Introduction to Horticulture

1. Introduction to Horticulture

2. Importance of Plants • As a table, determine what the top five crops (in terms of amount produced) are in Minnesota.

3. Importance of Plants • Corn is the Minnesota’s most valuable crop followed by soybeans. • Farmers also grow hay, sugar beets, wheat, barley, flaxseed and oats. • The leading vegetable crops are peas, potatoes and sweet corn. • Minnesota's leading fruit crops are apples.

4. Importance of Plants • Name five uses of these crops: • Corn • Soybeans • Sugar beets • Hay • Apples

5. Who’s Line is it Anyway? • Roles of a Plant

6. The Importance of Plants • Without plants, life on earth could not exist • Plants are the primary source of food for humans and animals

7. Plants most important Roles • Edible plants • Whole plants or portions of plants, such as seeds and fruits, are used as a food source for many types of animals, including humans. • Important food plants are the grains of the grass family (wheat, rice, corn, sorghum, and barley). • About 88 percent of the world’s total caloric intake and about 80 percent of its protein intake comes from plant food sources.

8. Plants most important Roles • Industrial uses • There are several important products produced from plants, such as wood, fibers, oils, and rubber. • Fibers that are used in textile manufacturing come from cotton, flax, and hemp plants. • The wood from timber production is used to make furniture, homes and many other products. • Many chemicals such as acetic acid, methanol, and turpentine are obtained from trees.

9. Plants most important Roles • Medicinal uses • Scientists continue to study many different types of plants to try and understand the various chemical compounds found within them. • Many people believe that the key to curing many of our most deadly diseases such as cancer and AIDS may lie within some yet undiscovered plant compound.

10. Plants most important Roles • Oils • Many plants store oil as a food reserved in the seeds and fruits of the plant. • Most of these plant oils are used in the production of food for humans, but some are used in industry. • The soybean is the most significant oil plant. • Others also play an important role in plant oil production such as coconut, sunflower, peanut, cottonseed, and rapeseed.

11. Definitions • Horticulture: The processing, cultivation, and sale of fruits, vegetables, nuts, ornamental plants, and flowers. (Garden Cultivation: Latin) • 2 Types: Ornamental and Food Crop

12. Definitions • Food crop horticulture: Growing plants for food. • Pomology: The science and practice of growing, harvesting, handling, storing, processing and marketing fruit trees • Olericulture: The science and practice of growing, harvesting, storing, processing and marketing vegetables.

13. Definitions • Ornamental horticulture: Growing and using plants for their beauty. • 3 Areas: • Floriculture: The science and practice of growing, harvesting, storing, designing, and marketing flowering plants. • Foliage: The stems and leaves of the plant. • Landscape and Nursery Industry: The science and practice of propagating, maintaining, and using grasses, annual plants, shrubs, and trees in the landscape. • Interiorscaping: Using plants inside buildings to create an attractive indoor environment

14. Definitions • Forestry: The science of growing trees and producing wood products. • Tree farms: Cultured forests that have been carefully planned, established and maintained.

15. Definitions • Field Crop: Plants grown in large fields and are used for oil, fiber, grain, and similar products. (Ex: corn, wheat) • Agronomy: A specialized area of plant science that deals with field crops. Agronomy includes the relationship between plants and the soil.

16. Review: $ 10,000 Pyramid • Get into groups of 3 • Wait for instructions