Tutorials
Builder Tutorial Introduction
A TUTORIAL ON KEY CONSTRUCTION FOR THE LUCID BUILDER VERSION 2.0
Introduction
The following tutorial will guide you through the basic stages of preparing and building a key using the Lucid Builder Version 2.0. The tutorial is not intended to cover all aspects of key building and the attachment of video and audio files, is omitted. A copy of the completed key is held on the Lucid CD-ROM and can be manipulated by you as necessary. The tutorial assumes that you (the user) have access to the Builder Help files and are fully conversant with normal Windows procedures. In all cases, to select an area, means to move the cursor to that area and click the left mouse button once. The tutorial has five sections and at the end of each section the demonstration key is saved. This allows you to undertake the tutorial at your own speed without having to re-enter the information that you have already completed.
The key contains abbreviated data on five taxa within the plant genus Banksia. These five taxa are shown below. Images are available for two of the species.
Data for five species of Banksia
Banksia integrifolia Linnaeus var. integrifolia
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Tree up to 25m, trunk bark tessellated, leaves in whorls and narrow obovate, 4-10 x 1-2 cm, green above, margins even, white and woolly beneath. Flowers pale to bright yellow. Coastal eastern Australia on sand dunes. Fire tolerant, sprouts from epicormic shoots. Lignotuber absent. Occurs in Qld, NSW, Vic. |
| Banksia menziesii R. Brown Tree up to 10m or shrub up to 3 m, trunk bark verrucose, leaves scattered and oblong, 8-25 x 1-4 cm, margins dentate, green above and tomentose below. Flowers red. Coastal Western Australia in woodland. Fire tolerant, sprouts from epicormic shoots or lignotuber. Occurs in WA. Banksia blechnifolia F. Mueller Prostrate shrub 20-50cm high, trunk absent, branch bark woolly, leaves scattered 24-45 x 4-10 cm, margins deeply lobed, bluish-green above, tomentose becoming smooth below. Flowers pink. Interior of southern Western Australia in mallee, sand or heath. Fire intolerant, lignotuber absent, regenerates from seeds. Occurs in WA. Banksia spinulosa var. collina (R.Brown) A. S. George |
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Shrub up to 3m high, stem bark tomentose, leaves scattered and linear 3-12 x 0.3-0.8 cm, margins revolute and serrate, green above, shortly woolly below. Flowers golden-yellow. Coastal and coastal ranges in open forest, woodland and heath. Fire tolerant, sprouts from lignotuber. Occurs in Qld, NSW. |
Banksia seminuda (A. S. George) B. Rye
Tree up to 25m, bark fissured and hard, leaves whorled to scattered, obtuse, 5-12 x 1-1.8 cm, often serrate but sometimes even and margins recurved. Flowers golden. Forests on riverine flats and coastal dunes in south western Australia. Fire intolerant, regenerates from seed. Occurs in WA.
Selection of the Characters and States
Examination of the species descriptions may suggest characters and states that could be used, however, in this tutorial we will use the following list to demonstrate the essential characteristics of the key.
Character States
| Character | States |
|---|---|
| Growth habit | tree, shrub, prostrate |
| Height | numerical score |
| Stem or trunk bark surface | tessellated, verrucose, woolly or tomentose, fissured |
| Leaf length | numerical score |
| Leaf margins | even, serrate or dentate, lobed |
| Flower colour | pale to bright yellow or golden, pink, bright red |
| Habitat | forest, woodland, heath, mallee, coastal dunes |
| Fire tolerance | existing plants survive fire, existing plants do not survive fire |
| Regeneration method | seeds, regrowth from trunk or lignotuber |
| Lignotuber | absent, present |
| State distribution | Qld, NSW, Vic, WA |