Plant Systems

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2016:

170 hours

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

This subject introduces students to plant science with particular emphasis on crop and pasture species. Students will gain an understanding of plant growth and development to achieve desired levels of yield and quality. This subject considers how crop and pasture canopies grow by acquiring resources from the environment, how plants allocate resources to different growth processes, and how management and environment (including climate change) affect plant production in Australia and worldwide.

Students will gain an understanding of:

• The relationship between structure and physiology of plants at cell, tissue, organ, whole plant and community levels
• Plant growth and development
• Root growth and function, nutrient uptake, nitrogen fixation and the importance of plant nutrition in managing crops and pastures, as well as implications for nutrient run-off and water quality
• Water uptake, transpiration, xylem flow, stomatal control and the implications of these processes for managing crop transpiration and soil evaporation in dryland cropping and under irrigation
• The growth phases of pastures and crops and how to monitor and measure these growth stages
• The determinants that drive plant growth and yield of pastures and crops
• How to develop a pre-season plan for crops and pastures including forecasting potential yields
• The major constraints to plant growth including soil limitations, plant disease, insect and weed management
• Harvesting/grazing methods of crops and pastures and why they are used

• A one-hour test due mid-semester worth 20%
• Two practical/field reports totalling 1500 words due approximately in Weeks 7 and 12 worth 30%
• A two-hour end-of-semester examination worth 50%

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

This subject encompasses particular generic skills so that on completion of the subject students should have developed skills relating to:

• The use of electronic forms of communication
• Their flexibility and level of transferable skills, which should be enhanced through improved time management
• Working collaboratively with other students
• An enhanced ability to communicate their ideas effectively in both written and verbal formats
• Accessing information from the library via both electronic and traditional means
• Problem solving and critical thinking