Unit CULTIVATION SCIENCE

FIELD CROPS

Code	80013406
CFU	6
Teacher	Paolo Benincasa
Teachers	Paolo Benincasa
Hours	54 ore - Paolo Benincasa
Learning activities	Caratterizzante
Area	Discipline della produzione vegetale
Academic discipline	AGR/02
Type of study-unit	Obbligatorio (Required)
Language of instruction	Italian
Contents	Description of the most widespread and meaningful species of arable crops (cereals, legumes, oil crops, industrial crops, forages) with regard to morphology, biology and eco-physiology; cultivation techniques as related to cultivar, yield and quality; objectives and perspectives of breeding
Reference texts	1. Drafts by the lecturer 2. Bonciarelli F. Coltivazioni erbacee da pieno campo. Ed agricole 3. papers from scientific and technical journals
Educational objectives	The aim of the course is to provide students with specific knowledge on arable field crops. In particular students will be provided with: knowledge on arable cropping systems, plant species and production chains; knowledge on economic importance and diffusion of arable crops; knowledge on the implications that agricultural techniques may have on the agro-ecosystem; agronomical and technological abilities on the arable crop cultivation. Moreover students will be educated at identifying the main cultivated species.
Prerequisites	in order to understand and to be able to apply most of cultivation techniques described in the module, the student needs to have successfully passed an exam of Agronomy, so that he has got knowledge and competence on ecological factors affcting crop production (climate and soil factors) and on principal agronomical techniques (soil drainage, tillage, fertilization, irrigation, weed control, sowing, rotation and intercropping). The knowledge of these topics represents an indispensable prerequisite for the student who wishes to attend lectures and/or study at home and pass the exam.
Teaching methods	Lectures concerning all the subject of the course Practice in the classroom: The teacher will propose and help student solve practical cases concerning the subjects of the module. Pactice in farms and crops: since these practices need to be carried out in the open field and concern all the topics of the module, they will be organized in the last part of the module (late April-May) depending on wheather conditions and the activities of hosting farms. Based on previous years, two to three visits could be organized, one of which should consist on a visit to the Filed -Lab of the R.U. of Agronomy and Arable Crops of the DSA3 in Papiano and the the Farm of Casalina. Moreover, students will be allowed to visit the plots with most of the species cultivated in the fields located in the DSA3 (close to teaching rooms) to carry out further practice. Means to help teaching and learning: Overheads, slides and videos Technical and scientific papers Reference Books Drafts based on slides Seeds and plants of around 70 plant species
Other information	Prof. Paolo Benincasa Dept of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, Section of Agronomy and Arable Crops Tel:75 585 6325 E-mail: paolo.benincasa@unipg.it Assistance for students: Monday 9.30 -11.30. Moreover Prof. Benincasa is available every day provided an appointment is fixed in due time by email or telephone.
Learning verification modality	The assessment of learning for this module will be carried out during the official exam, orally, by means of open questions and open answers on three among the following subjects: crop rotations, cereals, grain legumes, oilseed crops, sugar and tuber crops, aromatic crops, green manures, forage crops. The oral trial will allow to asses student's knowledge and comprehension of subjects and his communication skills with appropriate terms and autonomous organization and description of theoretical subjects. Moreover the trial will allow to assess the abilities of the student, i.e. his skills in applying his knowledge to solve practical tasks by developing his own solutions. Risultati d'apprendimento previsti: Knowledge (most important issues) 1. Knowledge on agroecosystems and biological systems at the basis of production activities 2. knowledge of arable crop systems 3. knowledge of production chains for the most important arable crops 4. knowledge of botanical and biological traits of the most important arable crops 5. Knowledge of soil and climate needs and of cultivation areas of the most important arable crops 6. Knowledge of abiotic and biotic diseases of the most important arable crops 7. Knowledge of breeding activity and perspectives for the most important arable crops 8. Deepen knowledge cultivation technique for the most important arable crops 9. Knowledge of environmental and health implications of arable crop production 10. Knowledge of yield quality aspects for the most important arable crops 11. Knowledge of traditional and advanced analytical methods and techniques in agronomy 12. Knowledge of basic and applied research activity in agronomy 13. Knowledge of professional and project activities Abilities (most important issues) 1. How to develop ideas and projects and how to manage technical and scientific projects on agronomical subjects 2. How to work in autonomy and responsabilità in a project 3. How to control cultivar traits of crops 4. How to control agro-ecosystems by adopting rational cultivation techniques 5. How to analyse and synthesize a subject 6. how to organize and plan 7. How to solve problem 8. Communication skills 9. Hoe to interact and implement with other professionals (ecologists, genetists, economists, etc.) Behaviours (most important issues) 1. Consciousness of ethical and social implications of our own actions 2. Consciousness of environmental implications of our own actions 3. Consciousness of our own responsibilities 4. Consciousness of the need for a continuous update and itegration of our own technical and scientifical knowled
Extended program	Lectures A description will be given on the general traits of the main groups of crops (food, industrial and forage crops). For each group, some species will be described in detail, taking into consideration the most cultivated on the national and global scale and meaningful from a teaching point of view (case studies). The description of these species will concern: morphology, phylogenesis, biology, soil and climate needs, eco-physiology, abiotic and biotic disease, objectives and perspectives of breeding, cultivation technique (rotation, tillage, fertilization, choice of cultivar, sowing, weed control, irrigation and other operations, harvest). In particular, for any species evidence will be given to the main issues and weak points of cultivation and to the interactions between the choice of cultivar, the cultivation technique, the yield and quality. Moreover the description of any species will also consider the possible modifications on the cultivation technique related to the cropping system (conventional, organic) and to the several utilization of the product: human or livestock feeding, direct utilization or after industrial processing, non-food crops (biomass, biofuel, lubricants), seed crops, green manure crops, phyto-remediation, etc. For this reason, some information will be given also for "minor" species that could be usefully introduced in the usual arable cropping systems. List of species - Winter cereals: soft wheat, durum wheat, barley for fodder and beer, notes on other species (oat, rye, triticosecale, spelt) - Summer cereals: rice, maize, sorghum, notes on other species (millets, buckwheat, etc.) - Grain legumes: pea, common beans, notes on other species (faba bean, lentil, chickpea, lupin) - Oil crops: soybean, canola, sunlower, notes on other species (peanut, safflower, linseed, castor bean, sesame, other Cruciferae) - Sugar crops: sugarbeet, notes on sugarcane - Notes on cotton and other fibre crops - Tobacco - Forage crops: Description and classification of forage crops, utilizations, and processing; cultivation technique of alfa alfa; notes on other forage legumes (clovers, sulla, sainfoin, vetch, etc.) grasses (tall fescue, perennial ryegrass, italian ryegrass) and other species (Cruciferae, Chenopodiaceae, etc) Practical tasks - identification of seeds and plants of species - Solving of practical cases concerning arable crops - Observation on crops under way and cultivation operations

