Book Review 28
Review
Title: The Lentil: Botany, Production and Uses
Author(s):
Editor(s): William Erskine, Fred J. Muehlbauer, Ashutosh Sarker and Balram Sharma
Publisher: CABI
ISBN 13: 9781845934873
Published: 2009
Pages: 468
Cost: $190
Rating (1-5): 5
Submitted By: Noaman, Maher Mohammed
Date posted: January 28, 2010
An outstanding source of scientific information and knowledge about lentils.
Lentil is a major international pulse crop (5 million ha harvested in 2007). However, lentils fall well behind the major cereal and oilseed crops in planted areas as well as behind the other pulse crops such as peas, chickpeas, and beans. Yields tend to be low (global mean of approximately 0.8 t per ha over the last 15 years) with 95% of the crop rain grown. Lentil production in the developing world is relatively static, while the population in South Asia, where most lentils are consumed, has been rapidly increasing. The major world player in lentil exports is Canada. Lentils do have some significant health benefits, mostly related to their high protein content, which is higher than beef. Lentil is among the earliest of humankind’s domesticated plants and is associated with the start of the "agricultural revolution" in the Near East. Lentils are now produced across the dry areas of the globe and in the Old World. They play an important role in human, animal, and soil health improvement. The lentil’s ability in nitrogen fixation improves soil nutrient status, which in turn provides sustainability in crop production systems. The lentil has an ancient origin but is now confronted with issues of food security, poverty, water scarcity and the need to find sustainable agricultural systems in a changing climate. The lentil has a great potential to use water more efficiently and grow in marginal environments than many other field crops.
This book The Lentil: Botany, Production and Uses consists of 26 chapters and about 75 contributors of about 16 countries from various disciplines and origins. It provides a comprehensive review of current lentil research, and performs as a "knowledge platform" for further advances.
The introductory chapter of the book states that during the past three decades, the global area under lentil cultivation has grown by more than 70%. Global production has increased by nearly 160%, partly because of the increase in cultivated area, but more prominently because productivity has dramatically increased by almost two-thirds.
The book delineates improvements in production elements such as water and soil nutrient management, cropping systems, agronomy, mechanization, and weed management. Developments in molecular research, genetics, and breeding are also discussed thoroughly along with the knowledge of the lentil’s origin, domestication, and adaptation. It also includes precise scientific information about the plant’s botany, morphology, anatomy, genetic resources, seed quality, and disease and insect resistance. The implementation and impact of this new research at the farm level is also addressed as well as the crop’s post-harvest processing and nutritional and health values.
The book is an outstanding source of scientific information and knowledge about lentils and can be widely used by the scientific community (universities, research centers, and institutes) as well as by those who are interested in nutrition and food health research. It also provides a knowledge base for the productivity gains needed for potential food security and is fundamental for breeders, agronomists, and researchers in the fields of crop science, plant science, and sustainable agriculture. It is appropriate for the academic, research, consulting, and end-user communities, and can be utilized by undergraduate and graduate students as a valuable text book.
The book is written by a global team of expert authors presented in a user-friendly format making it equally available to a wide array of readers.