SUNFLOWER EXPERT SYSTEM

                                     (The systems are under preparation and we are providing a model of the system)

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ABSTRACT

   Sunflower is an important oil seed crop with high oil yield per unit area and excellent oil quality containing more of unsaturated fatty acids. The crop is photo-insensitve, drought tolerant and of short duration making it an ideal choice for multiple cropping systems. It can also be grown in all types of soils at anytime of the year. The crop was introduced into the country in the late 1960’s to supplement the traditional edible oil seed crops and is a good contingent crop for late kharif and regular crop for rabi and summer seasons. Seed yields of the crop are low primarily because of cultivation of low yielding varieties, poor plant stand, improper soil and nutrition management, low seed set and onslaught/incidence of insect pests and diseases.

The use of quality seed of high yielding varieties/hybrids, shallow planting maintenance of optimum plant stand, light irrigation, supplementary hand pollination, spraying of boron and avoiding of insecticidal sprays at the time of flowering, adoption of integrated pest management measures, protection from bird damage and harvesting of the crop at physiological maturity will aid in improving the crop yields significantly.