Mathias Botanical Garden

	MATHIAS BOTANICAL GARDEN
	MILDRED ESTHER MATHIAS
	Mildred Mathias received her B.A. (1926) and Ph.D. (1929) from Washington University, St. Louis. In 1947, after many years of herbarium work at a number of museums and botanical gardens, she joined the faculty of the Department of Botany at UCLA as herbarium botanist, and in 1956 began 18 years of service as director of the botanical garden now named after her. Mathias attained status as one of the nation's leading authorities on botanical taxonomy. Among many honors, Mathias received the Liberty Hyde Bailey Medal from the American Horticultural Society and the Medal of Honor from the Garden Club of America. She prepared a series for television entitled "The World of Ornamental Plants" and was coauthor of A Checklist of Woody Ornamental Plants of California, known as the "Nurseryman's Bible." A special public service was Mathias' leadership in the development of the University's Natural Land and Water Reserves System, for which she served as chair of the advisory committee. For over 20 years she contributed to the work of the Organization for Tropical Studies, a consortium of 27 universities oriented toward graduate teaching, research, and conservation efforts in the tropics.

Description of the Garden

The Mathias Botanical Garden is located in the southeast corner of the UCLA campus, near the corner of Hilgard Ave. and Le Conte Ave. map.

Items of Interest...