Scott's Botanical Links
Leigh's Links -- October 1997
Scott's Botanical Links Oklahoma
Past Links:
- October 31, 1997 - Beyond...the Black Stump
- Here's an internet wonder-link from the master, Scott
himself, who has lost no time in finding Australia's most sizzling site, with its
electrifying 10,000 external links to living in Australia and living in general. Find out
anything, from football ("footy") to El Niņo, along with plenty of plant
details from Australian Plants Online ( what a coincidence! ) and the gardening
section, or by hopping over to "the Stump's" hometown in Nillumbik for a look at
how to manage the native plant life there. What does "Beyond the Black Stump" mean?
As far as I know, 'Beyond The Black Stump' is an Australian expression which
means 'remoteness.' It generally indicates something is a long way away and in
the middle of nowhere (in the boondocks?). Apparently there
was a telephone exchange in the Merriwagga/Griffith area called Black Stump and legend has
it that in 1886 a woman named Barbara Blair was incinerated in a bushfire. When her
husband returned he found her charred remains and sadly described her form as resembling a
black stump and the name stuck, " writes the creator of this site, Peter Garriga,
Nillumbik, Australia (****) -LF
- October 30, 1997 - Drysdale Seed Company
- In times when the hardware store is fresh out of Isatis
tinctoria isatis seeds or when there's just not enough species diversity in your
backyard turned native prairie, it's good to know about companies like the Drysdales'
which carries over 5000 seeds and probably will be able to find whatever isn't in stock.
They'll send a free e-mail catalog in addition to which are selections available from the
Universal Seedbank listings, the Native American Plants Seedbank and the Native American
Grasses Seedbank. Check out the Kool Seeds of the Month
and cool links to Botanical.com, featuring Mrs. M. Grieve's 1931 herbal, or to Arizona
Cactus and Succulent Research, Inc. whose botanical garden cultivates 800 species of
high desert plant life to study their value for southwestern landscaping. Drysdale
Seed Company pages are bound to put a smile in your heart and are produced by Robert
and Jean Drysdale, Arnold, Missouri.(****) -LF
- October 29, 1997 - Plants and People (BOTN 328)
- A perfect follow up to Plants and Human Affairs is
a review of the world's important plants associated with their botanical names and the
properties which make them valuable. Plants and People introduces the additional
concepts of vegetative morphology needed to distinguish and recognize plants using Taxonomy
of Flowering Plants course drawings supplemented with very effective photo images in
the Lab Topics. Following the origins of agriculture and breeding, the Lecture Notes
outline the economically important plants, and end with the future of agriculture and a
good set of links. Your class project ? Prepare or obtain an unusual food, understand
what's in it and consume it! No problem, except in defining "unusual!" This
course is by James R. Manhart, Biology Department, Texas A & M University, College
Station, Texas. (****) -LF
- October 28, 1997 - Fire Effects Information System (FEIS)
- The central purpose of FEIS is to provide fire effects data,
but it is also a very useful database for obtaining ecological information on individual
plant and wildlife species. A typical entry for a plant species provides a description of
its general botanical charcteristics, regeneration processes, site characteristics,
successional status, seasonal development, and references. Find great information on
sixteen vegetation associations in the entries according to "Kuch Type ."
Kuchler Type descriptions include physiography, climate, soils, associated vegetation,
wildlife, and ecological relationships. FEIS was developed at the USDA Forest Service
Intermountain Research Station's Fire Sciences Laboratory (IFSL) in Missoula, Montana, and
is maintained by the Intermountain Region computer staff. (****) -LF
- October 27, 1997 -
Plants and Human Affairs (BIO 207)
- This is a neat course in practical botany for non-science
majors, which uses plants to teach the fundamentals of life and then provides the
information needed for becoming adept at utilizing plants to their best advantage in
everyday living. The graphics are simply fantastic- clean and crisply labeled to
illustrate the essentials of plant morphology and anatomy, and any of the individual
lectures on roots, stems, leaves, flowers, seeds, etc. serve as excellent introductory
material for further studies. From genetics to compost, this is the material to be
mastered for achieving fulfillment through understanding the earth's primary producers.
