Thursday, April 18, 2019

Spring 2019 Plant ID First Session Outline


Plant ID Class 2019
First Session
1.      Why ID
a.      Culture and Conditions
b.      Family ties
c.      To know
d.      Herbal research
e.      To eat or not to eat.
2.      A short and Eurocentric history of Botany
a.      Shamans and healers
b.      Greece
c.      China
d.      Rome
e.      The Renaissance
f.       The age of enlightenment
g.      The age of empire
h.      The age of the internet
3.      A botanist’s tools
a.      Loop
b.      Plant press
c.      Dissecting scope
d.      Outdoor gear
e.      Camera
f.       Benadryl
4.      A botanist’s resources
a.      Plant structure ID guide
b.      A working knowledge of the families they are dealing with.
                                                    i.     Knowledge of any unique structures of the families, genus and species they are dealing with.
c.      A flora (online or not) pertinent to the plants in question.
d.      A field guide (if necessary).
e.      Familiarity with Boolean search logic.
f.       Familiarity with Google search, particularly Google image search.
g.      Various taxonomy web sites.  
5.      A down and dirty look at the tree of life.
a.      Taxonomy
b.      Cladistics
c.      Hierarchy vs. Clade

6.      Plant Structures
a.      Plant type or habit
                                                    i.     Tree
                                                   ii.     Shrub
                                                  iii.     Vine
                                                  iv.     Liana
                                                   v.     Perennial
                                                  vi.     Biennial
                                                vii.     Herb
                                               viii.     Annual Herb
                                                  ix.     Forb
                                                   x.     Bulb
b.      Leaves
                                                    i.     Leaf Arrangement
1.      Alternate vs. Opposite
2.      Compound leaves
a.      Odd vs. Even Pinnate
b.      Bi and Tri-pinnate leaves.
                                                   ii.     Leaf Attachment
                                                  iii.     Petiole
                                                  iv.     Stipules
                                                   v.     Leaf Shapes
                                                  vi.     Palmate vs. Lobed
c.      Flowers
                                                    i.     Petals, Sepals, Tepals
1.      Fused vs. Separate
                                                   ii.     Calyx vs. Corolla
                                                  iii.     Bracts vs. Petals vs. Leaves
                                                  iv.     Ovary position
                                                   v.     Carpels
                                                  vi.     Stamen vs. Pistil
                                                vii.     Anther
                                               viii.     Pollen Sack
                                                  ix.     Sexuality
1.      Dioecious v. Monecious
2.      Unisexual vs. Bisexual
Selected Families


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