BO 120 - Field Botany & Plant Taxonomy

3 Credits

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Identify and describe local plant communities and the native flora associated with each community within sub regions.
2. Analyze the vegetation appearance, composition, stratification, and growth form within plant communities in order to classify vegetation in regard to physiognomy.
3. Relate and predict species composition to its ecological setting, and describe plant and community relationships to climate, water regime, landform, soil, wildlife, and man’s activities.
4. Classify and differentiate living organisms on the basis of Whittaker’s five Kingdom system and compare the basic life forms in each with emphasis on the Plant Kingdom.
5. Explain primary functions of and distinguish between the forms of plant morphology such as roots, stems, leaves, flowers, and fruits.
6. Demonstrate the techniques of collecting and preserving plant specimens by constructing a plant collection.
7. Present well written, informative, and concise field notes.
8. Demonstrate use of a taxonomic field guide by classifying and identifying plant specimens through keying and plant morphology.
9. Describe and recognize plant families common to the Parkland and Boreal Forest natural regions.
10. Memorize Latin names and demonstrate understanding of the significance of using binomial nomenclature in plant classification.

Johnson, D., Kershaw, L., MacKinnon, A., & Pojar, J. (2017). Plants of the western forest: Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba boreal and aspen parkland. Partners Publishing and Lone Pine Media Publications (BC) Ltd. Edmonton, AB.

Kershaw, L and L. Allen. 2022. Vascular Flora of Alberta: An illustrated Guide. 4^th ed. (hardcopy only, electronic not acceptable for lab activities).

Resource information shared in D2L.

Required Field Equipment:

Field Journal - Rite in the Rain All-Weather Field No. 351 (available at bookstore; waterproof pen optional)

Plant press* (borrow from Lakeland College,)

*The plant press is the property of Environmental Sciences and must be returned by mid-semester. The date is discussed in class. Failure to return the plant press by the predetermined date results in a potential withholding of marks by the instructor.

Hand pruners (available in bookstore or bring a pair from home).

Suitable clothing for the field including rainwear and rubber boots. Warm coat, hat, and gloves are essential for outdoor activities. Proper footwear must provide ankle support and have gripped bottoms.

Hand lens (available at bookstore).

Highly Recommended:

Harris, J.G., and M. Wolf Harris. 2001. Plant identification terminology: An illustrated glossary. Spring Lake Publishing, Spring Lake, Utah. (please note the 1994 version is acceptable).

Pojar, R., and E. Coulson. 2010. Trees and shrubs in winter. An identification guide for Northern British Columbia. Creekstone Press Ltd., Smithers, BC, Canada. p. 182.

Tannas, K. 2004. Common plants of the Western Rangelands. Vol. 3 Forbs. Olds College, Olds, Alberta. Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, Edmonton, Alberta.

 

Optional Resource Materials:

Other References

ACIMS. 2017. Alberta Plant Species List App.

Dickinson, R., and F. Royer. 2014. Weeds of North America. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois; London, England.

Hale, G. et al. 2005. A field guide to common riparian plants of Alberta. Cows and Fish, Lethbridge, Alberta. 63 pages. (small handbook useful for wetland plants).

Stern, K.R., J.E. Bidlack and S. Jansley. 2014. Stern’s introductory plant biology. 13th ed. McGraw Hill, New York, NY.

Tannas, K. 2003. Common plants of the Western Rangelands. Vol. 1. 2^nd ed. Grasses and grass-like species. Olds College, Olds, Alberta, Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, Edmonton, Alberta. (Great resource for forb identification).

Tannas, K. 2003. Common plants of the Western Rangelands. Vol. 2. 2^nd ed. Trees and shrubs. Olds College, Olds, Alberta. Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, Edmonton, Alberta. (great resource for all trees and shrubs in province).

Vitt, D. H. 2017. A guide to mosses and liverworts of Alberta Peatlands. 2^nd ed. Nait Boreal Research Institute, Peace River, AB.

Conduct of Course:

This 74-hour course consists of 42-hours of lecture and 32 hours of laboratory work. The instructor discusses this time allocation as it relates to your timetable and expected hours of homework.