GENETIC VEGETAL IMPROVEMENT

Code	A002036
CFU	3
Teacher	Emidio Albertini
Teachers	Emidio Albertini
Hours	27 ore - Emidio Albertini
Learning activities	Affine/integrativa
Area	Attività formative affini o integrative
Academic discipline	AGR/07
Type of study-unit	Obbligatorio (Required)
Language of instruction	Italian
Contents	Population genetics. Agricultural genetic resources. Conservation of agrobiodiversity. Reproductive systems and genetic structure of populations. Traditional and marker assisted breeding methods. New breeding techniques.
Reference texts	Lorenzetti et al. Miglioramento genetico delle piante agrarie. Mew Business Media/ Edagricole
Educational objectives	At the end of the course the student will have learned the needed notions to be able to begin a plant breeding program and the knowledge on genetic and molecular systems used to increase the results of a breeding program.
Prerequisites	Genetics
Teaching methods	Lectures on all topics of the course. Problem solving. Visit to the experimental fields.
Other information	Teaching materials provided by the Professor. Practicals.
Learning verification modality	Oral exam.
Extended program	Introduction to plant breeding. Reproductive systems. Polyploidy in plants of agricultural interest; gametophytic and sporophytic self-incompatibility systems; genetic, cytoplasmic, genetic-cytoplasmic male sterility and their effect on plant breeding programs. Vegetative propagation; viviparous; apomeiosis, parthenogenesis and apomixis; prevalent self and cross pollination in crops; genetic structure of populations of self- and cross- pollinated plants. Plant breeding methods in self-pollinating plants: selection between ecotypes, mass selection, pure line selection, pedigree method. Single-seed descent method; backcrossing for transfering dominant allele or a recessive allele. Genetic improvement of cross-pollinated species; progeny tests; progeny tests for the assessment of suitability for general or specific combination; Selection between ecotypes; mass selection; phenotypic selection; constitutions of synthetic varieties; four-way, three-way, two-way hybrids; use of male-sterility in the production of hybrids; backcrossing for transferring of a dominant allele or a recessive allele. Advanced genetics and agriculture: GMOs and genome editing.

