Abstract • Introduction • Materials • Procedure • Analysis and Conclusion • Notes • References

Plants for Profit

Jackie Urband

Abstract

This is a role playing exercise that establishes groups as research companies competing for a contract to landscape a difficult stretch of state highway. The research companies will be assigned a plant. They must determine the strengths and weaknesses of that plant, and then correct one weakness through "genetic engineering.

Introduction

This is a role-playing/decision making activity designed to teach Botany in a short time frame (two-three weeks). This will enable Botany to fit into the 10th-grade biology curriculum, or it can be adapted for a more in-depth unit. Students should work in groups (four per group is recommended). The objective is for all students to gain an understanding of the basics of plant anatomy and physiology using cooperative learning. Each group will be a research company competing for a contract to landscape a difficult stretch of state highway. The research companies will be assigned a plant. They must determine the strengths and weaknesses of that plant, and then correct one weakness through "genetic engineering." This will make their plant unique. Each group may name their plant by adding a variety name after the genus and species names. The research companies will then design a short presentation to promote their plant to the highway department. The highway department then selects the winning plant(s) and simultaneously grades the projects. The time frames given are the minimum number of days necessary for each task, and if followed, the unit will be completed in two weeks.

Scenario

The Maryland State Highway Department is entertaining bids to landscape stretches of highway. These stretches of highway have banks that are subject to erosion because of their slope and are difficult to plant due to the exposure. You and your team of Botanists can genetically engineer a plant which you think will fit the bill. You will have exclusive rights over propagation of this plant by tissue culture. If you win this bid, it will mean millions of dollars for your firm. Go for it!

Landscaping Divison

The Maryland Department of Transportation, Landscape Division, is requesting proposals to landscape the steep banks on stretches of the proposed Intercounty Connector, between Montgomery and Prince GeorgeÕs Counties. On a contractual basis, sections of the roadside are being allocated for testing of new plant material. All bids for these contracts must be presented two weeks from the date of this letter. Bids must include the scientific name of the plant, a description of the positive and negative traits of the plantÕs anatomy and physiology, the genetically engineered trait which gives you exclusive rights to the plant, and estimate of the number of plants required per square yard of the site, as well as an estimate of cost per square yard. No bid will be accepted without a folio of drawings depicting the anatomy of the proposed plant, signed by the artist.

Sincerely yours,

Chris Connally

Director, Landscape Division

cc:ju

Materials (arranged by task)

• Textbooks
• Prepared microscope slides
• Plant models
• Transparencies
• Videos
• Laser discs, etc for students to research plant anatomy and physiology

 

• Live specimens of the plants being used (including flowers, if possible)
• Dissecting scopes
• Microscopes
• Dissecting kits
• Slides & cover slips, etc. (for students to apply knowledge of anatomy to their plant)
• Gardening books with plant descriptions and lists of plants suitable for growing on banks.

 

• Art supplies
• Blank transparencies
• Overhead pens, etc for students to design their presentations

 

• Optional worksheets for students to fill in information

 

 

 

Procedure

Day 1: Introduction to the Activity Ð

Divide the class into groups of four and briefly describe the activity. Have the research companies determine the name and logo of their firm. Make a place card for each student which displays the firmÕs logo and the personÕs name. This will be used for the remainder of the activity. Assign each company a plant. Read the scenario to the students, then give each company a copy of the Request for Bids" letter or project it on an overhead.

Days 2 Ð 4:

Have all materials on hand for the students to research plant anatomy. The students must provide the information for the folio required by the Maryland Department of Transportation Landscape Division (MDOT-LD). Each group will need to do the following:

1. Make thin sections of the root, stem and leaves of their plant to observe under the appropriate microscope (dissecting scopes work well enough).
2. Make a drawing of the structure of each section.
3. Observe and draw the upper and lower leaf surfaces as seen under the dissecting scope.
4. Compare their drawings to prepared slides, transparencies or textbook illustrations, and label the basic parts shown.

   Each group must divide their jobs. For example, person 1 draws and labels the root section, person two; the stem section, person 3; the leaf section and person 3; the upper and lower leaf surfaces. Each drawing must be signed by the biological illustrator who prepared it. The firmÕs drawing folio will be submitted at a later date to MDOT-LD for preliminary consideration (no bid will be considered without this preliminary folio). The folio must include the scientific name of the plant. The teacher determines when the folio must be turned in, or it may be part of the final presentation, which would allow a review of plant anatomy at the end of the unit. Allow time for the members of the group to interact and teach each other what they learn.

