Submitted to: Crop Science Society of America Monograph
Publication Type: Monograph
Publication Acceptance Date: August 10, 1999
Publication Date: N/A
Technical Abstract: The genus Lotus is found worldwide except for the very cold arctic regions and the lowland tropical areas of southeast Asia and South and Central America. Lotus corniculatus is, without doubt, the Lotus species considered to have the most agricultural importance and the widest distribution. Other species including L. glaber, L. uliginosus, and L. japonicus have earned recognition for their intrinsic value, too. Still, there are more than 175 other Lotus species that we know little about. This monograph is an outgrowth of the First International Lotus Symposium which was held at the Missouri Botanical Gardens in St. Louis, Missouri, in March 1994. The symposium was co-sponsored by the Crop Science Society of America. Many of those contributing to this book have dedicated a significant portion of their scientific careers discovering the secrets of this genus. Decades of scientific and casual observation with the Lotus spp., especially L. corniculatus, have generated a store of diverse, sometimes conflicting, information that needed to be centralized. It is with this intent that the authors agreed to contribute their energies toward this combined effort. Each chapter has been written by one or more specialists, who have given an authoritative account of the subject. Within these covers the reader will find chapters on taxonomy, genetics, germplasm resources, agronomy, pathology, physiology, and biotechnology.