Requirements for the Major
Committee Major
Honors in the Major
Additional Information
Introductory Courses
Courses
132 Birge Hall, 430 Lincoln Drive, Madison, WI 53706; 608/262-1057; www.botany.wisc.edu
Professors Allen, Baum, Fernandez, Givnish, Graham, Sharkey, Spalding, Sytsma, Waller, Zedler; Associate Professor Larget; Assistant Professors Ané, Day, Emshwiller, Hotchkiss, Otegui
Undergraduate advisors in the major: Eve Emshwiller, 321 Birge Hall, 890-1170 emshwiller@wisc.edu; Ken Sytsma, 250 Birge Hall, 262-4490, kjsytsma@wisc.edu.
Undergraduate advisor in the major for honors: Associate Professor Brent Larget, 241 Birge Hall, 265-6799.
Senior Thesis Coordinator: Professor Linda Graham, 211 Birge Hall, 262-2640. Majors will eventually choose from the faculty a Senior Thesis advisor, who then will be the student's undergraduate advisor. Prospective majors should contact the general advisors directly.
Faculty diversity liaison: Professor Donald Waller, 232 Birge Hall, 262-2042.
The Department of Botany provides an introduction to the living world: the diversity of its organisms; its historical origins through evolution; its principles of structure, function, and ecology; and its interactions, relationships, and effects on the nonliving world. Botany is the science of plants, algae, fungi, and bacteria—all living organisms except animals. Green plants and algae provide the photosynthetic energy for fueling all other life on earth and drive global water and carbon cycles. Fungi and bacteria are the fundamental recyclers of the earth.
The study of botany provides a broad background in the principles of modern biology and gives a solid foundation for careers in environmental studies, conservation biology, ecology, systematics, evolution, genetics, physiology, biotechnology, agriculture, and horticulture. Jobs requiring such preparation include teaching in secondary schools and colleges, research and development in industry and medicine, stewardship of our natural world through private and governmental programs, and research and teaching in academia.
Undergraduates interested in majoring in botany should take an introductory course or course sequence in their freshmen or sophomore years. Option A (Botany 130) is strongly recommended, but Option B (Botany/Zoology/Biology 151-152) or Option C (Biology Core Curriculum) is also appropriate. The general undergraduate botany advisor will help guide students to a botany faculty member in their field of interest, who should be chosen as soon as possible—no later than the junior year. All botany faculty members serve as advisors for their special fields.
The department encourages undergraduates to participate in its activities. Volunteers are welcome in the herbarium and greenhouses. There are a few paid positions there and in many of the research laboratories as well.
Prospective botany majors should consult with the general undergraduate botany advisor by the beginning of the junior year to outline a course of study appropriate to the student's needs. Major Declaration forms may be obtained in the department office.
To be accepted as a major in botany, a student must have a grade point average of 2.5 for all science courses taken during the freshman and sophomore years.
Conceiving, executing, and writing a research project under any of these options represents a valuable experience central to the scientific enterprise. Juniors must plan ahead to meet this requirement by actively seeking appropriate research opportunities with their advisor or another suitable faculty supervisor in advance. Students wishing to count courses similar in spirit and content from another department or university should make such requests in writing to the Senior Thesis Coordinator (Professor Graham) before their final year.
In addition to fulfilling university and L&S requirements, students must fulfill the following requirements for the botany major.
Students preparing for graduate school are strongly advised to take the recommended courses, which are usually required for entry into post-undergraduate programs.
One intermediate level course in statistics/probability (Statistics 301 or 371)
Recommended: one calculus course (Math 211 or 221)
General Chemistry (Chem 103-104, or Chem 109)
One semester of organic chemistry (Chem 341 or 343)
Recommended: organic chemistry sequence (Chem 343, 344, & 345)
One semester of physics (not Physics 107 or 109; Physics 115 is the best choice if one course is to be taken)
Recommended: two semesters of physics (Physics 103/104 or 201/202 or 207/208)
The total number of credits in sections 4, 5, and 6 must equal at least 30.
