This assignment was pretty interesting and challenging (for me) overall. I’m still getting used to the vocabulary, so this took longer than expected, specially when I was trying to understand the Hulten Master Dichotomous Key to identify the plants from the bins. It helped a lot to find and use pictures along with the descriptions. I found that even when I wasn’t sure what the name of something was, comparing it to a picture really helped in figuring it out on my own. Anyways, I used the dichotomous key video tutorial as a guideline for mapping out my key, in addition to the violet dichotomous key from the practice exercises. Here’s what I came up with:
A. Plant Woody- B
B. Needles, branchlets glabrous; cones 3-6 cm long……………………………………. 1) Picea glauca
A’ Plant Non-woody- C
C. Flowers with petals present- D
C’ Flowers with petals lacking- E
D. Petals white; 4 small petals; pubescent pedicels and stems………………………… 2) Arabis divaricarpa
D’ Petals purple; 6 large petals; pubescent stems; many stamen……………………. 3) Anemone patens var. multifida
E. Flowers arranged in catkins; young pubescent capsules; yellow stamens……. 4) Salix bebbiana