2011-12 Catalog

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2011-12 Undergraduate Index A-Z

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Botany [clear]


Title   Offering Standing Credits Credits When F W S Su Description Preparatory Faculty Days Multiple Standings Start Quarters Open Quarters
Bryophyte Taxonomy and Ecology
Lalita Calabria
  Program JR–SRJunior - Senior 16 16 Day W 12Winter The Pacific Northwest supports one of the greatest diversities of bryophytes- mosses, hornworts and liverworts - in the world. These terrestrial, epiphytic, and rock-dwelling taxa perform critical ecological roles in our forests, prairies, and urban areas. They intercept and retain nutrients and moisture from rainwater and mist, provide habitat and nesting material for invertebrates and vertebrates, and are important bioindicators of ecosystem health and global climate change.This program focuses on bryophyte taxonomy, ecology and biology. Field trips will emphasize the recognition of ecological life forms and morphological growth forms of bryophytes as well as proper collection methods. Lab activities will involve identifying collected specimens using dichotomous keys and developing proficiency in techniques for the identification of mosses such as dissection, slide-making techniques and use of compound and dissecting microscopes. Lectures will focus on readings from a bryophyte ecology textbook as well as current topics in bryophyte biology and taxonomy. Seminar readings will include a variety of essays, books and scientific papers on the economic, medicinal and aesthetic value of bryophytes. Students will conduct quarter-long group research, which may include herbaria-based taxonomic studies, moss propagation experiments, field-based floristic studies or installation of moss rooftop teaching garden on campus. Students will also contribute to the ongoing curation and databasing of the Evergreen Herbarium Bryophyte Collection. Lalita Calabria Mon Tue Thu Junior JR Senior SR Winter Winter
Citizen Science: Ecoliteracy
Frederica Bowcutt, Gaku Mitsumata and Jeff Antonelis-Lapp
  Program FR–SRFreshmen - Senior 16 16 Day F 11 Fall W 12Winter As a learning community our central question will be: how can ordinary citizens assist in the important work of shifting society to more sustainable relations with the natural world? We will begin by examining what it means to be ecoliterate.In the fall we will focus on the natural history of the Puget Sound region and contrast that to eastern Washington’s high desert. In October the learning community will visit the sagebrush steppe of Sun Lakes State Park to gain field experience in linking plant and animal distribution patterns with environmental conditions. Through this work, students will learn how to read topographic and geologic maps, and basic mapmaking skills. Students will gain experience in conducting biodiversity assessments in the park and on campus, including vascular plants, birds, mammals and insects. The learning community will explore how ecoliterate citizens can serve as citizen scientists, for example, by helping to monitor plant and animal responses to climate change. To support their work in the field and lab, students will learn how to maintain a detailed and illustrated nature journal. In the winter we will examine the relationship between people and gardens through the disciplines of garden history, children’s literature, and environmental and place-based education. Special attention will be given to urban horticulture that fosters socially just communities and an ecoliterate citizenry. Students will learn how to link scientific knowledge about soils, plants and animals with the pragmatic realities of installing and maintaining educational gardens in public settings. Lectures and labs in soil science, botany, ecology and environmental/place-based education will support this learning. Students will learn to develop K-12 curriculum for the teaching gardens on campus, and pursue opportunities to lead activities in them and the surrounding woods with local school groups. During both quarters, a significant amount of time will be dedicated to honing our ability to write an expository paper. Credit may be awarded in natural history, environmental education, expository writing, children’s literature, horticulture, garden history and botany (with a lab). This program is appropriate not only for students with interest in the natural sciences, but also for students who would not normally select academic programs in the sciences. K-12 teaching, environmental education, horticulture, natural history and ecology. Frederica Bowcutt Gaku Mitsumata Jeff Antonelis-Lapp Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Fall Fall
Creating Community and Health Through Gardens
Marja Eloheimo
  Program FR–SRFreshmen - Senior 8 08 Day Su 12Summer Session I In this 8-credit summer program, we will explore ways in which various types of gardens can contribute to community and health. Each week, as we visit a medicinal, edible, community, or ethnobotanical garden or urban farm, we will interview gardeners, consider themes related to sustainability, identify plants, learn herbal and horticultural techniques, and develop nature drawing and journaling skills. We will have the opportunity to expand upon these topics through reading, lecture/discussions, and workshops as well as through independent community, garden, and herbal projects and research. This program is suitable for students interested in environmental education, community development, health studies, plant studies, sustainability, ethnobotany, and horticulture. Marja Eloheimo Mon Thu Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Summer Summer
Ecological Agriculture: Crop Botany and Plant Genetics
Martha Rosemeyer and Donald Morisato
