Agricultural Biology - Post-Diploma Certificate in Agricultural Production and Technology (SDAA)

About This Course

This module aims to equip students with the knowledge of the fundamental role of plants in nature and their application to agriculture and management. Students will study plant biology that encompasses plant morphology, function, growth, and development as well as their relationships with other organisms and the physical environment. They will study plant physiology and post-harvest physiology and examine how the plant responds to biotic stresses such as bacterial, fungal, and viral pathogens, nematodes and pests, abiotic stresses such as heat, drought, salinity flooding etc. Students will also study crop cultivar development through the application of crossbreeding and selection, and the use of advanced breeding technologies in the development of breeding schemes leading to the release of improved crop varieties and cultivars. They will be given an overview of the impacts of gene action, heritability, and genotype x environmental interactions on the outcomes from breeding and selection. The module will introduce students to the mechanisms for the interaction between plants and soil, nutrition from soil and a symposium on nutrient deficiency. The knowledge of plant tissue culture and its application methods of producing genetically modified crops will be presented.