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I. BETWEEN OE & THE WERTHEIM
CONSERVATORY
Horsetail (Equisetum )
• 
a.k.a. scouring rush
• 
name arose from the Latin
–  equus = horse
–  seta = bristle
• 
grow up to ~20 feet
• 
primarily stem
• 
tiny scale-like leaves at jointed nodes
on the stem
• 
cell walls made of silica
–  used to clean pots
strobilus
Lichens
• 
Lichens - symbiotic associations between what
two organisms?
• 
3 types:
1.  crustose
•  grows close to substrate
2.  foliose
•  adhere to substrate in sheets
3.  fructiose
•  grow away from substrate with erect
stalks
• 
What type is present on the tree outside WC?
Foliose Lichen
Encephalartos ferox
• 
cycad
• 
native to Southeast Africa (Mozambique)
–  stems are used as a source of food
Dioecious
–  What does dioecious mean?
• 
• 
Is this plant an angiosperm or gymnosperm?
How can you tell?
• 
Why are cycads referred to as living fossils?
Oak leaf fern (Drynaria quercifolia)
• 
Evergreen (what does that mean?)
• 
Epiphytic (what does that mean?)
• 
What is the function of the Nest leaves?
Identify the two leaf types
• Nest leaves (brown)
• Fertile fronds
Used in Chinese medicine to heal damaged
bones and ligaments
genus Drynaria = mender of shattered
bones in Chinese
Resurrection fern (Polypodium polypodioides)
Epiphyte - but what does it mean?
What plant is it on?
Locate the sori
Why is it called a resurrection fern?
II. WERTHEIM CONSERVATORY
Giant/King Fern (Angiopteris)
• 
native to Southeast Asia
• 
primitive fern
• 
Large erect woody rhizome (up to 1m in
height and width)
• 
fronds >6m in length
Mosses & Liverworts
Where are these plants normally found?
How do these plants differ structurally from ferns? gymnosperms? angiosperms?
Peacock fern (Selaginella uncinata)
Native to China
What color is it?
Where is it mostly found?
–  How does its color relate to the environment in which it is found?
Malaysian Orchid (Medinilla myriantha)
• 
Native to the Phillipines
• 
semi-epiphytic
• 
pink flowers produced throughout the summer
and spring
• 
can grow up to 6 feet tall
Pitcher plant (Nepenthes mirabilis)
• 
Tropical
• 
Carnivorous
–  What type of organisms do you think it feeds on?
• 
Pitcher
–  deep cavity containing liquid = pitfall trap
–  organisms attracted to the pitcher by color or nectar
bribes
Vanilla Orchid (Vanilla planifolia)
• 
climbing orchid/vine
• 
has a sweet scent
• 
opens in the morning and closes at night, never to open again
• 
used by the Aztecs for its flavoring qualities
Chocolate tree (Theobroma cacao)
• 
• 
This is where chocolate comes from!!!
Native to South America, especially the Andes
•  Theobroma means “Food of the Gods”
•  So precious the seeds were used as
currency
•  Brought to Europe by Christopher
Columbus
•  Used for medicinal purposes
• As a diuretic
• As an emolient (good for dry skin)
• Causes release of endorphins and serotonin---> Feels good
•  Its flowers are pollinated by midges (tiny flies)
West Indian tree fern (Cyathea arborea)
It’s an exotic
–  Native to the West Indies
How is the trunk different from other plants that you’ve seen?
– Is it really a trunk?
Maidenhair fern (Adiantum capillis-veneris)
•  Used to make drinks and for medicinal purposes
•  Mostly found on rocks
•  Is it similar or different in structures to other ferns?
How?
Brake fern (Pteris tripartita)
It’s an exotic
– Native to Africa, Indonesia and Marquesas
Why is it called tripartita?
IV. FROM WERTHEIM TO THE
PRESERVE
Bald cypress (Taxodium distictium)
• 
The bald cypress is a deciduous conifer.
•  What does this mean?
• 
Trees make a dome
–  oldest tree in middle and younger shorter trees on periphery
Where on the tree are the male cones?
What about the female cones?
Why are they positioned as such?
What are the function of pneumatophores?
pneumatophores
Fig tree (Ficus)
• 
Can be either invasive/native
• 
Ficus aurea is the native species of Florida = Florida
Strangler Fig
–  Grows like a vine on a host tree and as it grows
its aerial roots eventually kills (strangles) the host
tree
• 
Waxy leaves retain moisture
• 
Sacred in certain religions/culture
–  Islam, East Asia and Buddhism
Bottlebrush Tree (Callistemon rigidus)
•  Native to Australia
•  Evergreen
•  Blooms during spring and summer
with bright purple, pink and red
flowers
•  What purpose do the brightly
colored flowers serve?
•  Why are they called Bottlebrush
tree?
Royal Poinciana (Delonix rejia)
• 
Native to Madagascar
–  grow up to 40 feet tall
–  blooms in the summer for 4-8 weeks
• 
It’s leguminous. What does this mean?
•  Why do you think this tree is called the flamboyant tree?
Staghorn Fern (Platycerium holtummii)
• 
Native to jungles in Africa, Madagascar,
Australia and Asia
• 
Epiphytic
• 
Doesn’t need soil
– 
get nutrition from the air
Gumbo limbo (Bursera simaruba)
•  It’s bark can cause skin irritation
– Has been used as an antidote to poisonwood reaction
– Thought to be able to cure gout
•  Notice the bark of this tree
– What color is it?