  Program FR–SRFreshmen - Senior 16 16 Day S 12Spring How do seeds form? How do plants develop from seeds? How do plants adapt to particular environmental conditions? The modification of plant evolution by human selection has played a major role in the history of agriculture. Ecological agriculture is based on an understanding of plant biology, either through the grazing of livestock or the growing of food crops. This program focuses on the science of crop botany and genetics as a basis for propagation, seed-saving and plant breeding. In one strand, the basic life cycle, plant physiology and reproductive botany of crop members of the plant families most important for agriculture will be explored. This systematic survey will make connections to their center of diversity and origin. In a second strand, the principles of plant breeding will be presented through an introduction to Mendelian and quantitative genetics. Some of the agricultural methods of plant reproduction, by both sexual and vegetative propagation, will be considered. Readings may include Ashworth's , Deppe's , and Nabhan's . The adaptation of crop plants to specific environments, especially in this era of climate change, becomes increasingly critical for the future of sustainable agriculture. Laboratory and field experiments, as well as field trips to local farms and plant breeding centers, will provide an applied context for our inquiry. agriculture, biology and plant breeding. Martha Rosemeyer Donald Morisato Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Spring Spring
Field and Laboratory Biology in Southwestern Ecosystems
Dylan Fischer and Clarissa Dirks
  Program FR–SRFreshmen - Senior 16 16 Day S 12Spring The southwestern U.S. is unique in the diversity of habitats that can occur along with dramatic temperature and moisture gradients. Major advances in ecology have been made in these extreme environments, and important work in global change biology is currently being conducted in these systems. This program will use field sites in the Desert Southwest as living laboratories for investigating patterns in ecology, biology, microbiology and evolution. Students will learn about arid environments, plant ecology, field biology, and gain specialized training in microbiology or plant molecular genetics. Students will co-design field projects exploring ecological and co-evolutionary relationships at organism and molecular scales.We will use detailed studies of southwestern cottonwood trees and tardigrades (water-bears) as examples that will let us dive deeply into laboratory and field experiments.  We will pair those investigations with broader exploration of southwestern environments to learn about multiple ecosystems and organisms. Early in the program, students will learn to conduct DNS analyses on plants and microscope-based identification of microscopic animals called tardigrades (water-bears).  All students will participate in a mandatory two-week field ecology module where they will participate in a major research project examining the effects of desert-tree genetic diversity on ecosystems, learn to identify plant species of the Southwest, keep detailed field journals, conduct research projects, and survey isolated canyons for patterns related to evolutionary history.  Along the way, we will visit environmental and culturally significant sites in the Southwest, from cactus forests to canyons and mountain peaks. Finally, at the end of the quarter all students will reconvene for a program conference where students will present their research over the quarter.Our reading list will include major natural history texts related to the Southwest and evolutionary relationships for the organisms we find there. We will emphasize active participation in the scientific process and communication skills. Because of the field component of this program, students should be prepared for extensive time living and working in the field, and should be committed to working through conflicts in group dynamics. ecology, biology, botany, zoology, microbial ecology and environmental science. Dylan Fischer Clarissa Dirks Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Spring Spring
Lights Out
Bret Weinstein
  Program SO–SRSophomore - Senior 16 16 Day S 12Spring Complex systems can fail catastrophically. Resent catastrophic failures (such as the global financial collapse of 2008, the Gulf oil spill of 2010 and the Fukushima nuclear disaster of 2011) hint at the overall fragility of the systems on which civilization presently depends. Many have wondered if the larger system might be equally vulnerable to a major disruption.This program proceeds from a thought experiment: What if the lights went out and didn’t come back on? What if the gas stations ran dry and no one came to refill them? What if the store shelves went bare and stayed that way?The immediate effect would be unavoidably chaotic, disastrous and tragic. But from the chaos would likely emerge groups of people who had figured out how to provide for themselves.How would those groups be organized? What would they understand? What technologies of the past would they have resurrected, and in what form? What newer technologies would they work to retain? How would they use the rubble of modernity to enhance their lives. What would they eat and drink? How would they stay warm and fed in the winter? Would large-scale social organization arise organically, from the bottom up? How would the answers to these question differ by region?This program will not happen at the front of the room. The faculty will not present answers to these questions. The learning community will confront them together, with analytical rigor proportional to the scenario under consideration. As much as possible, we will attempt to prototype answers in the physical world, and let our successes and failures guide us toward a toolkit for survival.This program is not for passive students, or for those that prefer to stay in the abstract or metaphorical layers. It will require students to be both hard workers and careful thinkers. Students must be bold, collaborative and willing to rise to a serious challenge. Bret Weinstein Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Spring Spring
