Online Botany Course

COURSE STRUCTURE 

The course is divided into 10 lessons as follows: 

1. Taxonomic Classification of Plants 

2. Cells and Tissues 

3. Specific Vegetative Parts of a Plant 

4. Flowers and Fruit 

5. Seed and the Developing Embryo 

6. Photosynthesis and Growing Plants 

7. Respiration 

8. The Role of Water 

9. Movement of Water and Assimilates through a Plant 

10. The Effects of Tropisms and Other Growth Movements 


AIMS 

On succesful completion of this course, students will be able to: 

· Understand the relationship between the scientific principles of this unit and horticultural practices 

· Demonstrate a knowledge of the Plant Kingdom and understanding of the taxonomic hierarchy 

· Identify and describe the different types of plant cells and tissues, their structure and function 

· Determine the role and function of specific vegetative parts of the plant 

· Determine the role and function of the reproductive parts of the plant 

· Demonstrate an understanding of the role and function of the seed in the life cycle of the plant 

· Explain the mechanism and the role of photosynthesis in the metabolism of plants and relate to plant growth in controlled environments 

· Explain the mechanism and the role of respiration in the metabolism of plants 

· Demonstrate an understanding of the role of water in the plant 

· Review the movement of water, solutes and assimilates through the plant 

· Understand the effects of tropisms and other plant movements on growth and development 

· Undertake risk assessments relevant to the learning outcomes in this unit 


WHAT YOU WILL DO IN THIS COURSE 

During this course, students will: 

· Prepare a collection of forty pressed, dried, labelled plants 

· Learn how to key out plants using a Botanical Key 

· Identify the phyla, family, genus and species of ten unknown plants 

· Identify modified plant parts on live plants 

· Describe in botanical terms leaf shapes from a range of different plants 

· Dissect and draw labelled diagrams of several flowers 

· Collect fruits and categorise them by type (pome, drupe, etc) 

· Germinate seeds and describe changes that occur to the seeds over time 

· Observe changes in potted plants under varying levels of sunlight and relate this to photosynthesis 

· Observe transpiration in live plants and relate this to theoretical knowledge 

· Observe and record osmosis in an experimental situation 

· Observe and record phototropism in plants