264 APPENDIX 



teaching scientific thinking and certain problems will be suggested 

 in some of the following paragraphs. 



Laboratory versus Field Work.— Plant ecology is preeminently a 

 field subject. Most phases of it can be studied successfully only in 

 the field. Students of ecology should, therefore, spend just as much 

 time as possible in the field where the plants are at home. There are 

 some phases of ecology, however, such as ecological anatomy, that 

 can best be studied in the laboratory and this should be done when 

 the weather is too inclement for field work. Except during the 

 severest part of the winter the weather is seldom so inclement that 

 field work cannot be done. It is good practice to tell students at 

 the beginning of the course that all field trips will be taken as 

 planned regardless of the weather. This is the only way to avoid 

 complaints and absences on account of the weather for the weather 

 is seldom exactly right and if one waits to take his field trips on days 

 when the climatic conditions are satisfactory to everyone he is not 

 likely to do much field work. 



Field Work in Winter.— No great amount of work can be accom- 

 plished on a field trip unless the students are reasonably comfortable, 

 but if they can be induced to dress in such a way as to remain com- 

 fortable much profitable field work can be done during the winter 

 months. ]\Iost students are surprised to find that there are many 

 plants in addition to evergreen trees that remain green all winter 

 and one or more trips may be made to find rosette plants and others 

 that are "winter greens." A good trip can be planned for the study 

 of the growth habits of stems, especially if a visit to a greenhouse 

 may be included. The greenhouse will also offer opportunity for 

 studying variations in size, form, and arrangement of leaves. 

 Profitable trips may also be made, out of doors, to study the resting 

 condition of various kinds of plants with special reference to pro- 

 tection against loss of water, and to study such symbiotic phenomena 

 as are evident in winter. 



Suggested Problems 



1 . To discover what plants remain green during the winter season. 



2. To discover whether "winter greens" are more abundant on 

 uplands or on lowlands. 



3. To find how many variations in stem habits there are on the 

 campus and in the greenhouses. 



4. To find how many variations in size, shape, and arrangement 



