Native Plant Society of New Mexico Native Plant Society of New Mexico

Garrett Leitermann, MA archaeology, of the Las Cruces District Office of the Bureau of Land Management, will discuss ethnobotany of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument.  This presentation will look at the cultural uses of various native plants found in the OMDPNM.  Indigenous people throughout the Southwest have since time immemorial cultivated knowledge regarding the practical, medicinal, and spiritual uses of plants within their local environments. This traditional ecological knowledge has aided countless generations to thrive within the landscape that is the Chihuahuan Desert and the sky island environments of the Monument. Studying and analyzing ethnographic and archaeological records tells a rich story of people’s relationship to the landscape over time.

Free. Zoom link will be emailed to members. Non-members email Lc@npsnm.org for Zoom link, or use link below:

Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89412761026

Garrett Leitermann M.A., archaeologist for the Bureau of Land Management Las Cruces District, manages and protects cultural resources of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument and the Prehistoric Trackways National Monument. Within the past decade, Garrett has worked across Utah and New Mexico as an academic, contract, and federal archaeologist. Born and raised in central Wisconsin, Garret is glad to call the warm climate of New Mexico his home. His research interests include prehistoric ceramic analysis, ethnobotany, toponymy, ethnohistory, and landscape archaeology. Outside of his passion for archaeology, Garrett enjoys a number of hobbies including cooking, reading, hiking, and binge-watching TV shows.