Medicinal Botany: An Introduction
Marja Eloheimo
  Course FR–SRFreshmen - Senior 6 06 Weekend W 12Winter In this 6-credit course, students will gain an introduction to medicinal plants with a focus on plant identification and morphology (botany), medicinal concepts and practices (botanical medicine), botanical art, and working with plants in the Longhouse Ethnobotanical Garden. Students will also explore selected topics such as cultural approaches to herbalism, experience/research, medicine making, body systems, seasonal health, and ethnobotanical garden care. Activities include lectures, workshops, reading, seminar, and projects. This course is appropriate for students with interests in botany, environmental studies, health, cultural studies and botanical medicine. botany and botanical medicine, education, environmental studies, cultural studies, health-related fields Marja Eloheimo Sat Sun Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Winter Winter
Medicinal Botany: An Introduction
Marja Eloheimo
  Course FR–SRFreshmen - Senior 6 06 Weekend F 11 Fall In this 6-credit course, students will gain an introduction to medicinal plants with a focus on plant identification and morphology (botany), medicinal concepts and practices (botanical medicine), botanical art, and working with plants in the Longhouse Ethnobotanical Garden. Students will also explore selected topics such as cultural approaches to herbalism, experience/research, medicine making, body systems, seasonal health, and ethnobotanical garden care. Activities include lectures, workshops, reading, seminar, and projects. This course is appropriate for students with interests in botany, environmental studies, health, cultural studies and botanical medicine. botany and botanical medicine, education, environmental studies, cultural studies, health-related fields Marja Eloheimo Sat Sun Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Fall Fall
Medicinal Botany in Spring
Marja Eloheimo
Signature Required: Spring 
  Course FR–SRFreshmen - Senior 6 06 Weekend S 12Spring In this 6-credit course designed to follow “Medicinal Botany: An Introduction,” students will explore medicinal plants in spring with a focus on spring plant identification and flower morphology (botany), medicinal concepts and practices (botanical medicine), botanical drawing and nature journaling (art), and working with plants in the Longhouse Ethnobotanical Garden. Students will also examine selected topics such as community herbalism, creating informative plant art, medicine making, the digestive system, cultural perspectives on health in spring, and ethnobotanical garden care. Activities include lectures, workshops, reading, seminar, and projects. This course is designed for students with background and interests in at least one of the following: botany, environmental studies, health, cultural studies and botanical medicine. This course is appropriate for students with interests in botany, environmental studies, health, cultural studies and botanical medicine. Marja Eloheimo Sat Sun Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Spring Spring
Plant Biology
Lalita Calabria
  Course FR–SRFreshmen - Senior 6 06 Evening and Weekend Su 12Summer Session I This course is designed to increase your awareness and appreciation of the biological, cultural, and economic importance of plants. Through this awareness and appreciation of plants you can begin to develop a "Botanical Sense of Place".  We will begin by reflecting on your personal experiences with plants from youth to the present in the form of a creative nonfiction-style essay. These experiences are the foundation of your botanical knowledge, and they will serve as tool for connecting the major concepts we learn in class with your real-life experience of plants. In lectures, we will survey the major groups of the Plant Kingdom including bryophytes, seedless vascular plants, gymnosperms, and angiosperms. We will also draw on contemporary scientific journals articles to help you gain in-depth understanding of certain biological concepts and to apply this understanding to current events. In labs, students will gain hands-on experience studying plants with microscopes as we examine the form and function of plant structures in the context of their evolutionary history. On field trips, students will learn to recognize and identify the common native plants of the Pacific Northwest.  Lalita Calabria Tue Thu Sat Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Summer Summer
Plants: Nature's Chemical Factories
Lalita Calabria and Peter Pessiki
  Program FR–SRFreshmen - Senior 8 08 Evening and Weekend S 12Spring Plants produce an outstanding number of chemical compounds that function as protection against pests, as colorings, as scent attractants, as hormones, and more.  Many of these compounds have proven to be important for human survival and are utilized by humans for food, medicine, poison, and spiritual ceremony.  This program will explore plants and the chemicals produced by these plants that humans find useful.  We will utilize lectures, labs, and fieldwork to focus on the botany and chemistry of these productive plants.  The chemistry lectures will be based on classes of chemical constituents, and the botany lectures will outline the taxonomy, ethnobotany, and chemical ecology of the major groups of plants as it relates to their chemistry (chemotaxonomy).  Labs will focus on learning how to isolate plant chemicals using techniques such as soxhlet extraction, column chromatography, and distillation. The fieldwork component will take advantage of our unique campus setting and may include wildcrafting, some kitchen-based labs, and utilizing the many gardens on campus in a variety of ways. Lalita Calabria Peter Pessiki Mon Wed Sat Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Spring Spring
