What are the 4 main branches of horticulture?

Horticulture is the science, art, and business of growing plants and flowers. Horticulture is the general term that includes plant cultivation, plant breeding, plant genetics, plant nutrition, plant physiology, plant pathology, and plant protection. This article will be discussing the basics of horticulture and what are the four main branches of it.

What are the 4 main branches of horticulture?

The four main branches of horticulture are the following:

• Plantation Crops
• Floriculture
• Pomology
• Olericulture

These four branches of horticulture are further divided into four sub-branches, which are plant propagation, plant production, plant renovation, and plant science.

What is horticulture?

The word horticulture originates from the Latin word “Hortus”, which means “garden.” Horticulture is the cultivation and care of plants. This can be done by humans or by animals.

Horticulture is the study of gardening, agriculture, and plant cultivation. It is the art and science of growing plants in an area of natural or artificial conditions. It is the growing of plants for their useful fruits, flowers, vegetables, nuts, and fibers.

Horticulture and gardening come hand in hand. Gardening is a fun, rewarding, and popular hobby that everyone can participate in, and it’s also a booming industry. 

Whether you want to grow vegetables, flowers, or even your own food, you can be a part of this wonderful hobby. If you’re looking for something to do with your family, gardening is a great way to bond as well. 

The best part is that you can learn as you go, so gardening doesn’t have to be intimidating. Horticulture, on the other hand, is more of the scientific study of plants and the ways they are farmed and grown. 

Horticulture, as the rearing of plants and crops, typically with the intention of producing food, flowers, or other crop products, encompasses a branch of plant science which is botany. 

This field of study is most commonly applied to the growing of fruits and vegetables, but can also refer to the tending of bulbs, seeds, mushrooms, scrubs, herbs, and other plants.

Horticulture is considered to be one of the most important economic sectors worldwide with a global turnover of around $1 trillion since it’s the science of growing plants in order to make their flowers, fruits, and vegetables, and to protect their health and natural environment, as well as the science of growing plants for the purpose of food and medicine, and also for beauty.

Horticulture is also the agriculture for aesthetic or recreational purposes of flowers, plants, and garden crops. Cultivating these also includes their genetic improvement and protection from pests and diseases. It also involves the production of cut flowers, bedding plants, and vegetables, as well as the growing of fruits, nuts, and berries. 

It is also the rearing of trees and woody plants that are grown primarily for the production of wood, fruit, nuts, and ornamental or building material. Horticulture may also refer to the growing of plants on a small scale in gardens or indoors.

In the broadest sense, horticulture includes plant breeding, cultivation, horticultural biotechnology, plant physiology, plant pathology, plant breeding, and management of plants for landscaping and ornamental purposes. 

There are four main branches that makeup horticulture: agriculture, floriculture, pomology, and olericulture. There are also many sub-branches in each of these main branches.

What is Plantation Crop?

Plantation Crop or plantation agriculture is the art and science of cultivation of crops that are perennial commercial crops on an extensive scale. These crops include Tea, Coffee, Rubber, Cocoa, Sugarcane, Bananas, Coconut, opium, sisal, oil seeds, oil palms, fruits, rubber trees, and cotton. 

These plantation crops are usually characterized by the soil and climate specifically in tropical and subtropical zones or areas. This branch of horticulture is an interface between agriculture and industry because this is a type of agriculture wherein a single crop is cultivated in a specific area large enough to grow enough resources for materials and edibles it produced for a whole year-round.

What is Pomology?

Pomology is an interdisciplinary branch of horticulture and botany that deals with fruit and nut crop growth and cultivation. Pomology is an important science because it provided us with information, some have been passed down while some have been enhanced, on how to cultivate fruit trees which are not easy to rear and demand specific handling that depends on their varied species. 

All in all, pomology is the science of producing and marketing seed-bearing fruit that grows on woody perennial plants such as trees, vines, and bushes for various purposes.

What is Olericulture?

Olericulture is the science of vegetable growing. It is a branch of horticulture that specifically deals with vegetable crops and other non-woody or herbaceous plants for food storage, cultivation, production, processing, marketing, and other frameworks. Olericulture also focuses on nutriment that is mostly produced yearly, although some continual are regarded as vegetables too.

What is Floriculture?

Floriculture is a branch of horticulture that deals with flower crops and ornamental cultivation, propagation, plant care, and marketing for the maximum production of flowers and flower buds. Floriculture is the art and science of growing, caring for, and displaying plants for aesthetic and psychological purposes.

The objective of floriculture is generally to work on the plant so it yields bigger buds, more bountiful buds, and ideal blooming times since a whole cultivating range is outfitted towards understanding and working on all parts of bud and blossom creation, including nursery needs, plant nourishment, water system, greenroom necessities, and reproducing new buds.

Having a floriculture objective means having areas of strength for an ideal blossom reap time period, pruning, and post-gardening tasks, for example, stockpiling and bundling of bloom heads, buds, and different pieces of the plant.

Conclusion

Horticulture is the practice of gardening, landscaping, or agriculture. This includes all gardening practices and activities, including gardening, landscaping, and agriculture. It includes the study, production, and use of plants for food, fiber, medicinal, and decorative purposes. The four main branches of horticulture are agriculture, floriculture, olericulture, and pomology.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): what are the 4 main branches of horticulture?

What are the four classifications of horticultural crops?

The four classifications of horticultural crops are the following:

• Fruits: Mango, Banana, Pineapple, Sapota, etc.  
• Spices: Black pepper, Turmeric, Ginger, Cloves, etc.  
• Plantation crops: Coconut, Arecanut, Cocoa, etc.  
• Vegetables: Tomato, Brinjal, Chilli, Onion, etc.

What are the three major importance of horticulture?

Since Horticulture is the cultivation, propagation, and care for crops that are a source of variability in farm produce and diets, these are its three major importance:

• They are a source of nutrients, vitamins, minerals, flavor, aroma, dietary fibers, etc.
• They contain health-benefiting compounds and medicines
• These crops have aesthetic value and protect the environment.

Who is the father of horticulture?

Dr. Chadha is appropriately assigned as the ‘Father of Modern Horticulture being the master of this field.

Reference:

Chadha, K. L. (2001). Handbook of horticulture. Handbook of horticulture.

Acquaah, G. (2008). Horticulture: principles and practices (No. Ed. 4). Pearson education, Inc.

Adams, C. R. (2012). Principles of horticulture. Routledge.

Fundamentals of Horticulture: Branches of Horticulture. Retrieved from http://ecoursesonline.iasri.res.in/mod/page/view.php?id=148108 

Gardening Know How: What Is Pomology – Information About Pomology In Horticulture https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/fegen/what-is-pomology.htm

Gardening Know How: What Is Olericulture: Information On The Science Of Vegetable Growing https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/vgen/science-of-vegetable-growing.htm