Taxonomy of Flowering Plants - Botany 201 then 301 then 489 (now 301)
Golden Gourd Award
Fall Semester, 1998
A single winner of this award for outstanding student performance in BOTN 201was recognized at the annual, gala Golden Gourd Awards ceremony.  All lab sections contributed to this semester's group of 8 students that achieved an excellent class performance ('A' grade).  However, the leader of this group (by 33 points) was Dustin Aaron Jones and, since the coveted Golden Gourd Award goes only to the best of the best, he has earned this semester's class cucurbit.

Amanda Neill, Mr. Jones' Lab TA presents the prize pepo

click to enlarge

Mr. Jones, a Senior Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences major, achieved the top score of 877.  He missed only two questions for all lecture exams, including the pop quizes, and both lab practicals.

The gourd used for this prestigious award was provided by Lagenaria siceraria (Cucurbitaceae) plants grown by Dr. Wilson during the 1994 growing season. These particular plants represent a bottle gourd cultivar that is not available through commercial outlets.  Known as 'Apache Dipper', seed was originally obtained from a BOTN 620 student that acquired them through a 'seed saver' exchange.

Following established tradition, this semester's award was enhanced via inscription/ornamentation by TAMU Herbarium Botanist, Monique Reed.


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