The Practice of Sustainable Agriculture: Fall
Stephen Bramwell
Signature Required: Fall 
  Program FR–SRFreshmen - Senior 16 16 Day F 11 Fall The schedule for The Practice of Sustainable Agriculture has been shifted to the agricultural calendar. This is the third quarter of a three-quarter sequence that started in last spring quarter. This program integrates theoretical and practical aspects of small-scale organic farming in the Pacific Northwest and requires serious commitment from students—we start at 8 AM Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and all students will work on the farm, which may include early mornings before class. Each week of the program there will be eight hours of classroom instruction and twenty hours of practicum work at Evergreen's Organic Farm.The program's academic classroom portion will cover a variety of topics related to practical farm management, including annual and perennial plant propagation, entomology and pest management, plant pathology and disease management, weed biology and management, soil quality and soil management, crop botany, animal husbandry/physiology, polycultures, integration of crops and livestock, orchard management, appropriate technology, weather forecasting, and climatology. As part of their training, students will be required to develop and write farm management and business plans. On a weekly basis, students can expect to complete seminar readings and reflective writings, work through assigned textbooks, and write technical reports to demonstrate an integration of theoretical concepts and practice gained through the farm practicum.The academic practicum on Evergreen's organic farm will include hands-on instruction on a range of farm-related topics including greenhouse management and season extension techniques, farm-scale composting and vermiculture, seed saving, irrigation systems, mushroom cultivation, farm recordkeeping, tool use and care, farm equipment operation and maintenance, and techniques for adding value to farm and garden products. Students will also have the opportunity to explore their personal interests related to agriculture, homesteading, and developing communal farms/ecovillages through research projects. Each quarter we will visit farms that represent the ecological, social and economic diversity of agriculture in the Pacific Northwest. Students will also attend and participate in key sustainable and organic farming conferences within the region. After completing this program, students will have an understanding of a holistic approach to managing a small-scale sustainable farm operation in the Pacific Northwest. agriculture, farm and garden management, and applied horticulture. Stephen Bramwell Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Fall Fall
The Practice of Sustainable Agriculture: Spring
David Muehleisen and Stephen Bramwell
Signature Required: Spring 
  Program SO–SRSophomore - Senior 16 16 Day S 12Spring What does it take to start up and run a small-scale agricultural business? Do you know how to grow organic food? Are you interested in contributing to the success of the campus Organic Farm? Join us on the farm for hard work and a wide-ranging examination of these and other questions.In this three-quarter program which begins spring quarter, we will integrate the theoretical and practical aspects of organic small-scale direct market farming in the Pacific Northwest by working on the Evergreen Organic Farm through an entire growing season (spring, summer and fall quarters). All students will work on the farm a minimum of 20 hours per week. The program is rigorous both physically and academically and requires a willingness to work outside in adverse weather on a schedule determined by the needs of crops and animals.Our exploration of critical agricultural topics will occur through a curriculum that is intricately tied to what is happening in the fields as the growing season progresses. The major focus of the program will be developing the knowledge and skills needed to start up and operate a small-scale agricultural operation based on a sound understanding of the underlying science and business principles. At the same time, hands-on farm work will provide the context for developing applied biology, chemistry and math skills.Each quarter, we will cover a variety of seasonally appropriate topics needed to operate a sustainable farm business. In the spring, we will focus on soil science and nutrient management, annual and perennial plant propagation, greenhouse management, crop botany, composting, vermiculture, and market planning. In the summer our focus will be on entomology and pest management, plant pathology weed biology and management, water management and irrigation system design, animal husbandry, maximizing market and value-added opportunities and regulatory issues. The fall quarter's focus will be on season extension techniques, production and business planning, the use and management of green and animal manures, cover crops, and crop storage techniques and physiology.Additional topics will include record keeping for organic production systems, alternative crop production systems, apiculture, aquaponics, urban agriculture, small-scale grain-raising, mushroom cultivation, and techniques for adding value to farm and garden products. Students will learn how to use and maintain farm equipment, ranging from hand tools to tractors and implements. Students will have the opportunity to develop their personal agricultural