Discovering Flowers and Plants 6/17

Question 1

Tour Description (as described in the Garden Tours brochure): All grades; 60–75 min.

Answer 1

Seasonal themes for a
Discovering Flowers and Plants tour can be
requested:
o Plant Travelers—Best in summer and fall.
o Pollinators in the Garden—Best in spring and
summer.

Question 2

Objectives

Answer 2

 Use the senses to fully experience being in nature: touch, look, listen, smell, and perhaps taste (cacao nibs & dark chocolate chips only).

 Observe nature and look closely. Consider using a hand lens and/or a Discovery Scope.

 Develop an appreciation of the Earth’s biodiversity by exploring 3 or more plant communities (e.g., aquatic plants, chaparral, cloud forest, desert, freshwater marsh, pygmy forest, redwood forest, riparian plants, tropical rainforest, vernal pool). Notice the shapes and sizes of plants; the color, shape, size, texture, andorientation of leaves; the presence or absence of spines, thorns, hairs, smelly oils, or an ability to store water (succulence). Deduce how these traits (adaptations) might help plants survive in a particular environment.

 Notice that some plants have extremely different requirements of light, temperature, water, humidity, and soil.

 Learn about plant parts and their functions, from roots to seeds. UCBG Docent Handbook: Disc. Flowers & Plants 6/16/17 Page 2 of 6 Table of Contents

 Understand that plants are the foundation of life on Earth—without the oxygen and food that plants provide, there would be no animals, including people!

 Appreciate the interdependence of plants and animals—the web of life—and the need to protect plants, animals, and the environment.

Question 3

Concepts

Web of life

Answer 3

The food of almost any kind of animal can be traced back to plants. Organisms are related in food webs in which some animals eat plants
for food and other animals eat the animals that eat plants. What affects one part of an ecosystem, affects the whole in some way. A healthy ecosystem is one in which multiple species of different types are each able to meet their needs in a relatively stable web of life.

Question 4

Concepts

Photosynthesis

Answer 4

Plants use energy from sunlight, carbon dioxide from the air, and water to make food (sugars); animals—including people—can’t do this. Plants also make the oxygen that animals breathe; animals can’t survive without the food and oxygen that plants make.

Question 5

Concepts

Pollination & Reproduction

Answer 5

Flowers use color, shape, scent, patterns (nectar
guides), and rewards such as pollen and nectar to attract animals (pollinators)—bats, bees, birds, butterflies, moths, etc. Pollen sticks to the body of a pollinator and travels on it to the next flower the pollinator visits.

Wind-pollinated flowers such as grasses lack showy petals and nectar since they don’t need to attract a pollinator. The base of a pollinated flower develops into a fruit with one or more seeds inside. Many fruits are eaten by animals; when eaten, seeds travel through an animal and can be fertilized by the animal’s droppings.

Question 6

Concepts

Adaptation & evolution

Answer 6

Plant adaptations include, among other traits, the
shapes and sizes of plants; the color, shape, size, texture, and orientation of leaves; the presence or absence of spines, thorns, hairs, smelly oils, or an
ability to store water (succulence). Plants with beneficial traits tend to survive and reproduce more often than plants without those traits; the survival advantage of some traits causes a species to evolve those traits over time (natural selection).

Question 7

Tour Materials

Docent vest or tote bag

Answer 7

Suggested contents include a Discovery Scope and/or

hand lens, flower diagram, pollinator cards, papyrus paper, cotton swabs for sampling pollen, and selected photographs.

Question 8

Tour Materials

“Agave” carrier

Answer 8

Contains an Agave spine with attached fibers and a Slinky model of a leaf rosette.

Question 9

Tour Materials

“Cactus” carrier

Answer 9

Contains a cross section of a tall (columnar) cactus; cactus “wood” (woody support structure in columnar cacti); and an accordion-fold model of a cactus stem.

Question 10

Tour Materials

Crops of the World Garden” carrier

Answer 10

Contains corks and a cork board; a silkworm life cycle display, cocoons, silk fabric, and a silkworm picture book. (Silkworms feed only on mulberry leaves.)

