Plant and Crop Modelling

The aim of this book is to present the ideas, methods, and recent applications of mathematics to plant and crop physiology, so that plant scientists may learn how to express their physiological ideas mathematically. The text is designed for self-study with exercises with worked solutions. In many areas of biology it is now accepted that mathematics is often the appropriate language for describing ideas and hypotheses quantitatively. Mathematics and computers allow us to investigate the consequences of complexity in a way that has not hitherto been possible. Models can be constructed that provide a valuable understanding of complex systems, and sometimes lead to tools for delivering technology, making recent research results available to those concerned with the environment and farm management.