BOTANY 101
Chapter 1: An Introduction to Botany
History:
Botany: the scientific study of plants
and their relationships
Plants affect virtually everything we
do in the world
Humans have relied on plants for
survival and pleasure for centuries
Plants are the basis for many
national and world economies
Here are some common uses for plants today:
Clothes and fabrics
String, rope and paper products
Lumber
Furniture
Medicines and explosives
Musical instruments and sports equipment
Resins, synthetics, paints, rubber, soaps,
oils, waxes, dyes, adhesives and plastics
Food and most of our drinks
Plants can also be problems:
clog rivers, crop pests, allergies and
poisons
The Unifying Theme of Botany
Plants share several important features:
1. Plants consist of organized parts
2. Plants exchange energy with their
environment
3. Plants respond and adapt to environment
4. Plants reproduce
5. All plants share a common ancestry
The Scientific Method
Botanists, like any scientists, use the
Scientific Method to answer various
questions in their field; such as:
How are plants constructed?
How do plants work?
How did plants get here?
Why are plants important to the world?
What exactly is a plant?
The Scientific Method
The scientific method is an investigative process used
to study the natural world and collect facts.
Steps:
1. Make Observations
2. Ask Questions
3. Form Hypotheses
4. Make predictions
5. Perform Experimentation (tests)
6. Analyze and Interpret results
7. Form a conclusion / revise if necessary
Qualities and traits of the scientific method!
- involves critical thinking at every step
- deductive reasoning (if . . . then logic)
- open mindedness
- comparisons
- objective vs. subjective
- quantitative vs. qualitative
- it is not foolproof
- must be testable
- must be falsifiable
- always adds new information
Also, some discoveries involve luck and
creativity.
Everyone uses the scientific method!
Observations
Questions Abduction
Hypotheses
Experiments Deduction
Observed result Expected result
Conclusion
Major Plant Structural Divisions
1. Roots = grows towards ground (positive gravitropism)
2. Shoots = grow towards the sky (negative gravitropism)
3. Reproductive
Major Plant Organs (vascular plants)
1. Roots
2. Stems
3. Leaves
4. Flowers (in flowering plants only)
Plant Taxonomy (identification)
Mainly vascular plants dominate our ecology
>than 300,000 species
Represent a closely related line of descent
Evolved from algae ~ 450 million years ago (mya)