Question 11

Tour Materials

“Pollinators” carriers (2)

Answer 11

1. Contains specimens of a bat, butterfly, and moth with proboscis.
2. Contains bee specimens and photographs.

Question 12

Tour Materials

“Tropical House” carriers (2)

Answer 12

1. Contains whole cacao beans, cacao nibs, dark chocolate chips, vanilla beans, liquid vanilla extract, and photographs.
2. Contains cinnamon bark, a cinnamon bark box, cinnamon powder, water in a spray bottle (for demonstrating drip tips), and photographs.

Question 13

Tour Materials

“Redwoods” carrier

Answer 13

Contains a tree trunk cross section; coast redwood and
giant sequoia cones and seeds; water in a spray bottle (to demonstrate fog drip); an illustration comparing the size and height of a coast redwood, giant sequoia, brachiosaurus, etc.; and an illustration of an old-growth, redwood forest canopy.

Question 14

Major Stops

Answer 14

Explore diverse Garden areas (e.g., desert, rainforest, chaparral). Showcase a variety of plants, including plants in bloom. Become familiar with numerous stops,
especially some off the beaten path; be flexible about your route.

Question 15

Using an Inquiry Method

Plant communities: “How would you describe the plants in this area or glass house? What looks or feels different (e.g., temperature, sunny or shady, wet or dry) compared to the other area (or glass house) we visited? What conditions would these plants experience in the wild? What do plants need to survive?”

[light, air (intermediate level: carbon dioxide), water.] “Do these plants get too much or too little of something they need?”

Answer 15

Observe a plant community and share first impressions. Notice changes in temperature, exposure to sunlight, moisture levels, plant shapes, sizes, and colors. Look closely at individual plants and examine some details, perhaps with a Discovery Scope or a hand lens. Notice the presence or absence of leaves, hairs, spines, thorns, succulence, or smelly oils. “How might this trait/adaptation help the plant survive in its environment?”

Question 16

Using an Inquiry Method

Leaf adaptations: “How would you describe these leaves (e.g., leaf color, size, thickness, texture, orientation)? Are the leaves on other plants in this
environment similar to these? How are these leaves different from the leaves in the previous area (or glass house) we visited? How might this leaf trait/adaptation (e.g., thick, juicy leaves; drip tips) help a plant survive?”

Answer 16

1. Examine the leaves of plants from different environments. For example, in the Asian Area and/or the Tropical House, notice that plants in the shaded
   forest understory typically have large dark-green leaves to capture more light for making food (photosynthesis) and drip tips for shedding rain. In contrast, chaparral plants typically have small light-green leaves, with a vertical orientation to reduce the plant’s exposure to the sun’s burning ultraviolet rays, which are most intense when the summer sun is overhead; then, in winter when the sun is low in the sky, a vertical orientation enables the leaves to capture more light.

Question 17

Using an Inquiry Method

Leaf adaptations

Answer 17

2. In the Tropical House, mist leaves with drip tips and observe the runoff. “What other leaf traits help remove epiphytes and minimize surface wetness?” (drooping positions and waxy surfaces)

Question 18

Using an Inquiry Method

Leaf adaptations

Answer 18

3. In the Asian Area or in Mather Redwood Grove, examine the 2 kinds of coast redwood leaves that have fallen from a tree. “How are these leaves different from each other? We’re standing in the cool shade, but what are
   conditions like at the top of this tall tree?” (lots of sunlight & often windy.) “Which leaves came from the tree’s sunny top and which ones from its shaded, lower branches?” (The coast redwood’s leaves at the top are small and scaly as an adaptation to intense sunlight and drying winds, while the shaded, lower leaves are longer to capture more sunlight for photosynthesis.) Notice the coast redwood’s tiny cones and its stump sprouts—the tree’s most effective way to reproduce.

Question 19

Using an Inquiry Method

Leaf adaptations

Answer 19

4. In the Herb Garden, rub a few leaves of some herbs (e.g., bay, lavender, rosemary, thyme) to release their fragrant oils and smell your fingers each time. “Do you like the smell of the oil this leaf produces? How would a hungry bug react to such a strong smell or taste? How might having a strong smell or taste benefit the plant?” (Strong-smelling oils are a plant’s defense against being eaten by insects.)