Another great site by Ross Koning, Biology Department, Eastern Connecticut State
University, Willimantic, Connecticut. (****) -LF
- October 24, 1997 - The Luther Burbank Home Page
- Having grown up a short distance from the Burbank home in
Santa Rosa, California, the author publishes these pages in tribute to America's
spectacular horticulturist and nurseryman who with no formal science education sought to
improve the world's food supply and introduced more than 800 new varieties of plants
during his career. There are many interesting sections to read of Burbank's out of print
autobiography, The Harvest of the Years, as well as excerpts from A Gardener
Touched with Genius, by Peter Dreyer. Burbank, whose eyes were opened by Darwin, was
criticized and eventually called a fraud by certain segments of the scientific community
who harbored disdain for his record keeping. Burbank said, "I think of myself not as
a Master whose work must die with him, but as a Pioneer who has mapped out certain new
roads and looked down into the Promised Land of Plant Development." Site by Robinson
G. Olmsted, Santa Rosa, California. (****) -LF
- October 23, 1997 - Digital Learning Center for Microbial Ecology
- Microbes are really fun when seen wearing labcoats, reading
the news, and hanging out in Dirtland, the Animal Pavilion, Water World, or the Snack Bar
of this terrific site's Microbial Zoo! The science education project of Michigan State
University packs its pages with stories of the Heroic, Dangerous, Ancient, and Strange,
and headlines like "Plankton toxin drives birds crazy" and "Sinister gangs
of proteins prowl." Who can resist Tales of Amazing Microbes and Curious
Environments? Hats off to the creators cooperating in this project by the Communication
Technology Laboratory, the Center for Microbial Ecology, and the College of Education at
Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan. (****) -LF
- October 22, 1997 - Environmental and Plant Biology Research Resources
- Research and Biodiversity Resource Collections on these
pages feature "Lab Protocols for the Testing of Eastern Deciduous Forest Soils,"
a "Freshwater Algae Database" with images of representatives of various algal
groups, "Confocal Microscopy" for an eye-crossing challenge, and "The
Plasmodiophorid Home Page " to introduce the fungi/protoctists which cause clubroot
and other maladies of economically significant plants. Find also two articles by Brian C.
McCarthy on eastern old-growth forests in the section dedicated to the Dysart Woods Field
Research facility of Ohio University which enjoys a magnificent 455- acre farm with virgin
forest for its laboratory. Hop over to the Welcome page too of this site by Brian C.
McCarthy and Christine J. Small, with contributions by James P. Braselton, Department of
Environmental and Plant Biology, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio. (****) -LF
- October 21,
1997 - AgNIC
- The Agriculture Network Information Center is
filling up with many plant goodies like the Plant Sciences page by the University
of Nebraska, Lincoln, offering a collection of categorized links along with PlantSci
Answers, an online reference service where anyone can ask a PlantSci-related "library
desk" question and receive an answer by e-mail or phone in 1-2 working days. From the
AgNIC Home Page access the alphabetized list of numerous information sets online and the
new ProMED-mail: Plant Diseases Announcements for the latest pathological happenings.
Submit your resource to the AgNIC pages or become a member organization. AgNIC currently
has representatives from the National Agricultural Library and the Cooperative State
Research, Education, and Extension Service of the USDA, Cornell University, Iowa State
University, Michigan State University, Purdue University, Saint Joseph's College, the
American Society for Horticultural Science, the Clearinghouse for Networked Information
Discovery and Retrieval, the National Science Foundation, and network service providers.
(****) -LF
- October 20, 1997 - The Parasitic Plant Connection
- "Everyone's dream should include seeing at least
once the Rafflesia - the largest of all blooms in the world."
Now all may find fulfillment thanks to one botanist's dream
tempered with his systematist's compulsion to organize information at The Parasitic
Plant Connection, where you'll find pages on the families and genera of the
Santalales, Parasites of Dubious Affinity, and Others, a "bubblegram" and
thoughts on their evolution, and for the molecularly-oriented researcher, DNA Sequence
Data, Sequence Alignments, and Ribosomal RNA Structures. Links include The Parasitic
Plant Database, The Haustorium (parasitic plants newsletter), and a
fascinating history of Rafflesia and the trials and tribulations of Raffles and
Lady Sophia. Scientific and educational use of the materials is freely encouraged,
including a gallery of photos deliberately "unembossed" by author Daniel L.
