Crops, Physiology and Environment

The abiotic environment (light, temperature and wind, CO2 concentration, drought and salinity) strongly influences plant growth and crop production. In this course the focus is on key concepts relating the functioning of plants to their abiotic environment. Crop production and plant growth is described by mathematical equations to enable the quantification of effects of environmental conditions. These concepts are relevant for both open field and greenhouse cropping systems and examples are taken from both systems. Students will learn to comprehend meaningful integrated concepts that combine knowledge from plant physiology and environmental sciences. These concepts aim to better understand the complexity of plant-environment systems and ultimately can be used to develop new hypotheses for research and for practical applications in crop production.
Keywords: light, temperature, CO2 concentration, plant growth analysis, photosynthesis, biomass production, biomass partitioning, yield component analysis, potential and water limited plant growth, concept map.

• Understand relationships between plant growth and their abiotic environment and crop physiological aspects relevant for crop production

• Identify key components of and conceptualise complex systems

• Explain and develop concepts that are key to an understanding of various areas of environmental plant physiology based on knowledge on elementary Chemistry and physics

• Understand the meaning and importance of parameters and concepts in plant and crop growth: e.g. RGR, NAR, LAR, light interception, light use efficiency, biomass partitioning [sink strength, functional equilibrium], water use efficiency

• Argue and make calculations for (key processes in) crop growth and yield, based on the above mentioned parameters and concepts

• Understand what reasonable values are for important parameters and for simulated outcomes of plant growth models

• Assignment other (5%) Participation is based on practical/tutorial hand-ins, after validity period the student needs to take the course again.
• Written test with open and closed questions (65%) Final accumulative exam, resit in resit period.
• Written test with closed questions (15%) Mid-term exam week 4, after validity period student has to take the course again.
• Assignment oral presentation (15%) Group size 3 to 4 students, after validity period student has to retake the course.

ZSS06100 Laboratory Safety PPH10806 Structure and Function of Plants

• Course syllabus + specific chapters from 2 textbooks: Plants in Action (plantsinaction.science.uq.edu.au/edition1/) and Plant Physiological Ecology (www.springer.com/us/book/9780387783406)