CS 053-L Syllabus

Fall 2010

Instructors:                                    Office:                          Email:

Dustin F. Lewis                      4401 Williams Hall       dustin_lewis@ncsu.edu

Matt D. Jeffries                      4407 Williams Hall         mdjeffri@ncsu.edu

Office Hours: As requested by appointment

Section      Instructor                   Day/Time                     Location

201              Dustin Lewis      Wed. 3:35-5:25pm      2104 Williams

202              Matt Jeffries       Thur. 1:30-3:20pm       2104 Williams

203              Dustin Lewis      Thur. 3:35-5:25pm       2104 Williams

Required Text: Turfgrass Pest Management Manual: $12.00

Available in Williams 2409

Course Objectives:

1.   Understand the characteristics of weeds that lead to their competitive nature and success in a range of environments.

2.  Learn to identify common weeds of turfgrass and ornamentals, their lifecycles, dissemination, and problems associated with their presence.

3.  Gain a basic knowledge of herbicide chemistry (i.e. herbicide families, mode of action).

4.  Obtain proficient herbicide calibration/application skills.

Testing:

Students will be expected to correctly identify plants (any stage or condition, within reason) and correctly spell common names as per the list provided. Weed ID and calibration quizzes will begin on the 3rd meeting and continue until all weeds on the species list are covered. Each quiz will contain at least 10 plant specimens and/or calibration problems. All quizzes and tests will be comprehensive of weeds and calibration formerly covered.

Students must show all work when answering the written calibration problems. Students will be allowed to use a non-programmable calculator when working problems.

Materials:

Handouts and other study aids will be provided as necessary. Students are encouraged to bring a calculator to all lectures as they will be necessary to perform calibrations on all quizzes and laboratory tests. Calculators will NOT be provided by the instructors and sharing between students will NOT be allowed under any circumstances.

Grading

This laboratory constitutes 25% of the CS 053 course grade. Lab

grading will be divided into the following four parts:

3 Exams (100 pts each)                                     300 points

6 Quizzes (20 pts each         )                                     120 points

8 Homeworks (10 pts each)                                80 points

1 Weed Collection (2 Stages-50 pts each)      100 points

Total                                                                             600 points

Attendance Policy

If you miss three labs for ANY reason, your lab grade will be 0. No make-up quizzes or tests will be allowed. If you must miss a laboratory quiz or test, please inform the instructor prior to the laboratory. You are also expected to be present during the laboratory session for the entire period unless you have an excused absence for which you have discussed with the lab instructor prior to lab. TIMELINESS IS IMPORTANT! Anyone arriving to class after roll is called will be counted ABSENT.

Weed Identification and Sprayer Calibration

Common weeds found in North Carolina ornamental and turf situations have been selected for the lab. Weed identification comes with experience; so practice often. Lab TA’s will guide you in the right direction and point out characteristics that help distinguish one weed from another. Take good notes and more importantly, go to the greenhouse and study the weeds! You WILL NOT perform well in lab if you do not learn the life cycles, growth habits, and proper identification of the required weeds. Other than weed identification, the remainder of the lab will be dedicated to proper calibration and spraying.

·        Correctly spelled common names are required on all weed identification quizzes. Misspelled names will result in partial credit.

·        Two field trips are planned to give you a hands on experience in weed identification. Aside from that, study the weeds in the green house because you will be quizzed on them frequently (every week).

Weed Collection

A weed collection is required for CS 053.

·        You are required to collect, press, and dry 25 different weed species. This procedure will be demonstrated in lab, and examples provided. Weeds must be listed in the WSSA’s ‘1,000 Weeds of North America: Identification Guide.’ Please do not remove weeds from the lab greenhouse, as this will result in an automatic zero on the weed collection. We will help you find weeds, and it will not take as much effort as you might think. We will probably see more than 50 weeds from the list on our field trips. As with other assignments, weed collections WILL NOT be accepted late!

·        Each weed must be properly identified and labeled according to the information below. Information may be printed or hand-written on labels, cards, or directly on the backing that holds the weeds. Please include the following information:

For example:

Taxonomic family:                           Rubiaceae

Scientific name:                              Richardia scabra

Common name:                               Florida pusley

Date collected:                                10-01-2010

County:                                             Wake County

Site description:                              Golf Course Fairway

Collected by:                                   John Smith