Plant systematics is the science of plant diversity and of the relationships among different kinds of plants. This course is for students beginning their study of the evolutionary tree of plant life, as well as for those with prior knowledge of taxonomy but who want to organize their knowledge according to modern research. During this course, topics such as the phylogenetic method, characters used to decipher plant relationships, nomenclature, and vocabulary will be discussed. This course fulfills the first of four required modules of the Plant Systematics core requirement for the Certificate in Native Plant Studies.  The required textbook is Plant Systematics: A Phylogenetic Approach by Judd, Campbell, Kellogg, and Stevens (3rd edition).