PCP 101: INTRODUCTORY PLANT PHYSIOLOGY (2 Units)

Nature of living organisms; Plant nutrition, elements and their functions; Uptake of nutrients; Sources of metabolites; Chemosynthesis and photosynthesis; Cycles of raw materials (nitrogen cycles); Respiration; Method of elimination of waste material of production in plants; Plant hormones; homeostasis, osmoregulation in plants; Reproduction (sexual and asexual); Growth and development, patterns of growth, factors affecting growth, flowering and fruit growth; Enzymes (properties/characteristics, composition, types, mechanism of action, estimates of rates, inhibitors).

 

 

PCP 191: BASIC PLANT PHYSIOLOGY PRACTICAL (1 Unit)

Use and handling of the compound microscope (examination of the microscope, setting up of the lower and higher power, using the microscope, depth of the field and optical section, examination of objects under the microscope); Plant cell: basic cell structure, plant anatomy and morphology, Cell division: mitosis and meiosis; Plant growth analysis: hormones and growth regulators, Bacteria, Fungi, algae, bryophytes, pteridophytes, angiosperms, Movement of ions and molecules into and out of cells, Stomata, Enzymes, Test for carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids; determination of water potential, detection of starch in leaves.

 

 

PCP 201: PRINCIPLES OF CROP PRODUCTION (3 Units)

History of agriculture and its relationships with other sciences. Agricultural ecology: ecosystem and distribution of vegetation and animals. Cropping systems, tillage practices – conventional, minimum, no-tillage. Farm tools and machinery, farm buildings and structures. General  production practices of field crops. Derivation and  characteristics of the common varieties of cereals, grain  legumes and pulses, roots and tuber species, plantains and bananas.  Insect orders and diseases of economic importance in crop production in the tropics. Seed viability, dormancy, germination testing. Crop propagation: seed and vegetative. General role of extension in crop production.

Practicals: Identification, usage and maintenance of farm tools and machinery.  Identification of seeding materials of arable crops propagated by seed, sett, stem, vine, root, sucker corms and cormel and rhizomes etc. Methods of seed viability  testing. Dormancy: causes and how to overcome them. Identification/collection  of weed, insects and plant diseases of economic importance. Field practices on various cultural management practices: land preparation, seeding, weeding, insect control fertilization, harvesting etc.

 

 

PCP 202:  ANATOMY, TAXONOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF

AGRICULTURAL PLANTS (3 Units)

Classification of Agricultural Plants, Divisions: Phyla, class, order, family, genus, species.  Microscope and its use; plant cell structures and organelles. Development of cells and tissues; comparative anatomy of major plant organs. Enzymes. Seed germination and dormancy. Respiration and energy balance of crops. Photosynthesis, translocation and assimilate distribution in relation to yield determination. Water relations. Plant growth substances and their role in crop production.

Practicals: Use of microscope: plant cell structure and organelles. Root, stem, leaf, anatomy of dicots and monocots. Growth curve and growth analysis. Data analysis and interpretation.

 

 

PCP 301:  CROP PRODUCTION I (3 Units)

Manures and fertilizers. Fertilizer usage.  Mineral nutrition of  crop plants and deficiency symptoms.  Maintenance of soil fertility.  Agronomic groupings of crop plants and their characteristics: cereals, legumes, root crops, tuber crops, forage crops, oil crops, fibre crops, beverage crops, sugar crops, fruit and vegetable crops, rubber, cover crops and stimulants.  Crop management practices: site selection, land preparation, seeding, fertilizer application, weed, insect and disease management, harvesting, processing, utilization and produce storage for arable and plantation crops.  Ecological distribution of crops in Nigeria. Farming system, cropping systems and cropping patterns.  World, African and Nigerian food production problems and potential solutions.  Climatic, economic and social conditions affecting crop distribution and growth. Water requirement of crop plants: hydrophytes, mesophytes, xerophytes.

Irrigation: types, purposes, methods and problems.

Practicals: Fertilizer identification and calculation. Crop seed identification. Seed structure and vegetative morphology of cereals, legumes, fibres, root and tuber crops.  Identification of some diseases, weeds and insect pests of some crops. Effects of light on plant growth. Effects of varying moisture levels on plant growth.

 

 

PCP 501:  METHODS OF FIELD EXPERIMENTATION (2 Units)

Logic, scientific methods, deductive and inductive reasoning. Essential steps in experimentation: definition of problem, objectives, treatments, experimental material selection.  Guides in outlining a proposal on applied research project.  Title, problem definition, objectives, materials and methods, plot layout diagram, work schedule, data sheet, yield sample diagram. Log frame.