Option A: General Botany (Botany 130)
Option B: Introductory Biology (Botany/Zoology/Biology 151 and 152)
Option C: Biocore (Biocore 301 and 303 and two lab courses from 302, 304, 324)
Genetics (Botany/Genetics/Zoology 466 or Biocore 333)
An intermediate or advanced course in four of the following five areas:
Plant Structure (Botany 300)
Ecology (Botany 455, 460)
Plant Physiology (Botany 500 or Biocore 323 & 324)
Cryptogamic Botany (Botany 330, 332, 360 or Microbio 303)
Systematics (Botany 400, 401, or 422)
Recommended: courses in all five of the above areas; Biochemistry 501; Zoology I/A courses up to 5 credits of which will count toward the major.
4-6 credits of Senior Thesis (Botany 691 & 692) or Senior Honors Thesis (Botany 681 & 682); or
2-4 credits of Directed Study (Botany 699).
The occasional student needing to design a specialized program should discuss forming a committee major with the chair of the botany department no later than the junior year. The committee must include at least three staff members, from three different sections within the department. The program must include 30 credits in botany and courses in at least four of the six areas of botany listed in 5.
To earn the B.A. or B.S. degree with honors, botany majors must complete all requirements of sections 1 through 5 listed above, and:
Students should check with the department honors advisor at least once a year to seek guidance about planning the best possible Honors in the Major curriculum that reflects their special interests.
Training in botanical research is available to students individually via Directed Study (Botany 698 or 699) by special arrangement with the faculty member who will supervise the work.
The 5-credit introductory course (Botany 130) provides an elementary knowledge of the major areas of Botany and satisfies the prerequisite of an introductory course required for advanced work. The two-semester course sequence Introductory Biology (Botany/Zoology/Biology 151-152) also satisfies the prerequisite of an introductory course, but both semesters must be completed. Prospective botany majors should also consider the Biology Core Curriculum program, a sequence of courses that can satisfy both introductory biology and some I/A course requirements.
A student may take only one introductory course for credit toward the major. Students who have taken Botany 100 and then decide to pursue a major in Botany must take Botany 130. Botany 100 will count toward graduation requirements, but not toward the 30 credits of botany courses required for the major.
Botany 100 and 260 do not serve as prerequisites for advanced courses and do not count toward a botany major.
Occasionally offered courses. (Check with the department to see when these courses will be offered.) 305, 350, 360, 430, 463, and 631, 639-640.
All classes listed in the course descriptions section will be offered regularly unless otherwise noted. Please check with the department office for information on specific courses.
100 Survey of Botany. II, SS; 3 cr (B-E). Major emphasis on the roles of plants and microbes in past and present global ecology, and the past and present uses of plants and microbes by humans, including emerging applications of biotechnology. Lectures and short lab/discussions. P: Open to Fr.
123 Plants, Parasites, and People. (Crosslisted with Pl Path) I, II; 3 cr (B-E). The course will explore the interaction between society and plant-associated microbes. Topics include: the Irish potato famine, pesticides in current agriculture, role of economics and consumer preference in crop disease management and the release of genetically engineered organisms. P: Open to Fr.
130 General Botany. (Crosslisted with Biology) I, II; 5 cr (B-E). Introduction to the basic principles and concepts of the biology of plants. an integrative approach stressing evolutionary sequences and the relationship between structure and function at succeeding levels of organization: molecule, cell, organism, population, community. Correlated lectures, laboratories, and discussions. P: Open to Fr; not open to stdts who have taken Botany 100 or Botany/Zoology 151-152. HS or coll chem crse recommended.