VEGETABLE PRODUCTION AND FLORICULTURE

Code	80099906
CFU	6
Teacher	Francesco Tei
Teachers	Francesco Tei Pietro Goglio (Codocenza)
Hours	45 ore - Francesco Tei 9 ore (Codocenza) - Pietro Goglio
Learning activities	Caratterizzante
Area	Discipline della produzione vegetale
Academic discipline	AGR/02
Type of study-unit	Obbligatorio (Required)
Language of instruction	Italian
Contents	This course provides element of field bulb cultivation, mushroom cultivation and glasshouse systems
Reference texts	Pardossi A., Prosdocimi Gianquinto G. , Santamaria P., Incrocci L (a cura di) (2018) Orticoltura. Principi e pratica, Edagricole, Bologna, pagg. 371. Accati Garibaldi E. (1993) Trattato di Floricoltura. Edagricole, Bologna. Accati Garibaldi E. (1985) Le piante fiorite in vaso. Edagricole, Bologna. Bianco V.V., Pimpini F. (1990) Orticoltura. Pàtron Editore, Bologna. Siviero P., Trentini L. (2006) Orticoltura. Dalle scelte varietali alle tecniche di coltivazione e difesa. Edagricole, Bologna. Tesi R. (1994) Principi di orticoltura e ortaggi d'Italia. Edagricole, Bologna. Tesi R. (2008) Colture protette - ortoflorovivaismo in ambiente mediterraneo . Edagricole, Bologna. Tesi R. (2010) Orticoltura Mediterranea sostenibile. Pàtron Editore, Bologna. Trentini L., Sitta G. (2001) Orticoltura specializzata. Edagricole, Bologna. Slides of the lectures.
Educational objectives	This course will allow the students: - to identify and analyse basic principles of the cultivation techniques in flower bulb and mushroom cultivation with particular emphasis on the impact on the environment and health of operators and consumers in order to define sustainable production schemes. -to identify and to analyse characteristics of the glasshouse systems.
Prerequisites	In order to understand and to be able to apply most of cultivation techniques described in the module, the student needs to have successfully passed an exam of Agronomy, so that he/she has got knowledge and competence on ecological factors affcting crop production (climate and soil factors) and on principal agronomical techniques (soil drainage, tillage, fertilization, irrigation, weed control, sowing, rotation and intercropping), and an exam of Nursery Technique, si that he/she has got knowledge and competence on glasshouses and plant propagation. The knowledge of these topics represents an indispensable prerequisite for the student who wishes to attend lectures and/or study at home and pass the exam.
Teaching methods	Lectures concerning all the subject of the course. Pactice in farms and crops: since these practices need to be carried out in the open field and concern most of the topics of the module, they will be organized in April-May. Based on previous years, three visits could be organized: 1) to a vegetable transplant production farm; 2) to the Field-Lab of the R.U. of Agronomy and Arable Crops of the DSA3 in Papiano and the the Farm of Casalina; 3) to a floriculture farm and a vegetable plant breeding research centre. Means to help teaching and learning: - Overheads, slides and videos - Technical and scientific papers - Reference Books Learning means (besides attendance to lectures): - Study on reference books - Reading of technical and scientific papers provided by the teacher - Practicing for technical abilities on field crops - Practicing for technical and professional abilities on hypotetical farm contexts.
Other information	The frequency of the lessons, although not compulsory, is deeply recommended because the integration of theoretical and practical lectures makes easier learning and ability of problem solving. Dr Pietro Goglio - Dept of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, Research Unit of Agronomy and Crop Sciences. Tel:075 585 6330 E-mail: pietro.goglio@unipg.it Assistance for students: Monday-Friday 9 - 13 or at any other time by an appointment to be fixed in due time by email or telephone.
Learning verification modality	The assessment of learning for this module will be carried out during the official exam, orally, by means of open questions and open answers on three topics of the program. The oral trial will allow to asses student's knowledge and comprehension of subjects and his communication skills with appropriate terms and autonomous organization and description of theoretical subjects. Moreover the trial will allow to assess the abilities of the student, i.e. his/her skills in applying his knowledge to solve practical
Extended program	-Crop management of bulb crop cultivation in both sandy and clay soil conditions. -Mushroom cultivation, characteristics and differences with other horticultural crops. -Glasshouse systems: temperature control systems, water management and radiation control.