Question 20

Using an Inquiry Method

Leaf adaptations

Answer 20

5. In the Deserts of the Americas Area, pick a few succulent leaves off the ground that have fallen from the low-growing Echeveria surrounding the bench underneath the Chilean mesquite (Bed 166, next to the building). Notice if any of these leaves have sprouted a baby plant with tiny roots, illustrating one of the ways plants can reproduce (vegetative or asexual reproduction). Break open a fallen leaf to reveal the water stored inside.

Question 21

Using an Inquiry Method

Plant adaptations to an arid environment: “Do you see any leaves on a cactus? How does not having leaves help a cactus survive?” (Leaves lose lots of water. On a hot day, a typical fruit tree with lots of leaves might lose 1,200 cups of water, whereas a 25-ft tall cactus might lose 1 cup!) “If a plant usually UCBG Docent Handbook: Disc. Flowers & Plants 6/16/17 Page 5 of 6 Table of Contents makes food in its leaves (photosynthesis), where does a cactus make its food?” (in its stems) “How can a tall (columnar) cactus store lots of water without falling over like a water-filled balloon would?” (A woody inner structure supports the stem.)

Answer 21

1. Visit the tall Echinopsis in the Deserts of the Americas Area. Examine the columnar cactus cross section and the cactus wood specimen. Place the accordion-fold model over the cactus wood to demonstrate the stem’s
   ability to expand or contract (depends on the amount of water stored inside) without cracking.
2. Notice any exposed cactus wood in old or damaged columnar cacti stems.

Question 22

Using an Inquiry Method

Patterns in nature: “How does this design/pattern benefit the plant?” Consult the Patterns in Nature: Math in the Garden tour content in the UCBG Docent Handbook for information about branching, helixes, spheres, spirals, starbursts, 120° angles, and fractals.

plant reproduction: “How can the pollen in this flower travel to another flower of the same kind?” (Pollen is carried by the wind or on the body of an animal, depending on the kind of flower.) “What kind of animals (pollinators) visit flowers?” (bats, bees, birds, butterflies, moths, people, etc.) “What shape and color are the flowers that this pollinator visits?”

Answer 22

Let students collect pollen on a finger, cotton ball, or cotton swab and touch it to the stigma of another flower. “Now that this flower has been pollinated, what will this plant be able to make?” (a fruit with seeds)

Question 23

Using an Inquiry Method

Seed dispersal: “Why do many fruits take time to ripen, change color, and become sweet?” (to be eaten by animals) “Are these seeds ready to sprout or do they need more time to develop?” (Many immature seeds are small and light green, becoming larger and darker as they ripen.)

Answer 23

Look for changes in the size and color of a plant’s fruit that indicate ripening. Notice any visible seeds. While a fruit is ripening, seeds are developing inside and becoming able to survive and sprout. When the seeds are ready, some ripe fruits dry out and pop open, releasing their seeds, while other fruits drop to the ground, decay, and release their seeds, or they’re eaten by animals. When eaten, seeds travel through the animal and can be fertilized by the animal’s droppings.

Question 24

Terminology

Adaptation

Answer 24

A trait that makes a plant or animal better suited to its environment.

Question 25

Terminology

Biodiversity

Answer 25

Variety of life in the world or in a particular habitat or ecosystem.

Question 26

Terminology

Conservation

Answer 26

The protection of plants, animals, and the environment, including the careful use of natural resources (e.g., trees, oil) to prevent them from being lost or wasted.

Question 27

Terminology

Ecosystem (e.g., desert ecosystem, rainforest ecosystem)

Answer 27

Includes not only the living components such as plants and animals, but also the nonliving components such as sunlight, soil nutrients, the water table, etc. environment: All the surroundings and conditions affecting the life of a plant.

Question 28

Terminology

Epiphyte

Answer 28

A plant that grows on another plant for physical support, not nourishment (e.g., the ferns, bromeliads, and orchids growing on trees in tropical rainforests).

Question 29

Terminology

Photosynthesis:

Answer 29

The process by which plants make food (sugars) using energy from sunlight, carbon dioxide from the air, and water.

Advanced: chlorophyll + light + carbon dioxide + water = glucose (sugar) + oxygen.

Question 30

Terminology

Pollination

Answer 30

The movement of pollen from a flower’s anther (tip of a stamen) to a flower’s stigma usually by wind or animal visitor (pollinator).