Part of Lesson Plan: Bioprospecting and Herbicide Development

Activity Overview / Details

Upon returning to class, assign groups of students to take on different roles in developing the tree extract.  Materials necessary include:

Balance for weighing tree material

Blenders

500 ml or 1000 ml beaker for making extract

Cheesecloth

Lab tape

Paper towels (bleach free)

Petri dishes or zip lock bags

Parafilm

Seeds (oat seeds are recommended since they germinate consistently, alternatively dichondra work well and are closely related to many weed species) 

Note:  Weed seeds were initially attempted for this project but many don't germinate at high percentages - they just produce lots of seed!