CRSS 2010 - CROP SCIENCE

Dr. Nick Hill, Professor
Office: 4101 Miller Plant Sciences Building
Phone: 542-0923
FAX: 542-0914
E-mail: nhill@uga.edu
Office Hours: 4-5:00 pm, Monday through Thursday. Other hours by appointment.

Note: You will have a tendency to come visit me over noon hour immediately before lecture. DO NOT DO THIS! This the only time I have to prepare for lecture.

Texts:

Course Notes. This is a 125 page outline of the course.
Laboratory Manual. Both are required and are available at the University Book Store

Lectures taken from these five books:

Acquaah, G. 2002. Principles of Crop Production: Theory, Techniques, and Technology. Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey.
Brady, N.C. 1974. The Nature and Properties of Soils. McMillan Publishing. New York.
Janick, J., R.W. Schery, F.W. Woods, and V.W. Ruttan. 1981. Plant Science: An Introduction to World Crops. Freeman. San Francisco, CA
Mitchell, R.L. 1970. Crop Growth and Culture. Iowa State Univ. Press. Ames, IA
Smith, C.W. 1995. Crop Production: Evolution, History and Technology. John Wiley & Sons, New York

Syllabus: This is a tentative syllabus which may change dependent upon new literature developments during the quarter.

Grading: Grades will be assigned based upon your performance in laboratory quizzes/homework, lecture exams and quizzes, term paper and final exam. Laboratory quizzes/homework are offered or assigned weekly. Unannounced ïspotÍ quizzes are given to encourage students to review their notes on a regular basis. Attendance is strongly encouraged as spot quizzes are given randomly. All students will take the final exam regardless of their grade. Exams will use a multiple choice, true/false, identification, or matching format. There will be some math problems on the exams.

Grading will be weighted as follows:

Laboratory‡ = 20%
Hourly exams and quizzs = 65%
Final exam = 15%

‡ Laboratory consists of a combination of identification, experimentation, field trips, and economic analysis.

Lectures	Topic
1	Introduction to Course, Objectives, Testing
3	Plants and People - History of Agriculture, Past Lessons Learned, Energy and Crop Production
3	Soils (Part I) - Agronomics of soils (Minerals in soil, organic matter, soil water, soil air); Soil genesis and morphology;
7	Soils (Part II) - Chemical properties, clay lattices, CEC, pH, nutrient availability; Fertilizer and fertilizer management; Sources, purity and solubility of N,P, and K, fertilizer movement, fertilizer strategies; Soil testing and plant nutrition;
1	FIRST HOUR EXAM
2	Comparisons of Natural and Agricultural Ecosystems - Structure and Function
2	Plant Structure and Function (I) - Eukaryotic cells and their living parts; Mitosis; Non-living tissues of plants; Living tissues of plants
3	Plant Structure and Function (II) - Leaf, stem, root, and seed anatomy and morphology
5	Fundamental Crop Processes - Seed dormancy, germination, and quality, Seedbed preparation; Photosynthesis and respiration; Leaf area index and duration; Stand density, plant distribution, and crop yield
3	Crop Growth and Development - Hormones, plant growth, and gene expression; Photoperiodism; Meiosis, pollination, micro- and megasporogenesis; Phases and events of crop growth and development
1	SECOND HOUR EXAM
5	Crops and the Environment - Properties of water and its significance for crop cooling; Water use efficiency; Crop responses to drought or excess moisture; Irrigation; Heat and microclimates, temperature injury, cold hardiness, heat units
5	Crop Improvement – Objectives for crop improvement; Mating behavior of crops and breeding strategies; Genetically modifying crops
2	Plant Protection - Weed, insect, and pathogenic pests; Pesticides, biocontrol, and integrated pest management;
3	Putting it all together - What to expect when growing peanuts, cotton, and soybeans in Georgia. Land preparation, population density, transitions from the seedling plant to vegetative, to reproductive, to ripening of the plant. Plant nutrition, plant pests
1	THIRD HOUR EXAM
	FINAL EXAM (COMPREHENSIVE AND MANDATORY)