Introduction to Horticulture

Horticulture

Word first used in 1600’s Comes from two Latin words

Hortus “Garden” Cultura “Cultivation”

Horticulture means “cultivated garden” or “culture of garden plants” NOW MUCH MORE…

Life Sciences

Biology is the branch of science that deals with both plant and animal organisms and life processes. Zoology is the part of biology that

deals with animals. Botany is the part of biology that

deals with plants.

Horticulture

The science and practice of growing, processing and marketing fruits, vegetables, and ornamental plants.

Agronomy

The science and practice of growing field crops such as cotton, wheat, tobacco, corn and soybeans.

Branches of Horticulture

Olericulture The growing and study of vegetables.

Pomology The growing and study of fruits and nuts.

Viticulture The growing and study of grapes or

vines. Floriculture

The growing and study of flowers.

Branches of Horticulture

Greenhouse Management The growing and study of plants in

greenhouses. Turfgrass Management

The growing and study of turfgrasses. This includes home, municipal, and commercial lawns; sports turf maintenance; highway rights-of-way; and seed and sod production.

Branches of Horticulture

Nursery Management The growing and study of trees and

shrubs that are produced primarily for landscape purposes.

Arboriculture The growing and study of trees. Known as silviculture in forestry. Synonymous with urban forestry.

Branches of Horticulture

Landscape Horticulture The application of design and

horticultural principles to placement and care of plants in the landscape.

Interiorscaping The application of design and

horticultural principles to placement and care of plants in indoor environments.

Branches of Horticulture

Horticultural Therapy The use of horticultural plants and

methods as therapeutic tools with disabled and disadvantaged people.

QUESTIONS?

Hypothesize - TPS

Where did horticulture begin? Where will the history of

horticulture originate? Who invented it?

History of Horticulture

“Garden of Eden” Romanticized garden of paradise. Ultimate goal throughout history.

History of Horticulture

Prehistoric people were primarily…. Hunters and

gatherers. Collected seeds,

fruits, and nuts.

History of Horticulture

Primitive people began to study plants. Is it edible? Does eating it modify well-being? Does it taste good? Can it used to keep me warm? As

fuel? As clothing? Is it useful to combat pain? Disease?

History of Horticulture

When were plants first cultivated? Neolithic Age

(7000 – 10000 years ago)

First farmers were women!!!!

History of Horticulture

By 3000 B.C. in Egypt Land preparation Irrigation Pruning

History of Horticulture

Meanwhile in Mesopotamia, Babylonia, and Assyria….. Irrigation canals lined with burnt brick and

sealed with asphalt joints. This system kept 10,000 square miles

under cultivation….. Which fed 15,000,000 people

Cultivated roses, figs, dates, grapes, and olives.

History of Horticulture

Hanging Gardens of Babylon

Built by Nebuchadnezzar.

One of 7 Wonders of the Ancient World

History of Horticulture

Eventually people began asking questions such as….. How do they grow? How do they reproduce? How are they constructed? How are they nourished? How are they related to one another? How are traits passed from one

generation to the next?

History of Horticulture

Meanwhile, back in America…… The Pre-Incas

were cultivating maize (corn)

Hypothesize - TPS

What other crops were Native American’s

growing?

History of Horticulture

Other Indian crops included…… Potatoes Sweet potatoes Peppers Squash Tomatoes Cocoa

History of Horticulture

The use of plant products eventually led to physicians, pharmacists, and scientists.

History of Horticulture

Theophrastus 1st scientific

horticulturist Student of Plato

and Aristotle Wrote the books

History of Plants and The Causes of Plants.

History of Horticulture

History of Plants Morphology of roots, flowers, and leaves. Anatomical features such as bark, pith,

fibers, and vessels. The Causes of Plants

Relationship of weather, soils, and agricultural practices.

Importance of seeds Value of grafting Tastes and flagrances of plants Death of plants

History of Horticulture

Dioscorides Early Christian Era Wrote about the

medicinal uses of plants

Proposed ideas about the relationship of plants

History of Horticulture

Middle Ages Little advancement in horticulture Arabs (established botanical gardens) Scientific advances of Greeks and

Romans were preserved in monasteries.

History of Horticulture

Renaissance Rebirth of energetic attention to

scientific discovery. Taxonomy, morphology, and anatomy

branches of botany began to grow. More and more plants were

discovered due to exploration which required a system of classification.

History of Horticulture

Linnaeus (1707-1778) Swedish botanist. Developed binomial

classification scheme for plants.

Based on their sexual or flowering parts.

Basis for all classification systems today.

Built upon the work of the Greeks, especially Dioscorides.

History of Horticulture

As the Renaissance evolved…… Creation of formal

Gardens Versailles Belvedere in

Vienna

History of Horticulture

Improvements in fruit, nut, and vegetable production.

Influx of new plants from “the colonies”. Some of these plants

became mainstays of European diets.

Horticulture in America

When the Europeans arrived they brought seeds, cuttings, and plants. Orchards were established

Crops brought to America Oranges Wheat Cabbage

Horticulture in America

Early horticulturists in America John Bartram George Washington Thomas Jefferson John Chapman

aka. Johnny Appleseed

Horticulture in America

New life in horticulture Morrill Act of 1862. Established land-grant

universities. Encouraged the growth

of agricultural knowledge.

Horticulture in America

Liberty Hyde Bailey (1858-1954) “Father of American Horticulture” Educated at Michigan Agricultural

College Present Day Michigan State University

Then was a professor at Michigan Agricultural College and at Cornell University.

Horticulture in America

Established the 1st horticulture department

Prodigious Writer Hortus

Taxonomic index of horticultural plants. Cyclopedia of Horticulture

Cultural and taxonomic information of plants.

Horticulture in America

Established the Bailey Hortorium. “things of the garden”

Established the (ASHS) American Society of Horticulture Science in 1903.

Modern Day Horticulture

New Cultivars Plant-Water

Relationships Temperature Light Plant Nutrition

The Rhizosphere Integrated Pest

Management Plant Growth

Regulators Mechanization Post Harvest Factors