Day 5:

Have flowers on hand to be dissected. Have an assortment of gardening books which have descriptions of the plants being used in this activity (see bibliography for examples) as well as information of flower structure and asexual means of propagation. Students will dissect, draw and label a flower, then research their specific plant and write a description of it in their own words, including how their plant will propagate and spread to fill in bare spots on the bank (such as flower and seed production, tip layering, runners/stolons, etc.). Flowers, if any, should be draws with parts labeled.

Day 6:

Students will analyze their plant using the information they have gathered, and will generate a list of positive and negative traits of their plant in regard to the job of covering the roadside banks. Some thought must be given to what would make a plant suitable for the job of controlling erosion, and what additional traits might be desirable. They will then genetically engineer a "new" plant by deciding on one trait they would like to add, subtract, or change to make their plant more likely to win the bid (such as increasing or decreasing the rate of growth, adding runners to a plant, adding a flower to a plant that has none, changing the color of the leaves, etc.). The students will draw a picture of their "new" plant, and will add a variety name to its scientific name to make it their own. Any anatomical addition (such as a flower) must have labeled drawings. Students can find the information on spacing requirements of the plant in "AmericaÕs Garden Book" (Bush-Brown, 1980) and calculate the cost per square yard using your cost per plant.

Days 7 Ð 8:

Students will plan a promotional campaign to "sell" their plant and win the bid. This may include creating a slogan or jingle, drawing posters or transparencies illustrating their plant and its attributes, and writing an oral presentation of five (5) minutes.

Days 9 Ð 10:

Students make their presentations and turn in their folio. The class grades the presentations. Each student is given an evaluation form for each group. Following the criteria given by the teacher, each student determines the number of points the group presenting should receive. This information is collected at the end of each presentation. The present group receives the average number of points awarded them by the class multiplied by the number of members in the group. The group then divides that number of points among themselves according to the way the workload was shared, signs the grade sheets, and returns it to the teacher.

Analysis and Conclusions

Sample Evaluation Form (including hypothetical points):

Each student in the class would submit one of these for the group presenting. If a student is obviously biased in their grading (way too high or too low), their grade sheet can be excluded. Most of the biases average out. LetÕs say that when all the points were tallied and the average was calculated, this group received a 76. They would then receive a grade sheet like the following:

Sample Grade Sheet:

The group would allocate the points according to the amount of work done by each student. If all four students worked equally, each would get 76 points. But if, for example, Sydney slacked off half way through and Cheryl did his share in addition to her own, Sydney might end up with, say, 60 points and Cheryl could get 92. Let the students know in advance how the project will be graded, and most students will do their share of the work. I have found students grade themselves and each other fairly in most situations. The class as a whole should then discuss the presentations and determine what attributes made a plant successful in covering a bank and preventing erosion, and determine which plant(s) should win the site on the project.

Teacher's Note

This lab can be customized a variety of ways. Some examples are:

1. Include an alien species such as kudzu (Pueraria lobata) as a choice, and see how the students handle its invasive nature. It wonÕt be represented in a garden book and would have to be researched.
2. Include the specific exposure to the sun, the presence or absence of shade, the moisture content of the soil, and/or the soil type to add challenge.
3. Have students create the perfect plant of their own without starting with a given plant.
4. Assign a research project on a topic such as genetic engineering, tissue culture, or how the highway department currently solves bank and erosion problems.
5. Assign each group a plant with a different learning value, to increase the amount of information exchanged during the presentation, such as plants with different root structures, plants without different spreading strategies, annuals, perennials, and shrubs, etc.

List of recommended plants, easily available locally:

Ajuga reptans (carpet bugle)

Coronilla varia (crown vetch), collect along roadsides

Cotoneaster horizontalis

Euonymus fortunei Hedera helix (ivy)

Hemerocallis fulva (wild daylily), collect along roadsides

Hydrangea anomala petoilaris (climbing hydrangea)

Hypericum calcinum (St. John’s wort)

Potentilla tridentate

Sedum acre

If you like this lab, I recommend growing the plants you use on your school campus to eliminate the necessity of purchasing them each year. Your principal may cover the cost of the plants if they are used to landscape the school grounds.

References

Bush-Brown, James and Louise. AmericaÕs Garden Book. Charles ScribnerÕs Sons, 1980.

Ferguson (editor). OrthoÕs Complete Guide to Successful Gardening. Chevron Chemical Company, 1983.

Brickell, Ed. (editor). The American Horticultural SocietyÕs Encyclopedia of Garden Plants. Macmillan Publishing Co.

Macoboy, Stirling. What Flower Is That? Crown Publishers, Inc., 1986.

Stern, Kingsley. Introductory Plant Biology. Wm. C. Brown Publishers, 1994.