151 Introductory Biology. (Crosslisted with Zoology, Biology) I, II; 5 cr (B-E). First semester of a two semester course designed for majors in biological sciences. Topics include: cell structure and function, cellular metabolism (enzymes, respiration, photosynthesis), information flow (DNA, RNA, protein), principles of genetics and a survey of the five major kingdoms of organisms. P: Open to Fr. HS chem or con reg in coll chem strongly advised. Not for full credit for those who have taken Bot 100, 130; Zool 101, 102, 120; or equiv.
152 Introductory Biology. (Crosslisted with Zoology, Biology) I, II; 5 cr (b-B-E). Second semester of a two semester course designed for majors in biological sciences. Continuation of 151. Topics include: a survey of the five major kingdoms of organisms, selected topics in plant and animal physiology, the structure and dynamics of selected ecosystems, speciation and evolutionary theory. P: Botany/Zoology 151. Not for full credit for those who have taken Bot 100, 130; Zool 101, 102, 120; or equiv.
160 Heredity. (Crosslisted with Genetics, Zoology) I; 3 cr (B-E). Heredity; genetics for students not specializing in life sciences; principles of heredity; current advances in genetics applied to humans, animals and plants with their impact on life sciences and society. Lectures and discussion. P: Crse open to all So; Open to Fr with cons inst; HS or college crse in biol recommended; not open to pre-med or sci major without cons inst.
240 Plants and Man. (Crosslisted with Geog) I; 2-3 cr (B-E). A speculative, systems-oriented approach to the interrelation of plants and humans in their evolution and cultural development, with an historical geographic perspective concluding with a consideration of 20th century America's plant-human interplay. Lecture; third credit includes demo lab. P: Open to Fr.
260 Introductory Ecology. (Crosslisted with Zoology) I, II; 3 cr (B-E). For nonbiology students: the relationships of organisms and the environment. Population dynamics and community organization, human-environment relationships, action programs. P: Open to Fr. Does not count toward Botany or Zoology major.
305 Principles of Plant Structure. II; 4 cr (B-I). Principles of plant structure focusing on major organ systems (roots, stems, leaves) of flowering plants, but including relevant examples from other plant groups. Structural adaptation of plants living in unusual environments; comparison of reproductive structures in terrestrial plants; lecture and lab. P: Intro crse in botany.
330 Algae. I; 3 cr (b-B-I). Introduction to ecology, evolution, systematics, taxonomy, physiology, biochemistry, cell biology, and molecular biology of freshwater, terrestrial and marine algae. Lecture and lab. Lab emphasis on techniques for identification, culture, analysis of growth and reproduction, and community composition assessment. P: 5-cr intro botany crse or cons inst.
332 Fungi. (Crosslisted with Pl Path) II; 4 cr (B-I). Growth, development, variability and dispersal of saprophytic, parasitic, and symbiotic fungi, with a consideration of their ecological and economic significance. P: A 5 cr intro crse in botany.
339 Plant Biotechnology: Principles and Techniques I. (Crosslisted with Agronomy, Hort) I; 4 cr (I). Theoretical and practical training in plant biotechnology including molecular biology, protein biochemistry and basic bioinformatic techniques used in fundamental and applied research on plants. Valuable hands-on training to those interested in careers in biotechnology. P: Bot/Zoo 152 or equiv & Chem 104 or equiv.
340 Plant Biotechnology: Principles and Techniques II. (Crosslisted with Agronomy, Hort) II; 4 cr (I). Theoretical and practical training in plant biotechnology including plant-cell and tissue culture, plant genetic engineering, experimental design and statistical analysis used in fundamental and applied research on plants. Valuable hands-on training to those interested in careers in biotechnology. P: Agronomy 339.
350 Introduction to Plant Physiology. Irr.; 3 cr (B-I). Plant behavior with emphasis on the organismal physiology of higher green plants and on plants in relation to natural and man-made environments. Intended for undergraduates. Not appropriate for botany majors. Three lectures per week. P: 5 cr intro crse in botany or equiv; 1 sem of college chem.
