Herbarium

WELCOME TO THE HERBARIUM!

The UCLA Herbarium serves as a one-of-a-kind resource for the wider Los Angeles community in promoting the preservation and identification of plants.

Our collections consist of approximately 150,000 dried and pressed plant specimens with a special focus on California and the Western United States, and expanding interest in similar Mediterranean-climate regions of the world. In addition, the Herbarium maintains a repository of voucher specimens from ecological studies conducted by UCLA researchers as well as a special library of botanical literature and journals.

Research

Educational Resources

UCLA Herbarium Library

Initiatives

MISSION

The mission of the Herbarium is to facilitate the taxonomic and ecological study of vascular plants and to act as a teaching tool for UCLA and other academic institutions. Additionally, the Herbarium serves the surrounding community as a resource for the identification of plants, both horticultural and native.

To this end, the herbarium maintains a collection of species from around the world, and a collection of botanical literature and journals to facilitate research and plant identification. The herbarium also serves as a repository for voucher specimens associated with studies conducted by UCLA Faculty and student researchers.

OUR COLLECTIONS

The Herbarium permanently houses approximately 150,000 pressed and mounted specimens including 400 type specimens. The herbarium’s current focus is on the vascular plants of southern California and Baja California; our collection contains approximately 10,000 specimens from the Santa Monica Mountains, and substantial collections from the Simi Hills, Mojave and Colorado Deserts, and Baja California.

A horticultural collection of approximately 13,000 cultivated plants from Southern California are also stored at the herbarium.

Collections Scope

Although the focus of the herbarium is primarily the flora of California, the herbarium also contains specimens from all over the world, with approximately 30% of our collections from beyond North America. These represent historic collections (1920-1960) from Asia and the Pacific. We also have collections for all the major groups of plants, although our collection of macroalgae, lichens, and bryophytes is limited.

The herbarium also contains a library of taxonomic reference books and floras of North America, South America, and many other regions of the world.

Workstations with boom dissecting scopes are also available. The herbarium also has an available plant drier and freezer (for freezing specimens to control insects), and materials for mounting and repairing plant specimens.

Notable Collections

The Herbarium contains notable personal herbaria donated to UCLA including collections by O.H. Kappler (ca. 2,200 specimens, most of the Santa Monica Mountains), Lawrence L. Kiefer (ca. 3,700 specimens of ferns), Mary V. Hood (ca. 1,600 specimens) and Grace Heintz (cultivated Eucalyptus of California). Some UCLA Faculty and Alumni, including Peter H. Raven, Elmer D. Merrill, A.M. Johnson, Martin Cody, Mildred E. Mathias, Jonathan Sauer, Carl Epling, Joseph Andorfer Ewan, and Harlan Lewis, have also donated their collections to UCLA.

HISTORY

The exact year in which the UCLA Herbarium was first established is unclear, but it likely dates back to the period before 1929, when UCLA was still a branch campus of UC Berkeley located on Vermont Ave in downtown Los Angeles.

The core of the Herbarium was established through the acquisition of preserved collections from the short-lived “California Botanical Garden” (CBG; 1928-1935), a project led by Elmer D. Merrill, the former Dean of Agriculture at UC Berkeley. Before its closure, the CBG had amassed a large herbarium which was transferred to UCLA just as the University began offering classes at its new Westwood campus in 1929.

These collections included specimens from the Bonati and J.J.P. Tapp Herbaria that were purchased by Elmer Merrill, as well as Merrill’s own personal collections from his research in the Philippines. Since then, the Herbarium has grown to nearly 150,000 vascular plant specimens and contains the collections of many other famed botanists including Carl Epling, Margaret and Harlan Lewis, Mildred E. Mathias, Peter H. Raven, Henry J. Thompson, Jonathan Sauer, Elizabeth McClintock, and Lawrence Kiefer.

HOW TO VISIT

At this time, the Herbarium is available by appointment only.

Please email Herbarium Curator Dr. Anthony Baniaga (abaniaga@ucla.edu) to schedule your visit.

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The UCLA Mathias Botanical Garden acknowledges the Gabrielino/Tongva peoples as the traditional land caretakers of Tovaangar (the Los Angeles basin and So. Channel Islands). As a promoter of nature at a California land grant institution, we pay our respects to the Honuukvetam (Ancestors), ‘Ahiihirom (Elders) and ‘Eyoohiinkem (our relatives/relations) past, present and emerging.

Contact us

(310) 825-8260

For venue reservations: (310) 467-7980

707 Tiverton Drive
Los Angeles, CA
90095

Open hours

Hours (February through October):
Weekdays: 8AM to 5PM
Weekends: 9AM to 5PM

Hours (November through January):
Weekdays: 8AM to 4PM
Weekends: 9AM to 4PM

UCLA Holidays: Open 9AM to 5PM. Closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. Closed at 2pm on Christmas Eve.