Advanced Certificate In Applied Plant Science

Distance Education Course -Plant Science

• Learn about the Science of Plant Growth, and applications to commercial situations.
• Professional development for people working in horticulture, forestry or environmental management
• Starter course for people building a career in plant industries or preparing for more advanced studies in science 

Many industries offer significant employment or business opportunities for people who have a moderate understanding of plant science, provided this knowledge is accompanied with a real sense of how it can be applied for commercial benefit in the real world. Unfortunately scientific training is often either too theoretical (lacking relevance to commerce), or too strongly skills based (ie. how to perform tasks without a solid understanding of the science behind the task).

The certificate consists of 4 core modules, 4 elective modules modules and either 100 hour Industry Meetings or Research Project 1.

Modules

Note that each module in the Advanced Certificate In Applied Plant Science is a short course in its own right, and may be studied separately.

Extract from Course Notes

The majority of cultivated plants are flowering plants (or angiosperms). These plants have four main parts:

1. Roots ‑the parts which generally grow below the soil
2. Stems ‑the framework
3. Leaves‑required for respiration, transpiration and photosynthesis
4. Reproductive Parts ‑ flowers and fruits.

STEMS

The main stem and its branches are the framework that supports the leaves, flowers and fruits. The leaves, and also green stems, manufacture food via the process known as photosynthesis, which is transported to the flowers, fruits and roots. The vascular system within the stem consists of canals, or vessels, which transfer nutrients and water upwards and downwards through the plant (i.e.: This is equivalent to the blood system in animals).

Stems may be modified for a variety of reasons. Some modifications are:

• tendrils ‑ instead of a defined branch, the stem is modified into a climbing tendril with leaves appearing periodically along the tendril
• thorns ‑ thorns appear along the stem. It is in fact a modified stem. eg. Bougainvillea
• prickle ‑ sharp appendage of the epidermis of the stem i.e. it is a trichome. It is not morphologically a stem, leaf, etc. eg. Rosa spp.
• stolon or runners ‑ above ground eg. Strawberry (Fragaria vesca)
• rhizome ‑ below ground eg. Canna spp.
• stem tubers ‑ large fleshy storage regions eg: potato
• corm ‑ function as a food storage to carry the plant over till next season eg: gladioli
• cladodes and phylloclades ‑ a cladode is a branch of a single internode which is flattened to simulate a leaf. A phylloclade is an entire shoot similarly flattened.

LEAVES

The primary function of leaves is photosynthesise, which is a process in which light energy is caught from the sun and stored via a chemical reaction in the form of carbohydrates such as sugars. Leaves are also the principle plant part involved in the process known as transpiration whereby water evaporating, mainly through the leaf pores (or stomata), sometimes through the leaf cuticle (or surface) as well, passes out of the leaf into a drier external environment. This evaporating water helps regulate the temperature of the plant. This process may also operate in the reverse direction whereby water vapour from a humid external environment will pass into the drier leaf. The process of water evaporating from the leaves is very important in that it creates a water gradient or potential between the upper and lower parts of the plant. As the water evaporates from the plant cells in the leaves then more water is drawn from neighbouring cells to replace the lost water. Water is then drawn into those neighbouring cells from their neighbours and from conducting vessels in the stems. This process continues, eventually drawing water into the roots from the ground until the water gradient has been sufficiently reduced. As the water moves throughout the plant it carries nutrients, hormones, enzymes etc. In effect this passage of water through the plant has a similar effect to a water pump, in this case causing water to be drawn from the ground, through the plant and eventually out into the atmosphere.

A leaf consists basically of a petiole (stalk of the leaf) and a lamina (blade of the leaf). The leaf may be simple or compound (compound leaves consist of a number of smaller leaflets).

There are many leaf modifications that may occur including :

• stipules ‑ at the base of the petiole appearing like winged leaves eg: peas
• leaf sheath ‑ leaf base surrounded by a sheath which encases the stem. eg. grasses and sedges.
• ochrea ‑ a membranous sheath arising from the leaf base and surrounding the axillary bud and stem for a short distance above the node. eg. Polygonaceae family.
• bulbs ‑ storage tissue eg: daffodil, onion
• ligule ‑ a small membranous or ciliate appendage at the top of the leaf sheath in most grasses.
• tendrils ‑ the leaf is modified into a tendril. Identifiable due to the bud at the base of the tendril with frequently large stipules. eg. peas.
• leaf spines ‑ small spines either on the margins or the whole leaf. Have buds at the union with the stem which indicates a modified leaf. eg thistle and Opuntia spp.
• phyllode ‑ characteristic of Acacias where the lamina is very small and the petiole is enlarged.
• pulvinus ‑ swelling at the base of the leaf and leaflets, provides the ability to allow movement by turgidity eg: Mimosa pudica
• auricle ‑ small ear like appendage on grasses
• cataphylls ‑ reduced leaves at base of plant eg. bud and rhizome scales.
• hypsophylls ‑ reduced leaves on apex of plant eg. bracts, floral leaves.

ROOTS

Soil provides the plant with the following things:

1. Nutrients
2. Water
3. Air
4. Support