360 Bryophytes. Irr.; 3 cr (B-I). Ecology, evolution, systematics, taxonomy, physiology, biochemistry, cell biology, and molecular biology of mosses, liverworts, and hornworts. Lecture and lab. Lab focuses on techniques for identification, laboratory and horticultural cultivation, and use of bryophytes as model systems in plant cell biology. P: 5 cr intro botany crse or cons inst.
400 Plant Systematics. I; 4 cr (B-I). Plant systematics; the integration of taxonomy (identification, nomenclature, classification emphasizing flowering plants), evolution (speciation, reproductive biology, adaptation, convergence, biogeography), and phylogenetics (phenetics, cladistics, morphology and molecules). Lab emphasis on representative families and genera of flowering plants in Wisconsin, use of keys and manuals, plant collection. Recommended for botany majors; lecture and lab. P: A 5 cr intro crse in botany.
401 Vascular Flora of Wisconsin. II or SS; 4 cr (B-I). Taxonomic survey of the vascular plants of Wisconsin, with emphasis on the angio-sperms. Lecture, lab and field work. P: A 5 cr intro col crse in bot or equiv.
402 Dendrology. (Crosslisted with Forest) I; 2 cr (B-I). Identification, ranges, uses, and some ecological characteristics of evergreen and deciduous woody plants, both native and cultivated; lab and field work. P: A 5 cr intro college crse in bot or equiv.
403 Field Collections and Identification. I, SS; 1-4 cr (B-A). Students consult the instructor in the spring or summer for equipment and directions for making a plant collection in summer or fall. P: Bot 400 or 401. Open only to students who have made collections during the summer or will be making collections in early fall.
410 Evolutionary Biology. (Crosslisted with Zoology, Anthro) II; 3 cr (B-I). Evolutionary biology, emphasizing how modern scientists study evolution. Topics include: nature and mechanisms of microevolution, macroevolution, adaptation, speciation; systematics and taxonomy; quantitative genetics and measurement of natural selection; phylogenetic analyses of behavior, physiology, morphology, biochemistry; current controversies in evolution. P: An elem course in zool or botany & So st; Genetics/Botany/Zool 160 or 466 recommended.
422 Plant Geography. II; 3 cr (B-I). Biogeography of plants. Relationship to climate and geology; paleobiogeography, vicariance and island biogeography; history and distribution of floras of North America and Wisconsin; lecture and demo lab; open to advanced students in the natural sciences. P: A crse in plant taxonomy is highly recommended.
430 Tropical Plant Diversity. I; 3 cr (B-D). An introduction to tropical botany, emphasizing patterns and determinants of plant diversity, sampling strategies, plant identification techniques, features of important tropical plant families, and ethnobotanical and conservation issues. Emphasis will be on the New World tropics. P: A 5 cr intro botany crse. Botany 400 or 422 recommended.
450 Midwestern Ecological Issues: A Case Study Approach. (Crosslisted with Zoology) II; 2 cr (B-I). This web course explores how ecological principles can be used to address contemporary environmental issues such as water quality, invasive species, and population growth. Emphasis on midwestern issues, practical approaches, the role of history, and geographic context. P: Intro biology crse, interest in solving problems.
455 The Vegetation of Wisconsin. (Crosslisted with Forest) I; 4 cr (B-I). Ecology of Wisconsin plant communities: floristic composition, community structure; relationship to history, climate, soil, and geology; response to human perturbation. Lecture and lab. P: Botany 100, or Botany 130, or Botany/Zoology 151-152, or Biocore 313.
459 Ecological Techniques for Field Monitoring. (Crosslisted with Zoology) SS; 1-2 cr (I). Field techniques to inventory and census plant and animal species and ecological processes and how to assemble these into useful databases. Emphasis on 'keystone' and invading exotic species that strongly affect community dynamics. Aimed at science teachers interested in participating in a monitoring network. P: A crse in ecology (e.g. Botany 450, 460), interest in monitoring, & cons inst.
