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This Web Page contains a poem written by Lisa Kubala from the Fall 2006 Plant Anatomy Class

Ode to Plant Anatomy Lab

by Lisa Kubala (Fall 2006)

Gotta get going—it’s 3:53,
Don’t wanna be late for Plant Anatomy
So I grab my colored pencils
And put them in my pack,
And head on my way to see Dr. Bidlack.

Roots, stems, flowers, and leaves,
From little grasses to great big trees
Monocots and dicots
Each with individual characteristics,
Easy enough if you know the logistics. 

Apical meristems are good to create
Lots of other tissues that we’ll demonstrate
Protoderm, ground stem, and procambium
Each with their issues
Turn to dermal, ground, and vascular tissues.

Oh Banana, the color of my suit
In this brief tale of a yellow fruit
Itchy and tingly
A reaction deemed strange,
Big puffy lips--just a minor change.

Family or prop, we all have roots,
Dicot, monocot, whichever suits,
What cross sections soon reveal--
Monocots lacking “arms” to grip
Dicots--with a little Casparian strip.

Tough on the outside with rings in an arc,
Trees have periderm composing the bark
Three little layers
Phellum pushed out cuz phelloderm is mean
With poor phellogen always stuck in between.

Little outgrowths with secretory features
Trichomes could make amazing creatures,
Protecting and promoting
Water retention, much like a cup,
Other glands of a Venus flytrap will eat you up.

Seeds get cold without a coat,
And food reserves contributing to growth.
Spreading the kingdom
Each pollen grain desperately searching for a wife,
Plant Anatomy—the essence of life.