Number of Players: 2-4 players

Playing Time: Around 30-45 minutes

Components:

• Deck of cards featuring eight different tree species (numbered 1-8) and two special cards

• Player boards with discard piles and scoring tracks for each tree species

• Scoring pad (optional)
  

Setup:

1. Choose Starting Player:  Decide who goes first, either randomly or by who last watered a real plant (thematic touch!).

2. Shuffle the Deck: Shuffle the deck of cards thoroughly.

3. Deal Cards: Deal seven cards to each player. The remaining deck is placed face down in the center of the playing area as the draw pile.
   

Gameplay:

The game is played in rounds, with players taking turns in clockwise order. On your turn, you'll perform two main actions:

1. Play a Card to Your Arboretum:

• Choose one card from your hand and place it face up in front of you. This card represents a tree being planted in your arboretum.

• You can place the card:

  • Next to an existing card: The new card must be horizontally or vertically adjacent to a card already in your arboretum.

  • To start a new row: If it's your first card or you're starting a new section of your arboretum, you can place it anywhere.

2. Discard a Card:

• After placing a card in your arboretum, discard any one card from your hand face up into your personal discard pile.
  

Scoring:

Scoring doesn't happen during each turn. Instead, points are awarded after all cards have been played and the deck is empty. Here's how scoring works:

• The dealer calls out each tree species (color) one by one.

• All players reveal the cards in their hand of that specific tree species.

• The player with the highest sum of the numbers on their revealed cards for that species scores points based on:

  • Matching Start and End: If the first and last cards in your played row for that species match (same tree number and color), you score one point per card in the row (including the first and last cards).

  • All the Same Species: If your entire played row consists only of cards of that same tree species (regardless of number), you score two points per card.

  • Starting with a One: If the first card you played in that row is a "1" for that species, you score an additional bonus point.

  • Ending with an Eight: If the last card you played in that row is an "8" for that species, you score an additional bonus point.

• Players cannot score points for a species if they have no cards of that species revealed from their hand.

• After scoring each species, discard piles are shuffled together to form a new draw deck for the next game.
  

Winning the Game:

• Once all species have been scored, the player with the most victory points wins the game and is crowned the master arborist!
  

Additional Notes:

• Deck Manipulation: Since you discard a card each turn, you can try to manipulate your hand to have the highest value cards for specific species when scoring is called.

• Planning and Strategy: Think ahead about where to place your cards to potentially create long rows with matching start and end points or rows consisting solely of one tree species.

• Simple Rules, Deep Strategy: Arboretum offers a seemingly simple set of rules but can be surprisingly strategic as you plan your placements and discards.