Nickrent, Associate Professor Department of Plant Biology, Southern Illinois University,
Carbondale, Illinois. (****) -LF
- October 17, 1997 - Conservation Science
- Go directly to the Science Library from this "Wired for
Conservation" page to brush up on America's Least Wanted alien species,
threatened aquatic habitats, and the State of the Nation's Species. There's an online
handbook for natural resource managers titled Conserving Biodiversity on Military
Lands (1996) published by the Department of Defense Biodiversity Initiative, The
Department of Defense, and the Nature Conservancy. Watch a quick-time movie on Hydrilla
or purple loosestrife and catch up on the latest issue of Biodiversity Network
News. The Scientific Resources section offers a link page to other biodiversity
servers you'll not want to miss. Find out what every American field biologist needs to
know at this site by The Nature Conservancy, Arlington, Virginia. (****) -LF
- October 16, 1997 - The Vegetation Types of Texas
- If your requisites for travel to a new place are road maps
tucked inside a flora, how keenly you'll appreciate this site displaying a color-keyed map
of The Vegetation Types of Texas as divided into physiognomic regions. Get a
preview of Texas Brushes, Grassland, Shrubs, Parks, Woods, Forests, Marshes, Swamps, and
Crops, with photos and descriptions of the plant associations found in each. A framed page
offers a searchable index referencing Species, County and Eco-Region. Great for comparing
with associations in your own region or region of expertise, or for just getting a look at
some of those plants you hear so much about but have never actually seen. Get your state
going on a site like this today! By Texas Parks and Wildlife, Austin, Texas. (****) -LF
- October 15, 1997 - The Botany Guide
- The Botany Guide is a digest of general interest
botanical topics with regular features containing hyper-linked text and a selection of
briefly annotated links to interesting botanical sites. Currently you'll find Carnation
Cheeks and Beds of Roses, a survey of flowers in classical literature, with thirteen
previous features on the useful and amazing aspects of plants. It is written to introduce
botany with minimal jargon while still being authentic, so a wide audience will appreciate
the work of botanist and Professor of Biology, Bryan Ness, PhD, for The Mining Co.. (****) -LF
- October 14, 1997 - Endemism and Speciation in Orchids of the Mediterranean Isles
- An abridged version of the paper published in Ecologia
Mediterr. 21(1/2): 119-134 summarizes the authors'
investigation of the role of geographic isolation in speciation and endemism of orchids in
isles and archipelagos of the Mediterranean. Entries for species by region note
relationships to other taxa, accompanied by a collection of imaggini. Of interest
to taxonomists, phytogeographers, or just plain wild orchid lovers, this site is prepared
and maintained by Carlo del Prete, Orto Botanico Universitā di Modena, Italy. (****) -LF
- October 13, 1997 - Australian National Botanic Gardens
- Easily a Best of the Best Botanical Garden Sites, here is an
engaging presentation of Australian plant life, its cultivation and uses. There are
fifteen papers for the serious botanist, a number of images which can be searched by
family, along with botanical art, info on growing and grafting Australian plants, animals
in the Garden, and a tour. The Use of Plants by Australian Aboriginals reveals
the ingenuity of a people who thought to roast the spore cases of Marsilea, discard
the case and bake the spores into cakes! The outstanding content of these pages is easy to
access and an admirably planned contribution to public education by Murray Fagg and the
Australian National Botanic Gardens, Canberra, Australia. (****) -LF
- October 10, 1997 - Green Landscaping with Native Plants
- Fed up with chemically intensive, physically
exhausting, time consuming, or worse, expensive lawn maintenance? Turn over a new
leaf and join the natural landscaping movement that has folks in the Great Lakes Basin
exchanging their manicured turf for eco-politically correct prairie and forest with the Wild
Ones Handbook, online along with lots of other info on making your lot not just a
yard, but a habitat!. Learn the art of wattle fences, read case histories of successful
restorations, and follow some really cool links to places like The Tallgrass Prairie
in Illinois and Plants of the Great Lakes Region. This site is presented by
Danielle Green and USEPA - Great Lakes National Program Office, Chicago, Illinois. (****) -LF
- October 9, 1997 - The Science Guide: Organizing the World Wide Web of Science
- Here's a wide open territory to submit your science resource
as the presently developing Science Guide presents an ambitious index for the
sciences. Offering daily science news also available by e-mail, the Guide's content
also includes a Directory of Directories, Usenet and Discussion Lists, Grants and Funding
Resources, Scientific Employment Sources, and a Journal Directory which notes entries
containing abstracts only or full text. Thirty-five online journal texts are listed now in
the Biology and Biotechnology section, so there is plenty of good reading available along
with links to weekly and monthly news in various subject areas. Definitely a place to keep
abreast of the times, find good sites, and get listed! Site produced by the Science
Guide. (****) -LF
- October 8, 1997 - NCSU Aquatic Botany Laboratory
- With its primary research mission to study the effects
of eutrophication on freshwater, marine, and estuarine habitats, this NCSU lab has become
the principal authority for identification of Pfiesteria piscicida (along with Dr. K. Steidinger, Florida
Marine Research Institute), and for confirmation of epizootic disease events in the
mid-Atlantic and southeastern United States. Get all the important information here on
this toxic dinoflagellate which has its own homepage and image gallery, both first-class.
