Lecture 1
Introduction to Tropical Horticulture

Introduction to Tropical Horticulture

An introduction to the agriculture of the tropics and subtropics emphasizing horticultural crops.
The course covers aspects of tropical geography and ecology, as well as historical aspects of the tropics and subtropics.

COURSE OUTLINE - I. TROPICAL AGRICULTURE
Introduction to the Tropics
Theory of the Tropics
Tropical Climate
The Koppen Classification of Climates
Tropical Vegetation
Tropical Soils
Agricultural Potential of the Humid Tropics
Agriculture in Tropical Systems
Plantation Agriculture
Hacienda System
Agricultural Development in Tropical America
Tropical Forestry
Themes in Tropical Agriculture
World Population

II. MAJOR TROPICAL CROPS
Tropical Agr. Research
Weed Control & IPM
Coffee
Cacao
Tea
Rice
Sugar
Rubber
Oils
Oil palm
Coconut & Date
Cassava

III. HORTICULTURAL CROPS
Taro & Yams
Miscellaneous Starch Crops
Banana
Pineapple
Papaya
Citrus
Avocado
Misc. Fruit Crops
History of Spices
Spice Crops
Tropical Ornamentals
Overview

There are dramatically apposing attitudes towards the tropics, both anti- and pro-tropic sentiments:

fig. 1 fig. 2

Salubrious and balmy vs. Hot and steamy

fig. 3 fig. 4
fig. 5 fig. 6

Cruise ships, waving palms vs. Poisonous snakes & crocs

fig. 7 fig. 8
fig. 9 fig. 10

Resorts & retirement havens vs. Slums & shacks

fig. 11 fig. 12

Birth of civilization vs. Uncivilized

fig. 14 fig. 14

Green & bountiful vs. Starvation & malnutrition

fig. 15 fig. 16

Rich in flora vs. Monotonously green

Reality Check

It turns out that all of the above views are true.
This course will attempt to present a balanced picture of the tropics.
It is true, however, that the tropical world tends to be underdeveloped.
This course will try to develop answers to the following questions:

Why are the tropics poor?
Why is hunger endemic in the tropics?
What is the agricultural potential for the tropics?
What is the horticultural potential of the tropics?

The Tropics

Narrowly defined the tropics are those areas on the earth's surface between the Tropic of Cancer (23.5º N) and the Tropic of Capricorn (23.5º S).
The tropics represent:

36% of the earth's surface
20% of the land surface
43% of ocean surface

The tropics are winterless climates where the temperature differences between night and day are small but exceed be several times the difference between the warmest and coolest months.
Night is the winter of the tropics!

Tropical Climates

  1. Warm temperatures (winterless climates; lack of frost)
  2. Abundant rainfall:
    Distributed either equally throughout the year (tropical rain forest)
    Extremely high in one period (monsoon)
    3. Divided into a wet and dry seasons (tropical savanna)
  3. Daylengths close to 12 hours throughout the year (continual short days)

These conditions have a tremendous effect on the type of natural vegetation and influence the type of horticulture.

Characteristics of Tropical Plants

Short day plants
Colorful flowers attracting insects
Perennial (some grown as annuals in temperate climates)
Frost sensitive, some cold sensitive
Enormous plant diversity

Agricultural Problems of the Tropics

No break in the growing cycle; pests and diseases more intense
Leeched soils common
Excessive rain in Tropical Rainy and Monsoon climate
Dry season in Savanna climates requires irrigation
Short days and cloud cover restrict light
High night temperatures increase respiration

Tropical and Subtropical Crops

Tropical horticulture involves important well-known crops. Major crops covered in this course will include:

Beverage Crops
Fruits and Nuts
Starchy Root Crops
Industrial Crops
Grasses (rice & sugar)
Spices Ornamentals

Beverage Crops

 fig. 19
  Coffee
fig. 18 fig. 20
Cacao Tea

Fruits and Nuts

fig. 21 fig. 22 fig. 23
Avocado Citrus Banana & Plantain
fig. 24 fig. 25 fig. 26
Date Papaya Pineapple

