Does “faith” in science trump faith in the Almighty? That’s the crux of the matter. Science is merely a tool; it is not the architect of knowledge.
Or course not.
"That’s the crux of the matter."
I don't know that faith in science vs. faith in God is the crux of the matter. With regard to this particular thread, if botany is something that is important for people to do in order that humans can flourish, then God will move people to go into botany. If those he encourages to become botanists choose other less helpful fields like day trading or computer game development then His people will suffer. For them it won't be a choice between God and science but between serving God as a scientist or not.
"Science is merely a tool; it is not the architect of knowledge."
Agreed. We know that we cannot know everything. Science when done right at best gives us an approximate idea of what is going on. When science is done poorly either because of sloth or pride or greed or evil then people are harmed. So regardless of what one's faith is it is good for science to be done right.
Science can't provide its own justification. Its Architect is the only One that can.