460 General Ecology. (Crosslisted with Forest, Zoology) I, II; 4 cr (r-B-I). Ecology of individual organisms, populations, communities, ecosystems, landscapes, and the biosphere. The interaction of organisms with each other and their physical environment. These relationships are studied, often in quantitative terms, in both field and laboratory settings; lecture and lab. P: Intro crse in botany & zoology, or Bot/Zoo 151-152, or Biocore 301 or 333; for biol sci majors only.
461 Environmental Systems Concepts. (Crosslisted with Envir St, Forest) II; 3 cr (I-I). A general systems approach to environmental problems: a philosophical-conceptual framework and a quantitative methodology for dealing with critical environmental issues that cross the boundaries of traditional disciplines. The nature of general systems, concepts and laws; the role of perspective in identification of system properties; the structure and behavior of environmental and ecological systems. For students with strong interests in environmental problems. P: Envir St 126 & a crse in biology, or enroll in envir st undergrad progm. Authorization may be required.
463 Environmental Studies in the UNESCO—Biosphere Reserves of the World. (Crosslisted with Envir St) Irr.; 1 cr (I). UNESCO—Biosphere Reserves (ca 340 across 82 countries) contribute greatly to international protection of bio-diversity, and to sustainable development in concert with environmental protection. The course is a seminar in which undergraduates make 25-minute presentations on subtopics, participate in discussion, and write a term paper. Students from fields as diverse as biological aspects of conservation, international relations, political science, botany, zoology, forestry, wildlife ecology, Ibero-American studies, African studies, East Asian studies, European studies and environmental studies should find the course useful. P: Jr st.
466 General Genetics. (Crosslisted with Genetics, Zoology) I, II, SS; 3 cr (B-I). Genetics in eukaryotes and prokaryotes. Includes Mendelian genetics, mapping, molecular genetics, genetic engineering, cytogenetics, quantitative genetics, and population genetics. Illustrative material includes viruses, bacteria, plants, fungi, insects, and humans. P: Algebra, 1 yr chem & 1 yr biology or cons inst.
468 Patterns in Biological Design: An Introduction to Systems Biology. Odd yrs.; II; 3 cr (B-I). Holistic systems and biological design. Intuitive verbal models not mathematical techniques. Topics: scale problems; architecture of biological form; models for control, growth, and transport; general systems philosophy, theory of models, levels of organization, continuous versus catastrophic change; biological paradigms. P: So st; computer experience recommended. Any intro botany crse; Math 101.
473 Plant-Insect Interactions. (Crosslisted with Entom, Zoology) Alt yrs.; II; 3 cr (B-I). Multiple ways in which arthropods exploit plants, plant traits that deter or augment insects, environmental mediation of these interactions, effects on population dynamics, community ecology and co-evolution, and implications to natural resource management, environmental quality, and sustainable development. P: One of the following: Bot/For/Zoo 460, Ent/Pl Path/For 500, Pl Path/Bot 505, Forestry 550, or Entom 342.
500 Plant Physiology. II; 3-4 cr (r-B-I). An in-depth look at plant growth, development, respiration, photosynthesis, mineral nutrition, and water relations. For junior, senior and graduate students; not for those who have taken Biocore. In the laboratory, experimental approaches will be used to demonstrate principles described in lecture. 3-credit option (lecture only) available with consent of instructor. P: Intro botany or biology sequence required; organic chem recomm. Undergrads must enroll for 4 cr (lec & lab); Grads may enroll for 3 cr (lec only) or 4 cr.
505 Plant-Microbe Interactions: Molecular and Ecological Aspects. (Crosslisted with Pl Path, Entom) II; 3 cr (B-D). Molecular and ecological aspects of the interactions between plants and microorganisms. This course explores many of the themes, from genetic to integrative, of modern biology, and illustrates how study of plant-microbe interactions contributes to understanding of fundamental plant science. P: An upper level crse in microbiol (e.g. Microbio 303); biochem (e.g. Biochem 501); & genetics (e.g. Genetics 466) or cons inst.