The lecture component is a formalized lecture situation where student questions and participation are encouraged to clarify subject areas. Handouts, Desire 2 Learn (D2L) content, and assigned readings may supplement lecture and are considered part of the course content. Students should come to class prepared to discuss previous lecture and lab material and activities. Review of lecture content weekly is advised. Lectures support the lab by clarifying field methods and providing background information. Lecture and lab material complement each other and should be used to complete assignments, the plant collection, and prepare for exams.

Labs are conducted weekly in the field for the first five weeks for site inventory, collection, and identification of plant specimens. Field labs are a critical component of the course for collecting plant specimens and field observations for the plant collection project. Weekend field day(s) are held, if needed, to collect plants for the plant collection, or may occur on a different weekday in lieu of the assigned lab due to weather or transportation challenges. As well, students are required to collect specimens on their own time to complete the plant collection, as needed. Students who study plants prior to the field lab and prepare by reading the lab procedure complete tasks in the allotted time period. Although every effort is made to complete field labs on time, field labs may go past the allotted time period due to travel time or student efficiency, while other labs may be completed earlier than the allotted time.

Labs will be held indoors after the field portion has been completed and will occur biweekly. Your instructor will discuss the specifics of these latter labs and how this will fit into your timetable.

Labs are held regardless of weather and students must be prepared for adverse field conditions. This includes consideration of proper footwear and clothing, sunscreen, insect repellent, and food and water. Students are also responsible for bringing proper field equipment to the lab including the field journal, field guide, plant press, bags, pruners, and lab procedure. The remainder of the labs are in a classroom setting and focus on developing the skills required to use a taxonomic key for plant identification. Students are expected to be punctual and prepared for labs on a weekly basis and must bring the required materials to complete the lab activity.

Exams are conducted in the time provided for students during lecture and/or lab or on D2L. One lab exam is delivered in the evening to accommodate delivery of the exam to many students in a larger classroom. Some assignments are in class assignments that must be completed in the time provided.

Being punctual for lab and lecture, regular attendance, participation, and good to excellent time management skills by the student is an integral part of student success in this class.

Plant study nights are held, and students are highly encouraged to participate in this activity to help with identification of plant species that will be on the plant ID exam.

Classroom and laboratory attendance is considered vital to the learning process and as significant to the students’ evaluation as examinations and reports, therefore absenteeism is recorded.

1. Students having a combination of excused and/or unexcused absence of 20 percent or higher for the scheduled course hours can be required to withdraw and would then automatically receive a “RW” (required withdrawal) for the course, regardless of any other evaluation results. (RW is a failing grade).
2. An excused absence is one that is verified with your instructor. Verification should be prior to the absence or the next class day following the absence. Verification of the absence may take the form of a note from your doctor/College nurse regarding illness, or a note from another instructor regarding a field trip or other activity, or authorization by your instructor following an in-person meeting. Be sure to contact your instructor and ask what they will require from you as verification of each absence. An unexcused absence is anything NOT verified by the instructor prior to the absence or the next class day following the absence.

It is the students’ responsibility to know their own absentee record.

Normal hours are 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., with potential for evening courses, exams, or extended field trips. Students are expected to be available for classes during these times.

Content of Course:

Lectures:

Note that the order of delivery of lecture content may be switched in order to compliment lab activities. Some material may be delivered on D2L.

Unit 1. Introduction to Field Botany

Unit 2. Vegetative Plant Morphology for Spot Identification

Unit 3. Advanced Identification and Morphology of Taxonomic Groups, Growth Forms and Species

Unit 4. The Science of Botany: Application and Ecological Value

Unit 5. Vegetation Physiognomy

Unit 6. Advanced Morphology of the Angiospermae

Unit 7. Plant Taxonomy and Classification

Unit 8. The Plant Kingdom: The Seedless Vascular Plants

Unit 9. The Plant Kingdom: The Seed Producing Vascular Plants

Laboratory Topics:

Note: The order of laboratory topics shown does not necessarily reflect the order given of labs and may change due to weather and field conditions, as well as lab scheduled holidays. Some lab topics will be combined if necessary to effectively deliver the content in a timely manner.

