability to climate change may be resolved by using wheat wild relatives that are closely related to cultivated genotypes and known for their beneficial traits.

This book reviews the development of resistance to the core group of fungicides used throughout global crop production. Chapters explore the mechanisms of resistance, as well as the challenges facing future fungicide development.

Environmental Remediation in Agri-Food Industry Using Nanotechnology and Sustainable Strategies presents remediation practices to remove environmental pollutants caused by food manufacturing processes. The book explores AOPs, BiOX photocatalysts, perovskite materials, Zirconium oxide-based nanocomposites, and heterostructured semiconductor nanomaterials. It looks at environmental pollutants from the meat industry, fish production, horticulture, grains and other food manufacturing, and explores remediation of soil, water, and air. Contributors represent expertise from backgrounds in materials chemistry, nanotechnology, environmental chemistry, green technologies, analytical and physical chemistry, and agricultural and food science, providing a multidisciplinary approach for use in industry and public policy toward solving food security and environmental issues.

Rhizomicrobiome in Sustainable Agriculture and Environment explores the important potential of biocontrol agents in the reduction of overexploitation of synthetic pesticides, enhancing crop production, and maintaining the natural texture and health of agricultural soils. As concerns about sustainable production challenge current practices, this book presents opportunities for utilizing biological systems as part of the solution. Written by a team of global experts, sections explore the full range of rhizomicrobiome topics, including sustainable agriculture, food security, and environmental management. This will be a valuable resource for researchers, academics, and advanced students. Rhizomicrobiome is a significant part of plant biological system which impacts the plant growth and survival in different physiological conditions. Its composition includes different microbial networks whose presence is mainly impacted by the root exudates. Archaea, bacteria, protozoa, fungi, oomycetes, nematodes, microarthropods etc. are the significant parts of the rhizomicrobiome. Rhizomicrobiome could be that novel ecosystem housing the bioinoculants that can help create sustainable, productive growth environments.

This book is a collection of information about applying CRISPR-Cas systems for genome editing in plants. The main focus of this book is to address the recent advances and future prospects of CRISPR-Cas technology in crops.Genome editing technology is important because it can be used to improve plant traits. The earlier genome-engineering tools, zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs), and TAL effector nucleases (TALENs) are complicated to design and not flexible. The novel genome editor, CRISPR-Cas systems, has advantages over ZFNs and TALENs. The advantages are simple and easy to design precision in targeting and efficiency. Due to its precision and simplicity, the CRISPR-Cas technology has rapidly become the most popular genome-editing platform in life-science fields. CRISPR-Cas technology has been used widely for human gene therapy to treat diseases and for plant breeding programs for crop improvement.This book is of interest and useful to genome-editing professionals, plant breeders, horticulturists, field-level extension workers, nurserymen, planters, ecologists, and valuable source of reference to the relevant researchers.

This book provides a detailed overview of the history, current status and future needs of fertiliser developments in an era where sustainability is of paramount importance. Chapters also review recent advances in the use of fertiliser technologies, such as crop sprayers.

Conventional plant breeding has significantly improved crop yield, disease resistance, and adaptability to the environment; however, it is difficult to cultivate breakthrough new varieties using conventional breeding techniques. As such, new and novel breeding techniques are being developed. This book presents a comprehensive overview of plant breeding. It is organized into four sections on 'Genetic Resources for Plant Breeding¿, 'Breeding Theory and Strategy¿, 'Breeding Practice and Cases¿, and 'The Perspective for Plant Breeding¿.

Over the last few decades, various techniques have been developed to alter the properties of plants and animals.  While the targeted transfer of recombinant DNA into crop plants remains a valuable tool to achieve a desirable breeding outcome, integration of transgenes into the host genome has been random, which in part, leads to reduced acceptance of GMOs by the general population in some parts of the world. Likewise, methods of induced mutagenesis, such as TILLING, have the disadvantage that many mutations are induced per plant, which has to be removed again by expensive backcrossing. Advances in genome sequencing have provided more and more information on differences between susceptible and resistant varieties, which can now be directly targeted and modified using CRISPR/Cas9 technology. By selecting specific gRNAs occurrence of off-target modifications are comparatively low. ZFNs and TALENs- based approaches required re-engineering a new set of assembled polypeptides for every new target site for each experiment. The difficulty in cloning and protein engineering prevented these tools from being broadly adopted by the scientific community.  Compared to these technologies, designing the CRISPR toolbox is much simpler and more flexible. CRISPR/Cas9 is versatile, less expensive and highly efficient. It has become the most widely used technology for genome editing in many organisms.Since its inception as a powerful genome-editing tool in late 2012, this breakthrough technology has completely changed how science is performed. The first few chapters in this book introduce the basic concept, design and implementation of CRISPR/Cas9 for different plant systems. They are followed by in-depth discussions on the legal and bio-safety issues accompanying commercialization and patenting of this emerging technology. Lastly, this book covers emerging areas of new tools and potential applications. We believe readers, novice and expert alike, will benefit from this all-in-one resource on genome editing for crop improvement.Chapter 17 is available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.

This contributed volume explores how plant growth-promoting rhizobacterias (PGPR) provide a wide range of benefits to the plant. Further, it discusses the key roles PGPR play in nutrient acquisition and assimilation, improved soil texture, secreting, and modulating extracellular molecules. The book outlines how plant secondary metabolites are natural sources of biologically active compounds used in a wide range of applications, and surveys the significant role of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in plant communication by mediating above- and below-ground interactions between plants and the surrounding organisms.This volume compiles research from leading scientists from across the globe, linking the translation of basic knowledge to innovative applied research. The book focuses on the following three categories: 1) understanding the secondary metabolites produced by PGPR, the signaling mechanisms and how they affect plant growth, 2) the plausible role of volatile organic compounds produced by PGPR, their role and the signaling mechanism for plant growth promotion, and  3) Applications of VOCs and secondary metabolites of PGPR for seed germination, plant growth promotion; stress tolerance and in-plant health and immunity.