561 Introductory Cytogenetics. (Crosslisted with Genetics, Hort) II; 2-3 cr (B-I). Mitosis, meiosis, variations in chromosome structure and number, cytological aspects of hybridity and apomixis; chromosomes as they affect breeding behavior. P: Genetics, Botany, Zoology 466 or cons inst.
563 Phylogenetic Analysis of Molecular Data. II; 3 cr (B-D). A course in the theory and practice of phylogenetic inference from DNA sequence data. P: A crse in genetics/evolution/systematics & a crse in stats/probability, or cons inst.
575 Special Topics. Irr.; 1-3 cr (B-I). Topics of interest to undergraduates, taught as the need arises. P: Cons inst.
620 Plant Pathogenic Fungi. (Crosslisted with Pl Path) Even yrs.; II; 3 cr (B-D). Review of taxonomic systems used for the identification of major groups of plant pathogenic fungi. Cytology and morphology of plant pathogenic fungi and histopathology of host-pathogen relations. P: Pl Path 300 & 332.
621 Plant Biochemistry. (Crosslisted with Biochem) I; Odd yrs.; 3 cr (B-A). Lectures. Biochemistry of photosynthesis, respiration, and other metabolic and biosynthetic processes in plants. P: Biochem 501 or 602 or cons inst.
626 Mineral Nutrition of Plants. (Crosslisted with Soil Sci, Hort) Even yrs.; I; 3 cr (A). Essential and beneficial elements, solutions and soil as nutrient sources, rhizosphere chemistry, nutritional physiology, ion uptake and translocation, functions of elements, nutrient interactions, genetics of plant nutrition. P: Botany 350 or cons inst.
651 Conservation Biology. (Crosslisted with Envir St, Wl Ecol, Zoology) II; 3 cr (r-D). The application of ecological and genetic principles to problems concerning genetic, species, and community diversity. Topics include the hazards of rarity, choice and monitoring of indicator species, population viability analysis, habitat fragmentation, reserve design, and population recovery programs. P: An ecology crse (eg, Botany/Zool 460) and genetics (eg, Genetics/ Zool 466).
655 Biology and Genetics of Filamentous Fungi. (Crosslisted with Pl Path, Microbio, Genetics, MM&I) Odd yrs.; II; 3-4 cr (A). Fungal genetics, genomics, and physiology using plant pathogenic fungi and the genetic models Aspergillus nidulans and Neurospora crassa as model systems to explore the current knowledge of fungal genetics and plant/fungal interactions. P: Cons inst; Pl Path 300 & 332 recommended; Genetics 466 or equiv; general microbiol crse.
670 Adaptive Restoration Lab. (Crosslisted with Land Arc) I; 2 cr (A). Field experience in restoration as an adaptive process involving field experimentation; baseline data collection on restoration sites; design of experiments to advance restoration science; quantitative evaluation of restoration outcomes. Analysis and interpretation of data; development of a team report. P: a crse in ecology & a crse in stats, or cons inst.
681 Senior Honors Thesis. I, II, SS; 3 cr (A). P: Cons inst.
682 Senior Honors Thesis. I, II, SS; 3 cr (A). P: Cons inst.
691 Senior Thesis. I, II, SS; 2-3 cr (A). Introduction to botanical research; if possible, plans for the thesis program should be made by the close of the junior year.
692 Senior Thesis. I, II, SS; 2-3 cr (A). Continuation of 691.
698 Directed Study. I, II, SS; 1-4 cr (A). P: Jr or Sr st. Graded on a Cr/N basis; requires cons inst.
699 Directed Study. I, II, SS; 1-4 cr (A). P: Jr or Sr st. Graded on a lettered basis; requires cons inst.