Climate change and its impact on vegetables Baskaran R*, Bharathikumar K, Sundahariah K Regional Research Station, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Vridhachalam, District Cuddlore, 606001Tamil Nadu, India *Email for correspondence: rbaski73@gmail.com
Online Published on 20 December, 2022. Abstract World population is increasing at an alarming rate and is expected to reach about 9.1 billion by the end of year 2050. Vegetables are protective foods embedded with vitamins, micronutrients, pharmaceutical and nutraceutical compounds which are necessary for correction of diseases and disorders. Moreover, cultivation of vegetables provides livelihood security through employment. Usually extreme temperatures, limited soil moisture, reduced availability of irrigation water, repeated flooding, increased acidity or salinity, soil erosion, high wind speed, increase in occurrence of hails and thunderstorms, frost damage and tsunamis etc are the major limiting factors for optimum productivity besides the quality and consumer acceptance. Sudden change in climate also influences the status of soil fertility, occurrence of pests and diseases, host-pathogen interactions, soil microbial population and behaviour of the pollinators. Reduced production and productivity due to the development of genetically weakened seeds are the ultimate outcome of climate change which may invite a crisis in food reserve in the future. Hence, there is a need to develop an understanding of the impacts and implications of climate change on vegetable cultivation for timely intervention to ameliorate its harmful effects. Top Keywords Climate change, Vegetables, Impact. Top |