interests through research projects. Topics will be explored through on-farm workshops, seminars, lectures, laboratory exercises, farm management groups, guest lectures, field experimentation and field trips to regional agricultural operations. Books typically used in the program include by Gershuny, by Mohler and Johnson (eds.), by Wiswall, by Ekarius, by Altieri, and by Coleman. If you are a student with a disability and would like to request accommodations, please contact the instructor or the office of Access Services prior to the start of the quarter. Access Services, Library Bldg. Rm. 2153. Contact Program Coordinator Steve Schmidt, PH: 360.867.6348; TTY 360.867.6834; E-mail: schmidts@evergreen.edu. If you require accessible transportation for field trips, please contact the instructor well in advance of the field trip dates to allow time to arrange this.Students planning to take this program who are receiving financial aid should contact financial aid early in fall quarter 2011 to develop a financial aid plan that includes summer quarter 2012. farm and garden management; working with non-profit organizations focusing on food, land use and agriculture; State and County Extension; and State and Federal regulatory agencies. David Muehleisen Stephen Bramwell Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Spring Spring
The Practice of Sustainable Agriculture: Summer
Stephen Bramwell and David Muehleisen
Signature Required: Summer
  Program SO–SRSophomore - Senior 16 16 Day Su 12Summer Full This is a spring, summer, fall program and is open only to students continuing from the spring.  For the full program description, see . Stephen Bramwell David Muehleisen Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR Summer Summer
Student-Originated Studies: Botany
Frederica Bowcutt
Signature Required: Spring 
  SOS JR–SRJunior - Senior 16 16 Day S 12Spring This program offers opportunities for well-prepared students to create their own course of study in botany. Priority will be given to students with introductory coursework in botany and a desire to contribute to at lease one of two ongoing efforts: the Puget Prairie Flora project or the Evergreen Teaching Gardens.  Proposals are particularly encouraged from students who want to do one or more of the following:Students will attend weekly research group meetings/seminars, plant identification labs, and as needed computer workshops to support student research.  The labs will be dedicated primarily to learning how to identify vascular plants using a technical dichotomous key.  Students will also hone their polant family recognition skills.  To practice their identification skills, students will attend several day-long field trips to local prairies.While this program is primarily aimed at juniors and seniors, first-year students and sophomores may be admitted if they can demonstrate through the signature process that they are ready for the work. field botany, floristics, environmental education and horticulture. Frederica Bowcutt Mon Tue Junior JR Senior SR Spring Spring
Tropical Rainforests
Dina Roberts and David Phillips
Signature Required: Winter 
  Program JR–SRJunior - Senior 16 16 Day W 12Winter The tropics are the cradle of the world's biodiversity. This program will focus on Costa Rica, emphasizing biological richness, field ecology, the physical environment, statistical analysis of field data, conservation biology and Latin American culture. The first seven weeks of the program will be held on the Evergreen campus, followed by a three-week field trip to Costa Rica. The on-campus portion will include lectures and labs on global patterns of biological diversity, quantification and analysis of ecological diversity, an overview of major taxa of Neotropical plants, insects and vertebrates, and discussions of the physical environment of tropical regions. This material will be integrated with classes in introductory statistics and conversational Spanish.During the Costa Rica field trip, we will visit four major field sites, including coastal habitats, tropical dry forest, cloud forest and lowland rain forest. Students will learn about common plants and animals in each area, dominant landforms and ecological processes, conservation issues and current biological research activities. Students will also learn techniques of field research by participating in quantitative field labs, both faculty and student led. In the evenings there will be a series of guest lectures by research scientists. The field trip will require rigorous hiking and backpacking in remote locations. environmental studies, ecology, conservation biology, evolutionary biology and Latin American studies. Dina Roberts David Phillips Junior JR Senior SR Winter Winter
Undergraduate Research: Herbarium Studies of Fungi, Lichen and Bryophytes
Lalita Calabria
Signature Required: Summer
  Research JR–SRJunior - Senior 6 06 Day and Weekend Su 12Summer Full In this course students will organize into research groups based on interest in either fungi, lichen, or bryophytes and design herbarium-based research projects on these taxa. The instructor will provide guidance with using technical key for identifying unknown fungi and lichen and/bryophytes as well as collection and curation methods. In addition, students will choose from a list of topics relating to taxonomy, ecology, and biology of these taxa for the instructor to lecture on throughout the quarter. Students will spend time in the field and laboratory discussing diagnostic characters of these groups and will learn how to sight recognize common species to our region.  A field trip to the UW herbarium and botanical gardens will give students an opportunity to visit a larger regional herbarium and see unusual and rare taxa of fungi, lichens, and bryophytes. Lalita Calabria Mon Tue Thu Junior JR Senior SR Summer Summer