Glossary

Agricultural crops are plants that are grown or deliberately managed by man for certain purposes.

A (plant) species is called indigenous if it is originating or occurring naturally in a particular place. An indigenous species is also called a “native” species.

Olericulture is the science of vegetable growing. It deals with the cultivation of herbaceous (non-woody) plants for their edible parts which are used as food.

A cultivar is a cultivated variety of a plant. The term “cultivar” is used instead of the term “variety” if the variety is the result of human action (e.g. breeding for certain characteristics such as color, taste or disease resistance). The term “variety” should be used if the type of plant is the result of

Plant breeding is the process of changing the genetics of plants with the objective to produce desired characteristics. The earliest plant breeding techniques involved simply selecting plants with desirable characteristics for propagation. Later it was found that deliberate hybridization could be used to quicker develop new plant types. The work of Gregor Mendel was important

Grafting is a plant propagation technique whereby tissues from one plant are inserted into those of another so that the two sets of vascular tissues may join together.

SRI is the abbreviation of System of Rice Intensification. This is a methodology aimed at increasing the yield of rice, often using the following six interrelated practices: Transplanting very young seedlings (8 to 15 days old) to enhance their potential for rooting and tillering Planting single seedlings (instead of 2 or more together) carefully and

Subsistence farming (or Subsistence agriculture) is self-sufficiency farming in which the farmer will try to grow enough food to feed his/her family. It refers to a situation where nearly all the food that is produced is consumed in the farm household. In addition to subsistence crops (e.g. rice, vegetables) the subsistence farmer may have some

A cash crop is a crop grown for sale rather than for subsistence. For example, a small farmer in the tropics could grow some rice for his own consumption and in addition may grow some tobacco and vegetables as cash crops (i.e. for direct sale). A cash crop is usually easily marketable.

A crop is a cultivated plant or agricultural produce considered as a group and often grown commercially on a large scale. For example a cereal (grain), vegetable or fruit can be called a crop. For example: Rice is a tropical crop. Note: The World Crops Database does not only include plants, but also some fungi

Flowering plants are sometimes grouped in dicotyledons and monocotyledons. Monocotyledons (or monocots) have just one embryonic leaf or cotyledon. The dicotyledons (also called dicots) have seeds with two embryonic leaves.

Trees are called ‘deciduous’ if they drop their leaves during a certain season. Often this will be during the winter season in temperate climates or during the dry season in tropical climates.

Flowering plants are sometimes grouped in dicotyledons and monocotyledons. The dicotyledons (also called dicots) have seeds with two embryonic leaves or cotyledons. Monocotyledons (or monocots) have just one embryonic leaf.