UCLA Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden

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Two great virtual events are going on today. Check out our page to learn about Tovaangar Today and Exploring Your Universe. "Exploring Your Universe (EYU) is a free science fair that draws in thousands of children, parents, and friends from the Los Angeles community to our campus every first Sunday in November. Organized by UCLA graduate students and run by volunteers, this event has been a tradition to provide a day of free science education to all. For 12 years, EYU has pro...vided fun, hands-on experiments and presentations to curious minds and young future scientists alike. EYU 2020 will be held virtually due to COVID-19, but will still bring a day of fun, interactive science to your family wherever you are. Stay tuned for a complete list of this year’s events and please email us with any questions, comments, or suggestions." Check out Zoe Pierrat's Plants and Climate Change talk at 4pm! https://www.exploringyouruniverse.org/ See more

Great virtual event today from local Native artists and presented by The Ford : Tovaangar Today "Before Los Angeles’ name was first written on a map, there was Tovaangar: a gathering place and nurturing home to the Tongva people. Co-curated by Kenny Ramos, Jessa Calderon, and Kelly Caballero, Tovaangar Today is a virtual celebration of the Native artists and cultural creators who still thrive in the region working as poets, actors, emcees, multimedia artists, and advocates. While centering on the Tongva and other California Nations, the festival will also feature artists from the local intertribal urban Native diaspora and highlight the connections between art, activism, identity, and tribal sovereignty." https://www.theford.com//ford-digital-fest/tovaangar-today

Galvezia juncea, Cedros Island snapdragon. This one goes out to @megafaunic who did such a loving job of cleaning up the area around this plant earlier this summer so that it can shine! Thanks Sophie! #cedrosisland #scrophulariaceae #californianativeplants #cnps #galvezia #galveziajuncea #snapdragon #baja #bajacalifornia

Seasonal festivities bring together traditions, history, family and friends. To a botanist, they are also a case study of the deeply interconnected relationship between nature and culture. Join us for the 4th annual Botany of the Holidays as we travel to China and Brazil to share the botanical origins of some winter holiday traditions, and see just how important plants are to celebrations around the world. This year’s speakers include: .Terry Huang Assistant Director, Bota...nical Garden .Marcel Vaz UCLA PhD Student, Kraft Lab .Xinyi Yan UCLA Alumna, PhD Student at UT Austin This event is free, but RSVP (link in bio) to reserve a space and receive streaming information. An email will be sent out before the event to attendees with details for how to stream live. #botanyoftheholidays #botanicalgarden #publicgarden #botany #holidays #lunarnewyear #westwoodvillage #ucla #ethnobotany

Let’s hope your week starts off as bright and colorful as Eucalyptus deglupta, the Rainbow eucalyptus, which is native to the island of Mindanao in the Philippines #rainbow #rainboweucalyptus #eucalyptusdeglupta #eucalyptus #publicgarden #mondaymotivation #bark #natureisamazing #wow #Philippines #mindanao

Fouquieria and flying makes for an excellent Sunday This is an Allen’s hummingbird, Selasphorus sasin, hanging out in the Fouquieria formosa in the Desert Garden. Love birds? Follow @bruinaudubon for more bird fun. #hummingbird #allenshummingbird #Selasphorussasin #fouquieria #fouquieriaformosa #desertplants #desertgarden #sundayfunday #natureinthecity #urbanwildlife

More from Baja ! Torote, also know as the Elephant tree, or its scientific name Bursera microphylla, is a woody species that grows in unique forms (check out the next photo to see the entire plant). This aromatic plant is in the frankincense family, Burseraceae. It is well-adapted to arid climates and has the ability to store water in its trunk! #torote #burseramicrophylla #burseraceae #baja #bajacalifornia #plantstagram #desertplants #aromatic

To continue our adventures in Baja California , here is Euphorbia xanti, or Baja spurge. Though it typically blooms in winter and spring, ours has a few flowers at the moment. Similar to poinsettias, which are also a type of Euphorbia, the white flower you see here is actually a combination of a true flower surrounded by modified leaves called bracts. The actual reproductive structures are found in the center of the bracts in a structure called a cyathium, visible in this photo as the yellow part. Bougainvillea is a non Euphorbia example of this kind of bract/cyathium structure. #euphorbia #euphorbiaxanti #cyathium #morphology #baja #bajacalifornia #plants #botany #bajaspurge

Let’s take a little virtual trip to Baja California this week! Follow us to take a closer look at some of the plants native to that region that are growing in the Garden. This is Stenocereus thurberi var. littoralis, the Dwarf organ pipe cactus! This dwarf variety is native only to Southern Baja #stenocereus #stenocereusthurberilittoralis #cactaceae #cactusflower #desertplants #succulent #cactus #dwarf #dwarforganpipecactus #losangeles #baja #bajacalifornia #flora #botanicalgarden

Salvia lanceolata, or Rusty sage, is native to the Cape Region in South Africa that shares a similar Mediterranean climate type with Los Angeles. We grow many plants from this region because they are well-adapted to handle the weather conditions we experience here and are drought-tolerant. This pink and yellow beauty is now blooming in the Pavillion garden. #salvia #salvialanceolata #sage #southafrican #mediterraneanclimate #botanicalgarden #nature #plantstagram

Opuntia monacantha, Drooping prickly pear, blooming in the Desert Garden. #opuntia #opuntiamonacantha #cacti #cactusflower #desertplants #succulents #plantstagram #droopingpricklypear #pricklypear #nopal #botanicalgarden