Soybean (Glycine max L. (Merr)) is one of the most important crops worldwide. Soybean seeds are vital for both protein meal and vegetable oil. Soybean was domesticated in China, and since last 4-5 decades it has become one of the most widely grown crops around the globe. The crop is grown on an anticipated 6% of the world's arable land, and since the 1970s, the area in soybean production has the highest percentage increase compared to any other major crop. It is a major crop in the United States, Brazil, China and Argentina and important in many other countries. The cultivated soybean has one wild annual relative, G. soja, and 23 wild perennial relatives. Soybean has spread to many Asian countries two to three thousand years ago, but was not known in the West until the 18th century. Among the various constraints responsible for decrease in soybean yields are the biotic and abiotic stresses which have recently increased as a result of changing climatic scenarios at global level. A lot of work has been done for cultivar development and germplasm enhancement through conventional plant breeding. This has resulted in development of numerous high yielding and climate resilient soybean varieties. Despite of this development, plant breeding is long-term by nature, resource dependent and climate dependent. Due to the advancement in genomics and phenomics, significant insights have been gained in the identification of genes for yield improvement, tolerance to biotic and abiotic stress and increased quality parameters in soybean. Molecular breeding has become routine and with the advent of next generation sequencing technologies resulting in SNP based molecular markers, soybean improvement has taken a new dimension and resulted in mapping of genes for various traits that include disease resistance, insect resistance, high oil content and improved yield.This book includes chapters from renowned potential soybean scientists to discuss the latest updates on soybean molecular and genetic perspectives to elucidate the complex mechanisms to develop biotic and abiotic stress resilience in soybean. Recent studies on the improvement of oil quality and yield in soybean have also been incorporated.

The present book entitled, "e;Re-visiting the Rhizosphere Eco-system for Agricultural Sustainability"e; written by experts in the field, provides a comprehensive and consolidated state-of art overview of various aspects of rhizosphere biology, ecology and functioning. The role of rhizosphere microbial diversity in enhancing plant health and plant-microbe beneficial symbioses is discussed. Main topics include the diversity of plant-associated microbes in the rhizosphere, below-ground communication among the plant, soil, insects and microbes, rhizosphere ecosystem functioning, rhizosphere engineering, recruitment of microorganisms in the rhizosphere, mycorrhizal fungal symbiosis, positive interaction of the plants with the beneficial soil microorganisms for inducing the plant growth, conferring abiotic and biotic stress tolerance and modulating several pathways of the plants for the proper establishment and revitalization in the degraded and contaminated soils or negative likes the host-pathogen interactions leading to the disease development in plants. Further chapters focus on the role of signaling during the different stages of the plant-microbe coexistence, in symbiotic or pathogenic relationships, in quorum sensing, microbial signaling and cross-talk, bio-film formation, and antimicrobial peptides. The book also discusses the application of microbes in biodegradation of xenobiotic contaminants, bioremediation of heavy metals, sustainable agriculture and soil health, biological control of insect pests and plant pathogens, and the latest tools of omics which offer pioneering approaches to the exploration of microbial structure and function, secretome, holobiome, below-ground interaction, and microbial cooperation for sustainable food production and enhanced resource acquisition. Descriptions of cutting-edge techniques and novel approaches make this book unique in the area of rhizosphere biology. This is a useful reading material for researchers and students of microbiology, agriculture, ecology, and rhizosphser studies.

Crop plants growing under field conditions are constantly exposed to various abiotic and biotic stress factors leading to decreased yield and quality of produce. In order to achieve sustainable development in agriculture and to increase agricultural production for feeding an increasing global population, it is necessary to use ecologically compatible and environmentally friendly strategies to decrease the adverse effects of stresses on the plant. Selenium is one of the critical elements from the biological contexts because it is essential for human health; however, it becomes toxic at high concentrations. It has been widely reported that selenium can promote plant growth and alleviate various stresses as well as increase the quantity and quality of the yield of many plant species. Nonetheless, at high concentrations, selenium causes phytotoxicity. In the last decade, nanotechnology has emerged as a prominent tool for enhancing agricultural productivity. The production and applications of nanoparticles (NPs) have greatly increased in many industries, such as energy production, healthcare, agriculture, and environmental protection. The application of NPs has attracted interest for their potential to alleviate abiotic and biotic stresses in a more rapid, cost-effective, and more sustainable way than conventional treatment technologies. Recently, research related to selenium-NPs-mediated abiotic stresses and nutritional improvements in plants has received considerable interest by the scientific community. While significant progress was made in selenium biochemistry in relation to stress tolerance, an in-depth understanding of the molecular mechanisms associated with the selenium- and nano-selenium-mediated stress tolerance and bio-fortification in plants is still lacking. Gaining a better knowledge of the regulatory and molecular mechanisms that control selenium uptake, assimilation, and tolerance in plants is therefore vital and necessary to develop modern crop varieties that are more resilient to environmental stress. This book provides a comprehensive overview of the latest understanding of the physiological, biochemical, and molecular basis of selenium- and nano-selenium-mediated environmental stress tolerance and crop quality improvements in plants. It helps researchers to develop strategies to enhance crop productivity under stressful conditions and to better utilize natural resources to ensure future food security and to reduce environmental contamination. Finally, this book is a valuable resource for promoting future research into plant stress tolerance, and  a reference book for researchers working on developing plants tolerant to abiotic and biotic stressors as well as bio-fortification and phytoremediation.