The Life Cycle of Pfiesteria is not to be missed! View the abstracts for
a number of papers downloadable with your own ftp software. Find also a homepage for
eelgrass, Zostera marina, and two downloadable papers, one on the effects of
nutrient-loading on periphyton communities in impoundments, the other on freshwater stream
flatrock macrophyte studies. Site by the North Carolina State (NCSU) Aquatic Botany
Laboratory, Raleigh, NC. (****) -LF
- October 7, 1997 -
Princeton High School AP Biology Page
- These pages provide very well-chosen links for both AP
Biology students and teachers, in a basic outline covering Evolution, Genetics, Bonds,
Biomolecules, Cells (lots here), Cell Respiration, Plants, and Animals. The plant section
has what you need to know about biological nitrogen fixation, organization of stem and
root tissue in monocots and dicots, and photosynthesis. This is a happening place to
review for the AP Biology Test! Surfing around to a variety of pages each with a different
approach and style really beats staring at the same old notes over and over. In the
absence of more explicit page identification or e-mail, this great place to study is
attributed to Princeton High School. (****) -LF
- October 6, 1997 - USDA/NRCS PLANTS
Photo Gallery
- The gallery is open, at least partially, and as far as can
be told, with somewhere around a thousand images which may be utilized for non-commercial
purposes if cited. Categories with contents are Wetlands, Trees, Shrubs, Forbs, and
Grasses. You'll not find Noxious Plants, Crops, Liverworts, Mosses, Lichens or Hornworts.
After choosing a category you must not only know what you're looking for, but be prepared
to second-guess the search engine or "view all." Up to fifteen thumbnails per
numbered sheet will be displayed by so choosing and there is no indication as to what may
be on each sheet. The Wetlands category was tested with "foxtail" and
"foxtail grasses" with no return. Results were obtained using the genus setaria,
though the genus search engine displays plants with "a family name like
setaria." Someone might have noticed this by now. No returns were obtained
in the Wetlands category for common name searches for "rush, sedge, willow, cypress,
saw grass, sawgrass, water lily, lotus, mallow, cattail, or water lettuce." The
national PLANTS database employs a team of twenty for this internet project, and budget
constraints are a factor. However, the gallery has not been updated since March 1997, and
though many of the photos are nice, though often parsimonious in their features, it
wouldn't hurt to unlink the sections that contain nothing and put a little notation
somewhere as to when they might become available. Also, how about a viewable index of what
may hiding on those 74(?) sheets? Site by the United States Department of Agriculture
Natural Resources Conservation Service. (***) -LF
- October 3, 1997 - The Cyclamen Society
- The Cyclamen Society, with 1400 members worldwide
combines scientific study of the genus with the traditional activities of a plant society.
Expeditions have been conducted in Turkey, Israel, and Greece under the auspices of
relevant botanical institutions or governments to map distribution, record morphological
data, and make collections of this small genus which has species flowering every month of
the year. You'll find the field notes on-site, along with comprehensive information about
all the nineteen Cyclamen species, a key, descriptions, beautiful photos, plus complete
information on cultivation and propagation, sources of plants and seed, and Bibliography.
If you become enamored of these lovely Primulaceae which bloom in snow melt water, don't
overlook the benefits of membership & how to join! Site by Martyn Denney, Cyclamen
Society, UK. (****) -LF
- October 2, 1997 - Mycorrhizae
- Introducing the fine points of mycorrhizae just couldn't get
any better! A section on seven types of mycorrhizae offers a description and references
for each, including the new feature Vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizae (VAM). This relates
to the author's research, the benefits of mycorrhizal relationships to crop plants and
their application to sustainable agriculture. He provides the course outline for Crop
Ecology, which can be accessed through the homepage of the Mycorrhizae Research Group, and
a sustainable ag page which links to the Caribbean IPM Group. What a site to supplement
the concept of symbiosis! These very good-looking pages are produced by Dr. L.E. Chinnery,
Department of Biological and Chemical Sciences, The University of the West Indies,
Bridgetown, Barbados. (****) -LF
- October 1, 1997 - Forage Information System (FIS)
- -FIS is being developed at the Department of Crop & Soil
Science, Oregon State University. Corvallis, Oregon. David Hannaway coordinates computer
scientists, media and graphics arts professionals, forage specialists around the world,
journalists, and students to compile the repository which is organized in eight sections:
What's New, Contents, Search, Topics, Resources, Classes, Organizations, and Projects.
Here is a site returning literal hayloads of information on species of grasses, legumes,
forbs, shrubs, and, hay of course, along with pastures, silage, crops, quality, statistics
and economics info. Go for it! Additionally find under the topic "Grasses" an
online copy of Agriculture Handbook 170, Grass Varieties in the United States, a
compendium with entries per variety containing its history and development, intended use,
and description . Thanks, David. FIS, Oregon State University. Corvallis, Oregon. (****) -LF
