Plant Sciences 220
Basic Landscape Plants
Fall 2004 Syllabus
Instructor:
Dr. Gary L. McDaniel
Office:
267 Ellington Plant Science Building
Phone:
974-7324
e-mail:
glm@utk.edu
Office Hours:
Please call Ms. Patty Ridings at the above telephone number for
appointments.
Lecture/Lab:
9:40-10:55 AM, Tuesday and Thursday
Location:
OHLD Greenhouse 11 classroom.
Course Web Site:
http://online.utk.edu
You may obtain an Online account at: http://online.utk.edu/account/
This website will provide you with general announcements and other
important course information.
Required Text:
Supplemental
Resources:
Manual of Woody Landscape Plants. Michael A. Dirr. 5th Edition
(1998), Stipes Publishing.
In addition to the classroom notes and required textbook, two additional
resources are available for your review of the plants being studied in this
class. The following websites will assist you in learning to identify the
plants covered:
http://utgardens.tennessee.edu/ohld220/ Plants are listed both by
common and scientific names for ease in locating them. Images are
shown for most of the plants covered, but additional ones are added as the
seasons progress.
AgVetMed Library Reserve. Go to:
http://www.lib.utk.edu/%7Ereserve/student/student_handout2.html
Follow directions shown here, “Start at the UTK Library Catalog at
http://www.lib.utk.edu:8000/utk.html” This takes you to UT Library
Catalog search menu. Click on the AgVet Library button at the bottom
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of the screen. In the new screen, select the department that offers the
course you want to view (in this case it is Ornamental Horticulture and
Landscape Design. Press GO. Now, select the course you want to obtain
reserve materials from (OHLD 220). Press GO.
You will now see two files that you will be able to access: Plant List A-J
and Plant List K-Z. These files contain PowerPoint presentations of the
individual plants covered in class. They are listed alphabetically by the
Scientific names. Before you may access these files, you will be asked to
provide your User Name and Password. Once you have entered, you will
see an Adobe Acrobat page that lists the plants in this reserve file. Click
the icon on the left of the plant you wish to look at and PowerPoint will be
activated with that presentation. In order to use these resources, you will
need to be able to view Adobe Acrobat (available at the original website
above) and PowerPoint (Part of Microsoft Office suite). These were taken
from the following website: http://www.orst.edu/dept/ldplants/ This is
an excellent plant material identification site and it will be used until the
220 site is completed.
Purpose:
The primary objective of this course is to enable the student to identify by
scientific and common name about 150 species and/or varieties of
ornamental trees and shrubs that are most often used for landscaping
purposes in the southeastern United States (climatic zones 6, 7, and 8).
You will also be introduced to other related subjects such as: plant growth
requirements, taxonomic and botanical terminology, and basic uses of the
plants in landscape designs.
Responsibilities:
Students will be expected to develop understanding and skill in the
following areas:
1. Identification of selected tree and shrub species on the basis of leaf,
stem, fruit, flower, dormant twig, bark and whole plant characteristics.
2. Correct usage of scientific names and terminology to describe plant
species.
3. Basic knowledge of ornamental characteristics and environmental
adaptability of important native and introduced plant species relating
to their use in specific landscape situations.
4. Ability to obtain cultural and descriptive information on plant
materials from literature and other resources.
Class Tests:
Nine plant identification quizzes will be given beginning the second full
week of classes. Each quiz will consist of 17 to18 newly presented plants
to identify. Quizzes will also be cumulative, meaning that plants from
previous quizzes will also be included. Each quiz will be worth 200
points. Each individual’s best 8 quizzes (of the possible 9) will count
toward the final grade. No make-up quizzes will be given under any
circumstances during the regular class calendar. However, for those
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students who have missed more than one quiz and have had excused
absences, a make-up exam could be arranged for the final exam period
scheduled in the Timetable. This must be arranged for in advance and
approved by the instructor. This final make-up exam will be cumulative
and will include plant material in its current condition (without leaves,
fruit, or flowers for example). This quiz may be used to replace a missed
quiz only and may not be used to replace a previous low quiz score.
Quiz Schedule:
Plant Identification quizzes will be held during classes on:
August 31
October 26
September 9
November 4
September 21
November 16
September 30
November 30
October 12
Final Exam December 9 (10:15-12:15)
Plant Walks:
Plant walks are required and taken during most class periods to learn to ID
plant material in the field. Dress properly for the weather each day and
bring your plant list to check off new plants. Be prepared for inclement
weather; so bring pencils (ink will run when wet) and an umbrella on
those days. While it may be tempting to take samples of the plant material
as they are presented, this practice is highly discouraged by the instructor.
Many of the plant specimens are either very small or are found in
locations where taking samples is not appropriate. Students will need to
go to the landscape locations of the specimens to study them. It is
suggested that students either purchase (UT Bookstore) or borrow a 10X
eyepiece for use in locating identifying characters of the plants.
Grading:
A  90, B+ = 87 - 89, B = 80 – 86, C+ = 77 –79, C = 70 –76, D = 60 – 69,
F < 60; All tests are of equal value (200 points total each); if your scores
are: 154 + 174 + 168 + 182 +159 + 192 + 108 + 182 + 178, then your total
would be = 1497 for the nine regular quizzes. If the lowest score of 108 is
dropped, the total is 1389 out of a possible score of 1600. The percentage
earned is 1389/1600 = 86.8 = 87 and your course grade would be a B+