Department of Food Production

YEAR: 1

SEMESTER: 2

COURSE TITLE: CROP PRODUCTION I

NUMBER OF CREDITS: 2

PRE-REQUISITES: AGRI 0104 - AGRICULTURAL BIOLOGY I

 

COURSE CONTENT:

The crop concept – hunter-gathering system, domestication, yield and crop production management; core concepts/elements in crop production management – definition and importance of land clearing, land preparation, cultivars, planting material, crop establishment, and plant population, water and nutrition management, crop protection, harvesting; influence of plant genotype and environmental factors on crop production management; introduction to tropical vegetable and grain crops – food value and types based on edible organs; good agricultural practices (GAPS) for selected tropical vegetables (leafy, solanaceous, cucurbits, crucifers) and grain (cereals and legumes) crops – site selection, cultivar selection, planting material selection; establishment methods; spacing and arrangement; water management – drainage, irrigation, conservation; nutrition management (soil and issue analyses) – organic and inorganic nutrient sources, application rates, methods, timing; plant training; nutrient conservation; integrated pest management practices, harvesting, maturity, harvest method; transport; production systems – characteristics, types, advantages and disadvantages, monocultural and polycultural systems - field; protected; container systems; technologies for each practice – traditional and modern – advantages and disadvantages; application of technologies to systems.

 

ASSESSMENT:
Coursework 100%