Field Crops Cereals
| Code | School | Level | Credits | Semesters |
| BIOS3045 | Biosciences | 3 | 10 | Autumn UK |
- Code
- BIOS3045
- School
- Biosciences
- Level
- 3
- Credits
- 10
- Semesters
- Autumn UK
Summary
Plant structure and methods of quantifying morphological development and the sequence of apex differentiation from vegetative to reproductive. Influence of the environment on development, growth and yield formation. Crop improvement through breeding. Production strategies for the major grain cereals grown in contrasting environments with particular emphasis on factors controlling yield and quality.
Target Students
BSc Agriculture; Agricultural and Crop Science;Agricultural and Livestock science;International Agricultural Science with Industrial Year;Agricultural Business Management; BSc/MSci Plant Science/Biology students.
Classes
- One 3-hour practicum each week for 2 weeks
- One 2-hour lecture each week for 7 weeks
One half day per week throughout the semester to include formal lectures (approximately 22 hours), seminars, class exercises and field work.
Assessment
- 100% Exam 1 (24-hour): Open-book Online Assessment
Assessed by end of autumn semester
Educational Aims
This module is designed to provide an analysis of the production of cereal crops. Emphasis will be placed on understanding production strategies for the major grain cereals, with particular emphasis on factors controlling yield and quality. The structure and function of the Gramineae will be presented and the influence of the environment and management practices on crop growth and development examined. This understanding will be used to show how the management of different cereal crops can be optimised to meet the requirements of specific environments and end-uses.Learning Outcomes
Knowledge and Understanding - to learn of:
1. The principles governing the environmental and management factors that influence cereal production and the commercial applications of these principles in agronomy.
2. Key features of development and growth (vegetative and reproductive) of cereal crops and their responses to the environment.
3. An understanding of the reasons for yield and quality variation from site to site and from year to year.
4. An appreciation of how growers utilise information on development and growth of cereal crops to optimise management strategies in a given situation.
5. A range of relevant practical techniques and methodologies and their uses, together with appropriate procedures for evaluation of relevant agronomic data sets.
Intellectual Skills - the ability to:
1. Critically evaluate current research and advanced scholarship in cereals agronomy and production literature
2. Analyse data sets systematically and precisely and interpret them accurately and effectively.
3. Integrate information selectively from a variety of sources on environment, crop development and growth and management inputs to predict performance of cereal crops.
Practical/Professional Skills - the ability to:
1. Collect plant data according to standard protocols to compare measurements of crop development and growth against benchmarks to make informed management decisions.
2. Use electronic library resources, print systems and the Internet to access information from a wide range of sources.
3. Use management guidelines predictively, recognising the importance of agronomic and physiological influences on decisions.
4. Present in a range of written formats data and interpretation of this to a standard and format consistent with that as accepted by the professional crop science community.
Transferable/Key Skills - the ability to:
1. Communicate effectively in written, verbal and visual forms, including efficient presentation of data (tables v. figures) as in scientific papers.
2. Objectively compare experimental results with the scientific literature.
3. Critically integrate information from a wide range of sources, including the Internet and other learning resources, to advance to synthesize concepts and advance their own knowledge base.
4. Act independently in planning and implementing tasks.