Starchy vegetables

fig. 27 fig. 28
Cassava Sweetpotato
fig. 29 fig. 300
Taro Yam

Industrial Crops

fig. 31 fig. 32
Rubber tree Coconut

Grasses

fig. 33 fig. 34
Rice Sugarcane

Spices

fig. 35 fig. 36 fig. 39 fig. 40
Cinnamon Nutmeg
fig. 37 fig. 38
Clove Vanilla Ginger Pepper

Ornamentals

fig. 41 fig. 42 fig. 43
Orchids Plumeria Poinsettia
fig. 45 fig. 46 fig. 44
Philodendron Bougenvillia Streletzia

The Tropical World

The tropics is the region of the earth's surface lying between the Tropic of Cancer (23.5º N of the equator) and the Tropic of Capricorn (23.5º S of the equator).

fig. 17

The following countries are found in the tropics.

CONTINENT Country Capital Country Capital
AFRICA

AFRICA

 AlgeriaAlgiersAngolaLuanda
BeninPorto-NovoBotswanaGaborone
BurundiBujumburaCameroonYaounde
Central African EmpireBanguiChadN'Djamena
Congo RepublicMoroniDjiboutiDjibouti
EgyptCairoEquatorial GuineaMalabo
EritreaMassawaEthiopiaAddis Ababa
GabonLibrevilleGambiaBanjul
GhanaAccraGuineaConakry
Guinea-BissauBissauIvory CoastAbidjan
KenyaNairobiLiberiaMonrovia
LibyaTripoliMadagascarAntananarive
MalawiLilongweMaliBamako
MaurtaniaNouakchottMoroccoRabat
MozambiqueMaputoNamibiaWindhoek
NigerNiameyNigeriaLagos
Rhodesia (Zimbabwe)SalisburyRwandaKigali
Sao Tomé e PrincipeSao ToméSenegalDakar
Sierra LeoneFreetownSomaliaMogadishu
South AfricaCape Town, PretoriaSudanKhartoum
TanzaniaDar es SalaamTogoLomé
UgandaKampalaUpper VoltaOuagadougou
ZaireKinshasaZambiaLusaka
NORTH AMERICA

NORTH AMERICA

 United States (Hawaii)Washington, DC  
CENTRAL AMERICA

CENTRAL AMERICA

 BelizeBemopanCosta RicaSan Jose
El SalvadorSan SalvadorGuatemalaGuatemala
HondurasTegucigalpaMexicoMexico City
NicaraguaManaguaPanamaPanama
SOUTH AMERICA

SOUTH AMERICA

 ArgentinaBuenos AiresBoliviaLa Paz
BrazilBrasiliaChileSantiago
ColombiaBogotaEquadorQuito
French GuianaCayenneGuyanaGeorgetown
ParaquayAsunciónPeruLima
SurinamParamariboVenezuelaCaracas
WEST INDIES

WEST INDIES

 AntiguaSt. John'sBarbadosBridgetown
BermudaHamiltonCubaHavana
DominicaRoseauDominican RepublicSanto Domingo
GuadeloupeBassa-TerreGrendaSt. George's
HaitiPort-au PrinceJamaicaKingston
Puerto RicoSan JuanVirgin IslandsSt. Thomas
ASIA

ASIA

 BangladeshDaccaBruneiBandar Seri Begawan
BurmaRangoonCambodiaPhnom-Penh
Hong KongVictoriaIndiaNew Delhi
IndonesiaDjakartaLaosVientiane
MalaysiaKuala LumpurOmanMuscat
New GuineaPort MoresbyYemenAden
ChinaPekingPhilippinesManila
SingaporeSingaporeSaudia ArabiaMecca, Rujadh
TaiwanT'aipeiThailandBangkok
United Arab EmiratesAbu DhabiVietnamHanoi
Yemem Arab RepublicSan'a  
AUSTRALIA & PACIFIC OCEAN

AUSTRALIA

 AustraliaCanberra  
American SamoaPago PagoCaroline IslandsPonape
FigiSuvaFrench PolynesiaPapeete
Gilbert IslandsBairikiGuamAgana
Hawaiian Islands (U.S.)HonoluluNauruYaren
New HebridesVilaNiueAlofi
Pitcairn IslandsAdamstownSolomon IslandsHomaro
TokelauFenuafalaTongaNuku alofa
TuvaluTongafaleWallis and FutunaMatautu
Western SamoaApia  

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