Where Science meets Art.
The Department of Botany, St. Francis College for Women, in this endeavour, digitizes the plant specimens pleasing to the eye. To make an easy referral to the vast collection present in the Botany Lab, this plant museum introduces, even to the commoner, various species under the groups Fungi, Algae, Lichens, Bryophytes, Pteridophytes, Gymnosperms, Angiosperms, Plant Pathology and Ecology. Perusal helps one and all to take a closer look at the bounty in nature.
The fungi constitute a unique kingdom of heterotrophic organisms. They show a great diversity in morphology and habitat. You must have seen fungi on moist bread and rotten fruits. The common mushroom you eat and toadstools are also fungi. White spots seen on mustard leaves are due to a parasitic fungus. Some unicellular fungi, e.g., yeast are used to make bread and beer. Other fungi cause diseases in plants and animals; wheat rust-causing Puccinia is an important example. Some are the source of antibiotics, e.g., Penicillium. Fungi are cosmopolitan and occur in air, water, soil and on animals and plants. They prefer to grow in warm and humid places.
Lichens are plantlike organisms that are a symbiotic association between algae and fungi. They are found around the world and are of mainly three types: Foliose, Fruticose and Crustose. Foliose lichens have flat leaf-like lobes. Crustose are crustlike and are tightly attached to the substratum. Fruticose lichen appear like branching tubes. Lichens are a source of nutrition for many animals and their absence acts as an indicator of high air pollution.
Pteridophytes are vascular plants which reproduce through spores. Ferns and lycophytes can be found under this taxonomic division. The body of the sporophytic plant is well differentiated into root, stem and leaf. They are considered to be more evolved than bryophytes but not as developed as gymnosperms.
Bryophytes(Gr: brúon- moss phutón- plant) are non-vascular, seedless plants commonly having a moist habitat. It is a taxonomic division comprising Mosses and Liverworts. They are considered to be more evolved than algae but still not as developed as Pteridophytes.
Gymnosperms are vascular plants that reproduce by means of an exposed seed, or ovule. Its naked seeds can be found on special structures called cones. This group consists of both trees and shrubs such as pine trees and gnetum. They are considered to be more evolved than pteridophytes but not as developed as angiosperms.
The angiosperms, identified as the flowering plants, belong to one of the vital groups of plants having seeds. The word angiosperm has been derived from Greek words where angeion stands for “receptacle” and sperma means “seed”. It is worth mentioning here that massive diversity can be found in the morphology, anatomy, chemistry, reproductive cycles and sizes of the angiosperms as compared to the other species in the Plant Kingdom.
Plant pathology is the science that studies the causes of plant diseases, the mechanisms by which diseases develop in individual plants and in plant populations, and the ways by which plant diseases can be controlled or managed. In our museum, you will be introduced to various common diseases observed in plants with their symptoms. You will also get an idea on how these diseases affect the yield of commercial crops. A few botanical terms have also been explained for a better understanding of the disease.
Explore "ecology," the most fascinating section of our museum. Ecology is the study of changes or adaptations that a plant undergoes as a result of its surroundings. The study of anatomical, behavioral, and physiological adaptations falls under this category.
