Botany Lesson One
In this activity you will explore the variety of plants on campus
by following the directions below.
1. Be sure to visit each site, read the information, and answer the
question in bold lettering before moving on.
2. Room C-8 has lots of reference information to help you answer the
questions.
3. When you have completed the treasure hunt, turn your assignment
into your folder.
Botany / Horticulture
Lesson 1
Name _______________________
1. Start at the flag pole in front of the school. Observe the plants
in the immediate area. Plants are roughly divided into 3 groups; herbaceous
plants (those plants with a green stem such as grasses, wildflowers,
and ivy), shrubs (woody bark, multiple stems, 2-10 feet tall), and
trees (bark, single stem, tall).
In the space below write a description of 1 herbaceous plant, 1 shrub,
and 1 tree in the immediate area. Include what the stems look like,
whether it has leaves or needles, approximate size, shape, color,
smell.
2. Walk directly west (toward where the sun sets) through the new
security gate and into the courtyard to the second tree. Trees are
divided into 2 groups; broadleaf (trees with leaves, some of which
generally drop in the fall), and coniferous (cones and needle-like
leaves that stay on the tree year round). The tree you're looking
for is the coniferous one with scale-like needles. This is an Incense
cedar (Calocedrus decurrens), and is a very rot-resistant wood commonly
used to make pencils.
Find a cone and make a quick sketch (hint; look on the ground
under the tree
if you can’t see one on a lower branch). What is the main difference between
this tree and the first tree you passed?
3. Continue west (towards the ‘Rock’) and go up the wheelchair
ramp and walk straight ahead to the third concrete pillar (just outside the
counselor's office door). The plant closest to the pillar is Oregon's state
flower. In certain seasons, it will have nice yellow flowers and purplish berries
that are edible but tart.
What is the name of this plant? Bonus points for the scientific name.
4. Walk over to the area behind 'The Rock' and check out the trees arranged
along the front of the gym area. These are all deciduous trees.
What is an obvious difference between these trees and the conifer you visited
in #1?
5. Go south towards the steps leading to the outdoor picnic tables. Stop and
look at the tree just to the left of the steps. This tree is partially covered
with moss and lichen. Examine the organisms growing on the trunk of this tree.
Try to determine the difference between the moss which is a plant and the lichen
which is not. Use
resources available to you in the classroom and write a description of a typical
moss and a typical lichen, what are the main differences?
6 . Enter the building and then exit the building down the hallway labeled
F43-F58. Go out the door at the end of the hallway, turn left and walk
down the sidewalk to the next set of stairs. The shrubs on both sides
of the stairs are all rhododendrons (Rhododendron macrophyllum) . They
are 'evergreen', the state flower of Washington, and a common native
shrub in Pacific Northwest forests.
A. What does evergreen mean? B. What is happening at the tips of
each of the branches? C. What is the purpose of the structures that
are developing there?
7 . Continue walking north along the sidewalk to the birch trees with
white bark.
A. How would you describe these unusual trees? B. What are the fuzzy
things hanging down from the branches?