Learning objectives
The course will give to the students information concerning production of herbaceous crops and in farm transformation of the products and fruits, both for fresh consumption and for storage and industrial transformation.
Prerequisites
Plant Biology
Course unit content
The course of Herbaceous Food Plants deals with the plants that are at the basis of human nutrition, with special reference to species and productions object of food technologies. The studied species are:
Cereals: Wheat, Rice, Maize, Barley, Sorghum, Buckwheat, Oat, Rye, Secalotriticum, Quinoa.
Grain legumes: Soybean, Bean, Pea.
Starch plants: Potato, Sweet potato.
Vegetables: Tomato.
Sugar plants :Sugarcane, Sugar beet.
Oil plants: Sunflower, Canola (oilseed rape), peanut.
For each species the considered aspects are:
Botany -morphology, anatomy, physiology of food plants, with special reference to the parts utilised as food, and to the processes leading to their formation on the plant;
Genetics - Origin and distribution of species, subspecies and cultivars, and their characters of hardiness and quality;
Cultivation - Prevailing agricultural techniques, and their effects on quantity and quality of productions;
Transformation and storage - In farm or site techniques adopted for conditioning and preserving products.
Full programme
The course of Herbaceous Food Plants deals with the plants that are at the basis of human nutrition, with special reference to species and productions object of food technologies. The studied species are:
Cereals: Wheat, Rice, Maize, Barley, Sorghum, Buckwheat, Oat, Rye, Secalotriticum, Quinoa.
Grain legumes: Soybean, Bean, Pea.
Starch plants: Potato, Sweet potato.
Vegetables: Tomato.
Sugar plants :Sugarcane, Sugar beet.
Oil plants: Sunflower, Canola (oilseed rape), peanut.
For each species the considered aspects are:
Botany -morphology, anatomy, physiology of food plants, with special reference to the parts utilised as food, and to the processes leading to their formation on the plant;
Genetics - Origin and distribution of species, subspecies and cultivars, and their characters of hardiness and quality;
Cultivation - Prevailing agricultural techniques, and their effects on quantity and quality of productions;
Transformation and storage - In farm or site techniques adopted for conditioning and preserving products.
Bibliography
Powerpoint presentations and other material made available on the Faculty's website or given to the students during lessons.
Baldoni R., Giardini L., 2000 - Coltivazioni erbacee.Patron, Bologna (vol. I e II)
Rehm S., Espig G., 1997 - La coltivazione delle piante tropicali e subtropicali. Edagricole, Bologna
Rinallo C., 2005 - Botanica delle piante alimentari. Piccin.
Teaching methods
Lecture and farm visits
Assessment methods and criteria
Written exam
Other information
No.
