Botany: Plants and People

Students will learn introductory plant biology in an interdisciplinary format. They will learn about plant anatomy, morphology, evolution, and systematics. As a learning community we will explore how form and function informs us about the evolution of major groups of plants such as mosses, ferns, conifers, and flowering plants. Lectures based on textbook readings supplement the laboratory work. Students will get hands-on experience studying plants under microscopes and in the field. Some previous experience with botanical illustration or drawing will be valuable but is not required. Students will maintain a detailed and illustrated nature journal focused on learning to identify deciduous trees and shrubs during the dormant season.

This program is designed to support learning about people's relationships with plants for food, fiber, medicine, and aesthetics. We will explore the subject through seminar texts, discussions, writing assignments, films, and lectures. Using a series of case studies, we will investigate the history of human relationships with various vascular plants, paying special attention to the cultural, socio-political and economic factors that shape those relations. We will consider the influence on ecosystems of increasingly globalized production since the rise of capitalism. Attention will be paid to the role of botanists, environmental activists, farmers, foresters, and others in shaping relations with plants. We will also investigate contemporary efforts to establish sustainable and ethical production and consumption.

Anticipated Credit Equivalencies:

4 - Introductory Plant Biology

5* - Cultural History of Plants

3* - Winter Twig Identification