Studypool: @laceyair
INTRODUCTION TO BOTANY
BOTANY
● The scientific study of plants.
● Also known as plant biology.
PLANT BLINDNESS
● This is a phenomenon where people
tend to underappreciate the flora
around them.
● This can also be the inability to see
or notice the plants in one's own
environment.
● This can have disastrous
consequences not only for the
environment but also for human
health.
PLANTS MAKE US HAPPY
● People at work who can see
plants report significantly greater
job satisfaction than those who
can’t.
FACTS ABOUT PLANTS
● Plants are photosynthetic. The
idea of being photosynthetic is to be
able to get energy. Plants are able
to convert the energy of the sun
and convert it to sugars.
● Not all plants are photosynthetic,
some are parasitic, which means
that they can get their food from
other types, sources, or other
mechanisms.
● Plants are eukaryotic. Just like
human cells, plants also have a
nucleus and mitochondria.
● Plants are multicellular organisms.
Their basic unit of life is composed
of cells, tissue, and organs.
● Plants contain chloroplasts with
chlorophyll A and B.
● They have cellulosic walls.
● Plants are sessile. This means
plants don’t move from point to
point. Although they can move by
responding to stimuli, they know
where to move their roots, where the
sun is, and where the other plants
are.
● Not all parts of plants
photosynthesize. Some examples
are the roots and ground tissues.
● Plants produce embryos.
PLANTS ARE AMAZING ORGANISMS
● Rafflesia arnoldii - Largest flower
(~1m)
● Pinus longaeva - Longest living
(~5000 years)
● Sequoiadendron giganteum -
Largest organism (>100m)
WE COULD NOT LIVE WITHOUT PLANTS
● Plants produce most of the
oxygen we breathe.
● Plants produce most of the
chemically stored energy we
consume as food and burn for fuel.
● Plants produce an amazing
assortment of useful chemicals.
PLANTS CAN PRODUCE AN
ASSORTMENT OF CHEMICALS
● Vitamin A
● Vanillin
● Vitamin C
● Caffeine
● Morphine
WHY DO WE STUDY PLANTS?
● To help conserve endangered plants
and threatened environments.
● To learn more about the natural
world.
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Studypool: @laceyair
● To better harness the abilities of
plants to provide us with food,
medicines, and energy.
SUBDISCIPLINES OF BOTANY
1. Plant Molecular Biology
● Structures and functions of important
biological molecules (proteins,
nucleic acids).
● Central Dogma of Molecular
Biology
○ Transcription - Conversion
of DNA to mRNA.
○ Translation - Conversion of
mRNA to protein.
○ Traits are inside the DNA
which can be seen inside
the nucleus of a cell.
○ DNA needs to become a
protein to do its job.
○ Genes are edited on the
DNA level, not on the protein
level.
○ DNA template will be
converted into mRNA or
messenger RNA.
○ RNA & Protein = very
sensitive to degradation;
easy to edit.
○ Proteins are the workforce
and functional unit of DNA.
2. Plant Biochemistry
● Chemical interactions within plants
plus the chemicals they produce.
● Chemistry that deals with chemical
products and their effects on the
organism – the plant.
3. Plant Cell Biology
● Also called Plant Cytology
● Structures, functions, and life
processes of plant cells.
4. Plant Anatomy
● Plant internal features (cells and
tissues) as revealed through
dissection.
5. Plant Morphology
● Plant external features (physical
form and structures).
● Plasticity - the ability of the plant to
adjust to a particular environment
by altering the rate of growth,
development, and metabolism.
6. Plant Physiology
● How plants function
(photosynthesis, mineral nutrition,
respiration, transportation, etc.) =
metabolic reactions.
● Comparison of before and after
exposure to light.
7. Plant Ecology
● Interrelationships among plants,
and between plants and their
environment.
8. Plant Genetics
● Plant heredity and variation.
○ Variation is the mixed genes
with parents.
9. Plant Paleontology
● Also called Paleobotany.
● Biology and evolution of plants in
the geologic past (plant fossils).
10. Plant Geography
● Also called Phytogeography or
Geobotany.
● Geographical distribution of
plants.
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Studypool: @laceyair
11. Plant Taxonomy or Systematics
● Plant classification, identification,
description, nomenclature, and
diversity.
12. Phycology
● Algae biology and taxonomy.
13. Bryology
● Non-vascular plants (mosses,
liverworts, hornworts) biology and
taxonomy.
○ Small
○ Vascular Tissues = Stem,
Xylem, Phloem, Roots
○ Xylem - carry only water
from the roots to the surface,
dead cells.
○ Phloem - carries nutrients
and living cells.
14. Mycology
● Fungi biology and taxonomy.
15. Pteridology
● Ferns and ferns allies biology and
taxonomy.
16. Palynology
● The scientific study of living and
fossil spores and pollen grains.
17. Ethnobotany
● A scientific study of the traditional
knowledge and customs of a
people concerning plants and their
medical, religious, and other
economic uses.
18. Forestry
● Forest conservation and forest
products (lumber).
19. Agronomy
● Field crops and soils.
20. Horticulture
● The science and art of growing
fruits, vegetables, flowers, or
ornamental plants.
21. Economic Botany
● Plants with commercial importance
(spices, fibers).
22. Pharmacognosy
● A branch of pharmacology dealing
with medical substances of
biological origin and especially
medicinal substances obtained from
plants.
23. Plant Pathology
● Also called Phytopathology.
● The scientific study of plant
diseases, the mechanisms by which
diseases develop in individual
plants/plant populations, and how
plant diseases can be
managed/controlled.
CHARACTERISTICS OF LIVING THINGS
1. Organization
● Biological Hierarchy [atom →
molecule → organelles (eukaryotes
& prokaryotes) → cell → tissues →
organs → organism → population →
ecosystem (a group of living
organisms that interact w/ each
other in a specific environment) →
biosphere]
2. Exchange of Energy with the
Environment
● Plants and other organisms take in
and use energy.
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Studypool: @laceyair
● Photosynthesis - the biological
process that includes the capture of
light energy and its
transformation into chemical
energy of organic molecules that
are manufactured from carbon
dioxide and water.
● Cellular Respiration - the cellular
process in which energy of
organic molecules is released for
biological work.
● Main Idea: This answers what type
of energy plants use during
photosynthesis.
3. Interaction with the Environment
● Plants respond to stimuli in their
environment.
○ Example: Venus Flytrap -
detects when there is an
insect and traps it.
4. Growth
● Plants undergo growth and
development.
● Root Growth and Gravity Example:
leaves follow the direction of the
sunlight.
● Gravitropism
○ Also called Geotropism.
○ Is related to auxin which
promotes cell elongation.
○ This is also the growing
movement in response to
the downward pull of
gravity.
○ Negative Geotropism -
shoot grows away from
gravity.
○ Positive Geotropism - root
grows towards gravity.
○ The root Cap in the Root
Tip detects gravity.
5. Reproduction
● Plants form new individuals by
asexual or sexual reproduction.
○ Asexual - clones
Examples: fragmentation,
budding, spore formation,
and vegetative propagation.
○ Sexual - shared traits from
parents
Example: pollination
6. Heredity
● DNA molecules transmit genetic
information from one generation to
the next in plants and other
organisms.
● Epigenetics - the study of how cells
control gene activity without
changing the DNA sequence; traits
beyond genes.
○ Methylations - an example
of epigenetics that controls
the expression of some
genes resulting in which
genes can or cannot be
expressed; can either
activate or shut down the
expression of genes.
7. Evolution
● Plants and other organisms evolve.
● Populations change or adapt to
survive in changing environments.