1. Getting to know plants: introduction into plant morphology, growth forms and collecting plants. This lab is completed independently using D2L and is to be completed prior to the first field lab when possible. Content will be reviewed in lab and lecture but students who complete the activity will be prepared for the first and subsequent field labs.
2. Parkland Natural Region: north facing woodland: description of community related to ecology, growth forms, physiognomy, and species composition; collection of plant species.
3. Parkland Natural Regions upland and south facing slope native grassland - description of community related to ecology, growth forms, physiognomy, and species composition; collection of plant species.
4. Parkland Natural Region - weeds and agronomic crops - description of community related to ecology, growth forms, physiognomy, and species composition; collection of plant species. (self-directed study and lab collection)
5. Parkland Natural Region - pond - description of community related to ecology, growth forms, physiognomy, and species composition; collection of plant species.
6. Boreal Forest Natural Region - peatland and upland forest - description of community related to growth forms, ecology, physiognomy, and species composition; collection of plant species.
7. Parkland Natural Region- woodland - Identification of common native trees and shrubs in their winter form; Plant Identification exam on woodland species.
8. Introduction to keying and using the Vascular Flora of Alberta.
9. Keying of a variety of species using the Vascular Flora of Alberta from the Angiospermae (may include families such as Asteraceae, Onagraceae, Brassicaceae, Fabaceae, Plantaginaceae, Labiatae, Liliaceae, Rosaceae) Gymnospermae subdivisions (Pinaceae, Cupressaceae) and Pteridophyta Division (Equisetaceae). These labs develop the skill of keying and promote the understanding of plant taxonomy, classification, and nomenclature. Identification of woody plants in their winter form is also developed.
10. Keying lab exam

 

Course Assessments:

Midterm and final lecture exams may contain any or all of short-answer, true-false, multiple choice, illustrative, matching, and discussion questions. Material for the written exams is based on lecture and lab content and any other associated materials provided. The final exam is not cumulative. Formative non-graded exercises are periodically provided which give students a higher level of competence in the course material if completed. The grade referred to as “Assignment (s)” is comprised of two or three small activities that provide competency in material associated with the plant collection. Some of these assignments may be evaluated on D2L.

The plant collection and field book are an intensive documentation and preservation of plants studied in the field labs and represent a significant part of the course evaluation. The student is required to identify specimens from field labs and through independent collection, preserve the specimens in a formalized manner, and document plant and ecosystem information related to the specimen. All components of this evaluation with due dates are discussed in detail in class. Students are encouraged to work weekly on the collection which is due in November.

Lab exams involve plant identification and keying. The first lab exam is a short plant identification exam and is held early in the semester to provide practice and comfort with plant identification station exams. A second comprehensive plant identification exam occurs later in the course and focuses on plant identification skills developed throughout the term. This exam is delivered in the evening. Plant identification tutorials are held and although optional, students are highly encouraged to take advantage of this learning tool. A final lab exam at the end of term focuses on keying skills developed in the second half of the course in the lab and is held in the regular allotted lab time period.

In order to receive full credit for this course, consider the following:

• The plant collection is an important part of the course and a significant learning component. If not handed in, an incomplete or fail will result for the course. Therefore, all field labs must be attended in the required time slot. An absence excused or unexcused could result in a zero for the plant collection or, at the very least, a zero is assigned to that part and any related part of the plant collection. Students are responsible for communicating with the instructor with regards to absences that may occur.
• A student who does miss a lab (excused or unexcused) is expected to make up that lab in consultation with the instructor. If the lab cannot be repeated, an additional or different assignment may be assigned to the student who misses the lab.
• The importance of attendance cannot be overstated. In order to receive a mark for any assigned and completed work due or handed in during that lecture or lab, students must be in attendance. Students who are absent during in-class assignments are not typically allowed to make up these exercises for marks but may be required to complete them for learning practice.
• The student must receive a 50% or better for the overall course evaluation.
• Late assignments are given a zero, although the plant collection will have 25% deducted per day from the grade unless otherwise noted. The evaluation is shown below:

All due dates of evaluations are provided in class at the beginning of the term.

All assignments and exams are graded on a percentage (%) basis. Then, a total course percentage is calculated using the above weighting values. Finally, the total course percentage is converted to a letter grade basis using the following scheme:

Course Pass Requirements:
A minimum grade of D (50%) (1.00) is required to pass this course.

Students must maintain a cumulative grade of C (GPA - Grade Point Average of 2.00) in order to qualify to graduate.