This is an undergraduate/graduate level course in the collection and identification 
of native flowering plants of Georgia.  Students are expected to learn to identify 
by sight or by identification from a field manual the identification of 200 species 
of wildflower and native trees.  The vehicle for this study includes local field
trips in Georgia and testing by sight recognition exams; lectures, laboratory work, 
and class readings. The students must also learn the characteristics of 50 common 
plant families.

Specific Objectives include:
1.  Identify native ferns, wild flowers, weeds, shrubs, and trees 
    using diagnostic keys.
2.  Learn the basic morphology needed to identify vascular plants.
3.  Learn to recognize 200 species of the local flora and 25 major plant families.
4.  Learn how to collect plants and how they are prepared for the herbarium.
5.  Learn some of the literature of vascular plant systematics and floristics.
6.  Learn some natural history of plants, including edible, poisonous, and 
    medicinal uses of plants.
7.  Become more aware of the world around us by observing and learning to 
    recognize plants in the field.
8.  Reach non-biologists interested in plants and who enjoy the out of doors.

Student grades will be based on ID exams, in-class tracing, quizzes, lab exercises,
and for the graduate students, a documented collection of 100 wildflower plant species.

The course syllabus is a general plan for the course; deviations announced to the
class by the instructor may be necessary.

Primarily via Lecture

Definitions and Research Approaches of Taxonomy, Systematics, Phylogenetics
The Scientific Name
Collecting, preserving, and documenting plants
Introduction to plant parts and their descriptors
Overview of the phylogeny and diversity of the four groups of Vascular Plants
Life Cycles
Introduction to the phylogeny, natural history, and major characters of the important 
  families in each of the 4 groups. 

Primarily via lab

Using dichotomous keys 
Testing an identification
Sight recognition of common plants

All academic work must meet the standards contained in "A Culture of Honesty."  
Each student is responsible to inform themselves about those standards before
performing any academic work.