Introduction:

Watch the introductory video from Darrin Kimbler, Horticulture and Agriculture Educator for UW-Madison, Division of Extension Iron County.

Botany is the science of plants, including the structure and function of their parts and the environmental factors that affect their growth. While horticulture is the art and science of producing, using, and maintaining ornamental plants, fruits and vegetables, botany helps us understand plant structures and functions in order to grow healthy plants. Botany is also useful when plants are unhealthy. In this module, you will learn the anatomy, structure, and functions of plants. Learning about botany helps build your foundation of knowledge in Integrated Pest Management (IPM).

Objectives:

After completing the reading in the manual, online module, and class activities, you will:

• Identify the following plant parts: leaves, stems, roots, meristems (growing points), flowers, nodes, and internodes;
• Give examples of the functions of the following plant parts: leaves, stems, roots, meristems (growing points), flowers;
• Define the following plant processes: pollination, germination, photosynthesis, respiration and evapotranspiration;
• Identify environmental factors that affect plant growth and what each factor does for plant growth;
• Identify correctly used plant nomenclature (scientific names, common names);
• Identify plant life cycles (annual, perennial, biennial);
• Differentiate a monocot from a dicot using leaf venation, seed leaves and floral parts.

Read:

• Chapter 1: Botany, Pages 1-28

Watch:

• Presenter: Mike Maddox, Outreach Program Manager for the Master Gardener Program.
• FYI: These videos were created for Master Gardener Volunteer training and are used with permission for Foundations in Horticulture.
• There are three required videos for a total view time of 16 minutes.

Practice:

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Supplemental Materials:

• The Amazing Process of Photosynthesis (Video, ~5 minutes)
• Online Botany Exercises from North Carolina State University Extension
• Field Identification of 50 Most Common Plant Families for Temperate Regions, Rutgers University (PDF, large file)
• Botany Primer, National Phenology Network Education & Engagement Series 2015-001 (PDF, large file)