Correspondence Course Botany
Study Plant Physiology by Distance Learning.
What causes what to happen in a plant? What makes growth speed up or slow down, or a certain type of growth start or stop. Learn about the processes that occur within a plant to cause flowers to form, leaves to grow and die, roots to form, etc.
- Learn more about plant physiology.
- Study in your own time and at your own pace.
- Learn with support from highly experienced tutors
Duration: 100 hours
CONTENT
There are 10 lessons in this module as follows:
1. Flower physiology
Introduction
The flowering response
Genes control flowering
Physiological age
Minimum leaf number
Photoperiodism
Terminology
2. Phytochrome
Light sensing systems
Blue light responses
Red light responses
Other light responses
Phytochrome
Photoreceptor forms: Pr, Pfr
How molelcules changeRelevance to commercial horticulture
Controlling light
Terminology
3. Phytoperiodism
Light
Measuring light
What wavelengths do plants need
Typical photoperiod responses
Photoperiodic responses in seasonal flowering plants
Photoperiodic classification of plants: short day plants, long day plants, day neutral plants
Detection of photoperiod
Critical photoperiod and flowering
Research facts
Other photoperiodic effects
Terminology
4. Control of flower bud initiation and development
Stages in flower bud growth
What can affect flower bud initiation
Differentiation
Dvelopment
Anthesis
Effect of temperature on growth and flowering
VernalisationThermoperiodism
Research reports or reviews of specific plants
Terminology
5. Dormancy
Dormancy in plants
Abscisic acid and dormancy
Breaking dormancy
Dormancy in seeds
Factors affecting seed dormancy
Breaking seed dormancy
Terminology
6. Effects of plant associations and competition
Introduction
Competition
Parasitism
Coevolution
Mutualism
Plant herbivore and pathogen interactions
Crop spacing and crop yeilds
Crop canopy and plant density
Impact of weeds
Protected environments
Greenhouses
Shadehouses
7. Respiration and post harvest physiology
Respiration
Glycolysis
Aerobic respiration
Anaerobic respiration
Bioluminescene and Fluorescence
Post harvest respiration
Terminology
8. Post harvest storage, transport, retailing and shelf life
Effect of growing conditions on post harvest life
Controlled storage conditions: temperature, atmosphere, humidity
Normal atmospheric conditions
Controlled and modified atmospheres
Effect of oxygen levels Effect of carbon dioxide levels
Ethylene
Controlling ethylene levels
Modified Atmosphere Packaging
Commodity transport
Retailing and shelf life
9. Endogenous and synthetic growth regulators
Nature of plant hormones
Auxins: IAA, IBA, NAA
Gibberellins: natural and synthetic
Cytokinins: over 130 different types
Abscisic acid
Ethylene
Other homones: anti auxins, growth inhibitors, growth retardants, defoliants, growth Stimulators, non standard hormones
Controlled ripening and degreening
Waxing
10. Risks involved with plant growth manipulation
Commercial risks
Human health and safety risks
Plant pathology risks
Ecological risks
Genetic modification
Benefits
environmental hazards
Human hazards
Terminology
COURSE AIMS
Investigate the physiology of growth development and flowering.
Examine the nature of phytochrome and its effect on flowering in the phytochrome reaction.
Examine the photoperiodic responses of flowering plants to differing dark and light periods.
Examine the effect of temperature on the onset of flowering and flower development.
Understand and describe the causes of dormancy in seeds and plants and describe the methods of breaking dormancy.
Understand plant associations and competition and their effects on quality and marketable yield.
Explain the process of respiration in plant cells and its effect on post-harvest storage and transportation of crops.
Describe physiological processes in post-harvest crops in relation to the storage conditions.
Investigate the effect on plants of endogenous and synthetic growth regulators.
Understand risk assessments relevant to plant growth manipulation.
Extract from Course:
LIGHT SENSING SYSTEMS
Plants can sense and respond to light of different intensities and quality. Plants have the capacity to sense and respond to variations in a wide range of characteristics, including light wavelength intensity, duration and direction.There are different systems that are involved in a plant sensing and reacting to light:
• Blue Light responses
• Red Light Responses
• Other Types of LightBlue Light Responses
Blue light can cause a variety of responses including:
• Phototropism
• Opening of Stomata on leaves
• Synthesis of Chlorophyll High intensities of blue light are needed for the final stage of chlorophyll formation. Some other responses require lower intensities of blue light.Red Light Responses
Also called the Phytochrome system; red light can stimulate a variety of responses including:
• Flower Induction (formation of flower buds)
• Chloroplast Development (ie. Organelles that conduct photosynthesis, found inside plant cells –not the same as chlorophyll)
• Leaf senescence (ie. Aging of leaves)
• Leaf abscission (ie. Separation of leaves from a plant, dropping old leaves)
Other Types of Light
The Blue & Red light systems are the best understood, and most important. Other wavelengths of light are known to affect plants also, including:
• Root tissue on a germinating seedling needs exposure to UV-B light (Ultra Violet-B) to stimulate developing tissue differentiation, which causes the development of leaves. Germinating seeds are normally on or close enough to the surface of the ground to obtain required exposure. Without this UV-B exposure, young seedlings may not develop leaves.
• There is evidence that yellow light may suppress growth in some plants. Petunias have been grown with stronger levels of yellow light and lower levels of other types of light in order to produce a smaller, more compact plant.
• Euphorbia and Pelargonium grown under blue light (with reduced levels of red) have produced more compact plants
• Green light is not used in photosynthesis (thought to be why many plants appear green, it makes no difference for the plants to reflect green light because they don’t need it).
What qualification will I achieve for completing this course?
This is an individual module course. The individual module courses are 100 hour long usually and can be taken on their own or as part of a larger program of study.
If you wish to take an individual module course as a stand alone course, you can elect to sit an optional exam at the end of it.If you successfully pass the exam and all assignments, you will receive a Statement of Attainment. You can take examinations at a time and location to suit you. If you enrol, you will be sent further information on how to arrange examinations at the end of the course.If you do not wish to take the exam, you will receive a Course Completion letter when you have passed all assignments.There is an assignment at the end of each lesson. So for example, if an individual module course contains ten lessons, you will need to complete ten assignments. Assignments can be sent to us via email, post or fax.Other qualifications, such as certificates, diplomas etc may require examinations to be taken as part of the overall assessment process.You can find further information on the examinations process by clicking on the “Enrolment” link above.You can find further information on other courses by clicking on the “Courses” link above.
More Information on ACS Distance Education and our courses
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