The internship program at the Conservatory is designed to help students gain hands-on experience in learning how to grow plants, and to understand the environmental factors that influence their growth and growth rates.

Conservatory interns, spring 2008

What you will learn

• How to properly prune plants and use several types of pruning tools
• Methods and techniques for various forms of propagation
• How greenhouses and other controlled environments affect plant growth
• How to transplant various types of plants and minimize “shock”
• How plants grow in containers and in the ground
• How greenhouse and field soils affect plant growth
• How to recognize several of the common plant insect pests common to Northern California
• The biology of pest insects
• How to cultivate specialized plant groups, such as insectivores, succulents, and orchids
• How plants are adapted for their natural environments
• How to use plant identification tools

How to apply for an internship

Please contact Ernesto Sandoval jesandoval@ucdavis.edu or come to the Conservatory office. Before meeting with Ernesto, download and print the schedule form, and transfer your schedule of classes and other activities to the form in pencil. Internship times, especially the weekly 2-3-hour teaching session, are chosen based on the multiple schedules submitted. You will be notified before classes start whether or not your schedule fits with the internship times.

What is required

The internship generally involves two three-hour sessions per week and an independent plant-related literature research or plant growth project. A report on the project or research is due at the last class session (5 page minimum for project report, 7 page minimum for library research paper). The report must be in scientific format. In order to prepare for the independent project, please think of two or three plant related topics you would like to investigate in the form of experimental or library/literature research. By the third session you will choose a topic and begin setting up any necessary experiments or literature reviews.

The details

Teaching session 2-3 hrs TBA
Greenhouse work experience 3-4 hours TBA
PLB 92 or PLB 192
1-2 units (2 units requires an independednt project)
Instructors: Ernesto Sandoval, et al
Contact: Ernesto Sandoval, jesandoval@ucdavis.edu or call 752-0569.
Location: Botanical Conservatory (middle greenhouse north of Storer Hall)