Canberk Ozturk

In the recent years, the looming food scarcity problem has highlighted plant sciences as an emerging discipline committed to devise new strategies for enhanced crop productivity. The major factors causing food scarcity are biotic and abiotic stresses such as plant pathogens, salinity, drought, flooding, nutrient deficiency or toxicity which substantially limit crop productivity world-wide.

By way of providing a context for this work, some thoughts and explanations are provided here regarding the background to the subject mater. First, a consideration of the term ‘peasantry’ is offered, as its significance cannot be assumed as unproblematic. Essentially, a dual analysis is suggested of narrow and wide meanings, the latter of which is invoked in contemporary discussion. There then follows a historical narrative focusing on the rural issue in Turkey.