Summary: This issue of Aquilegia explores the intersection of ethnobotany, ecology, and education through an engaging feature on Native American children’s plant games and the scientific questions they inspire. Ethnobotanist Donald Hazlett examines how Plains Apache and Lakota children used native plants for play, transforming observations of species variation into informal lessons in natural history. By applying these traditional games to modern herbarium research, the article demonstrates how cultural knowledge can inspire contemporary botanical inquiry. The issue also announces the publication of the Fourth Edition of Colorado Flora, outlines extensive statewide field trip opportunities, highlights volunteer initiatives in native seed collection and habitat restoration, and encourages members to deepen their connection with Colorado’s native landscapes through education, stewardship, and community involvement.

Plant Species: Silver-leaf nightshade (Solanum elaeagnifolium), western horse nettle (Solanum dimidiatum), other Solanum species, Indian wooly wheat (Plantago patagonica), blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis), little barley (Hordeum pusillum), sixweeks fescue (Vulpia octoflora), paper birch (Betula papyrifera), wood lily (Lilium philadelphicum), wild sarsaparilla (Aralia nudicaulis), snow lover (Chionophila jamesii), blackheaded daisy (Hymenoxys grandiflora), penstemons (Penstemon spp.), sand lily (Leucocrinum montanum), death camas (Toxicoscordion venosum), anemones (Anemone spp.), flowering cacti, salt and pepper (Lomatium orientale), narrowleaf puccoon (Lithospermum incisum), golden banner (Thermopsis spp.), columbine (Aquilegia spp.), poison ivy (Toxicodendron rydbergii), alpine aster (Aster alpinus), yellow buckwheat (Eriogonum flavum subsp. xanthum), and plantain-leaved kittentails (Besseya plantaginea).

Keywords: ethnobotany, Native American plant use, children’s games, Plains Apache, Lakota, traditional ecological knowledge, citizen science, herbarium research, plant variation, shortgrass steppe, botanical inquiry, Colorado Flora, plant identification, field trips, native seed collection, habitat restoration, volunteerism, stewardship, education, advocacy, community engagement, native plants, biodiversity, ecological observation, Rocky Mountain National Park, Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks, revegetation, wildfire recovery, lichens, butterfly ecology, alpine ecosystems, prairie ecology, plant monitoring, botanical exploration, seed conservation, and native plant appreciation.

Summary: This issue of Aquilegia emphasizes the importance of botanical education, conservation leadership, and community engagement within the Colorado Native Plant Society. A featured essay by Jack L. Carter warns of the decline of botany in American education and highlights the urgent need for trained botanists to address challenges involving rare species conservation, invasive plants, ecosystem management, and climate change. The newsletter also outlines upcoming workshops focused on aquatic plants, grasses, pollinators, mosses, and alpine flora, announces research grant recipients studying Colorado native plants and rare endemics, and provides updates on chapter activities and leadership opportunities. Throughout the issue, readers are encouraged to participate in stewardship, education, and advocacy efforts that support the understanding and protection of Colorado’s native plant heritage.

Plant Species: Queen’s Crown (Rhodiola rhodantha), pondweeds, water milfoils, hornworts, duckweeds, buttercups, burreeds, bladderworts, sagebrush, mosses, liverworts, hornworts, Draba species, Oenothera harringtonii, Penstemon degeneri, Mimulus spp. (monkeyflowers), Ceanothus spp. (buckbrush), Arctostaphylos spp. (manzanitas), Washington lily, native azaleas, orchids, saprophytes, Eutrema penlandii (Penland alpine fen mustard), Carex species, Carex viridistellata, cranberries, blueberries, pines, Sphagnum species, and alpine fen flora.

Keywords: botany education, botanical literacy, plant science decline, conservation biology, climate change, invasive species, ecosystem management, threatened species, rare plant conservation, botanical careers, herbarium collections, plant taxonomy, plant ecology, molecular biology, native plant advocacy, research grants, stewardship, workshops, aquatic plants, grasses, pollinators, bryophytes, alpine flora, wetland ecology, fen delineation, restoration ecology, pollination biology, native insects, chapter activities, volunteer leadership, public outreach, biodiversity conservation, field botany, science education, Colorado Native Plant Society, community engagement, and native plant appreciation.