• What is the benefit of having a bark that color?
– What texture is it?
•  Why do you think it is called the tourist tree?
Cardboard cycad (Zamia furfuracea)
Female Cone
• 
Native to Mexico
• 
Dioecious
• 
Pollinated by beetles
• 
Fruit is poisonous if ingested
•  causes liver and kidney failure
Male Cone
Cabbage palmetto (Sabal palmetto)
strangler
• 
Florida’s state tree
• 
Native to the US, Cuba and the Bahamas
• 
Can grow in all types of conditions
–  extremely salt-tolerant
• 
terminal bud was eaten by Native Americans in
heart of palm salad
– 
• 
doing this kills the tree
Seminole Indians of Florida use the fronds to
create chickee huts
West Indian mahogany (Swietenia mahagoni)
• 
In what field is the product of this tree used?
• 
What mechanism do the seeds use for dispersal?
• 
Found in South Florida and the Caribbean
• 
It is semi-deciduous. What does this
mean?
• 
These trees can get up to 75 feet tall
and usually form canopies.
Dade County slash pine (Pinus elliotti var. densa)
Female Cone
Male Cones
• 
Native to Florida
• 
Pollinated by wind
•  female cone develops from the male cone
• 
These trees are fire-dependent. Why?
• 
What happens if they are not burnt?
• 
What is the terminal bud? What does this signify?
• 
Where on the tree are the male cones? What about the female cones? Which are larger?
• 
What mechanism do the seeds use for dispersal?
V. FIU PRESERVE
Brazilian pepper(Schinus terebinthifolius)
***DON’T TOUCH THIS PLANT IF YOU ARE ALLERGIC TO MANGOES,
POISON IVY OR POISON OAK***
• 
Invasive species
–  native to Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil
–  introduced as an ornamental in the 1800s
–  one of Florida’s most aggressive invaders
–  state spends about $200 million to get rid of it
3.  pinch leaves and smells like pepper
•  Why is this plant also referred to as the Christmas berry tree?
•  Look at the leaves
– Is the leaf arrangement simple or compound?
– Is the leaf structure palmate, pinnate or parallel?
Wild coffee (Psychotria nervosa)
•  Can grow in sun or shade, but doesn’t tolerate cold climates
•  Can you see the fruit (red) or flower (white)?
– Its fruit contains caffeine and was once used as a
coffee substitute
– Fruit is eaten by cardinals and blue jays
•  What kind of leaves does it have?
– Simple or compound?
– What kind of leaf arrangement?
Shoebutton ardesia (Ardisia elliptica)
• 
Invasive species
–  from Asia
–  introduced as an ornamental in
the 1900s
–  lost control in the 1930s
–  trying to eradicate the plant by
cutting the stump and applying
a herbicide
• 
reaches about 17 feet in height
• 
tolerant to shade
• 
black rounded fruit (drupe) eaten by
birds and mammals
Pigeon plum (Coccoloba diversifolia)
• Salt and wind tolerant
• The purple fruit is eaten by birds and mammals
– Can you see any fruit?
•  Examine the leaves
– Why do you think the species name is diversifolia?
– Are all the leaves the same size?
– How do leaf sizes vary with leaf location on the branch?
– Is the leaf arrangement simple or compound?
– Is the leaf structure palmate, pinnate or parallel?
Coontie (Zamia floridiana)
• S. FL native cycad
• Living fossil
• Produces toxins that affect the nervous and gastrointestinal
systems
– Only the Attala butterfly, its pollinator, can withstand
the toxins.
• Has been used by Seminoles to make sauces
• 
Can you see the strobili?
Jamaican nettletree (Trema micrantha)
The wood is used to make matches
•  How are the leaves arranged:
– Simple or compound?
– Alternate, opposite or whorled?
– Are they rough or soft?
Boston/Sword fern (Nephrolepis biserrata; in front of OE 163/164)
• tropical fern
• not native to Boston
• Why is the species name biserrata? How is this related to its common name?
• How are the sori arranged?
Marsh fern(Thelpteris palustris; in front of OE 163/164)
• delicate and soft fronds produced from a dense
web of rhizomes
• Why is it called the marsh fern?
• How are the sori arranged?
Sea grape (Coccoloba uvifera)
•  Evergreen
– What kind of leaf arrangement does it have?
•  Salt and water tolerant
•  Dioecious
– female tree bears fruit
– Can you tell whether your tree is female or male?
•  Applications
– fruit can be eaten or used to make jelly
– wood is boiled to make red dye in West Indies
– gum from bark is used to treat throat ailments
– roots are used to treat dysentery
Hardwood Hammock
• 
area of hardwood trees including oak, hickory, maple, mahogany, sabal palm, pigeon plum, cocoa
plum, gumbo limbo and tamarind trees, etc.
– 
Why are there few pine trees in a hardwood hammock?
• 
often grown on land higher than surrounding areas
• 
form dense canopies
• 
ferns and mosses are able to thrive in the shaded areas
Wart fern (Microsorum scolopendria; in front of OE 165)
native to southeast Asia
• Why is it called the wart fern?
• How are the sori arranged?
• How do they compare in size to the Boston and Marsh ferns?
Phylum Pterophyta: Ferns
Define the following terms:
monoecious
rhizomes
frond
sorus