 

 

SOURCES OF VARIATION IN FIELD EXPERIMENT

Experimental designs: Completely randomized , randomized complete block, latin square, split plot designs. Single and factorial experiments. Analysis of variance from such designs. Data interpretation and conclusions based on the F- Test on data analyzed.  Mean and standard deviation, standard error, Least significant difference, Duncan multiple range test.

Correlation and regression. Non parametric statistics and their application: Chi-square, normal curves and T- test.  Writing reports of experiments (project report and journal articles)

Practicals: Visit to selected farms and cropping system experiments.. Identification of different cropping patterns. Interactions with selected farmers.

 

 

PCP 503: FARMING SYSTEMS (3 Units)

Concepts, definition and classification of farming systems. Factors determining farming systems: physical, biological and socioeconomic. Characteristics of the small- scale tropical farming systems.  Nomadic, shifting cultivation, fallow rotation, permanent cultivation, ley farming etc. Intercropping, mono-cropping, sole cropping, sequential cropping, relay cropping, strip cropping. Important crop based farming systems: lowland rice-based, upland cereal-based, root crop – based , small – scale mixed farming, irrigated small-holder farming, small holder farming with plantation (perennial) crop – based, and agroforestry. Farming systems research: descriptive and prescriptive.

 

 

PCP 504 PLANT GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT (2 Units)

Seed germination and dormancy.  Juvenility and senescence. Translocation and respiration in crops; role of environmental resources. Water and water stress in plants. Light and solar radiation, role of plant nutrients. Photosynthesis, plant growth and partitioning of assimilate. Yield limiting factors and yield components. Growth regulators – auxin, gibberellins, cytokinins etc. Plant growth and measurements.  Growth analysis: relative growth rate, net assimilation rate, leaf area index. Plant development: roles of plant organs like leaf, stem roots, flower, fruits and seeds.

 

 

PCP 505:  CROP PRODUCTION II – ARABLE (3 Units)

Botany of arable crops. Crop cycle, crop culture (propagation, climatic and soil requirements, fertilizer, pests, diseases, cultivars): handling, utilization, storage, economic importance and distribution of specific crops; cassava, yam, cocoyam, potato, maize, sorghum, millet, rice wheat, cowpea, soybean groundnut cotton, jute, sunflower. Factors affecting yield. Pests, diseases and weed control. Crop improvement practices for the listed crops.

Practicals: Propagation methods, cultivation practices for cassava, yam, cocoyam. Pest and diseases control in leguminous crops – cowpea, soybean etc. Improved varieties.

 

 

PCP 506:  WEED SCIENCE AND CONTROL (2 Units)

Weed definition, biology, classification, reproduction and economic importance.  Mechanism of Weed Seed dissemination, prolificity, survivability, persistence and colonization. Seed viability, dormancy, germination, adaptability to environment growth and feeding habits.

 

 

Parasitic weeds.

Weed management: Prevention, eradication and control.  Methods of weed control: cultural, chemical, biological and integrated.  

Herbicides: Classification, formulation, methods of application, dosage calculation, application equipment and their calibration for uniform and adequate delivery of herbicides, herbicide handling and disposal, assessment of herbicide performance.  Weed control in crop and non-crop situations, cereals, legumes, vegetables, fibres, root and tuber crops, landscape, road-side, estate, aquatic environment etc.

Practical:  Weed predictive index determination:  Weed seed types and population in soil bank, collection, classification and identification of weed types.  Herbicide application, weed seed germination and weed control experiments.  Calibration of sprayers, classification of herbicides. Field application of herbicides. Movement of herbicides in soil.

 

 

PCP 508:  PLANT NUTRITION  AND WATER RELATIONS (2Units)

Historical perspective of plant mineral nutrition. Criteria of essentiality of elements. Role and functions of element as constituents of metabolites and complexes, activators, cofactors or regulators of enzymes, elements involved in physiological processes. Ecological aspects of plant mineral nutrition. Nitrogen fixation. Properties of water, concept of water potential. Water relations of whole plant. Factors controlling rate of water uptake and movement.

 

AGS 597: SEMINAR I (1 Unit)

 

Literature review/special topics

 

AGS 598: SEMINAR II (1 Unit)

 

Post-data seminar:  project reports

 

AGP 599: PROJECT (4 Units)

 

Project submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the B. Agric. Degree.