A quiet place to relax any day Botanical Garden on campus gives stressed students silent sanctuary for their studies

Martin Torres Roundup Reporter

Amid the floral designs and the pond where swimming turtles are surrounded by singing birds, students study in the peace and quiet of the botanical garden.

The idea of having a botanical garden came around in 1999 when Pierce College had two acres of land to play with between the Life Sciences Buildings. Formerly known as the quad, it’s now known as the S. Mark Taper Foundation Botanical Garden.

The Botanical Garden is home to a variety of plant life from Mexico, Australia, South Africa and even some from Saudi Arabia. Some of the plants in the garden include aloe elgonica, aloe conifera and silver torch cactus.

The garden also features the Evolution Walk, a trail path through the garden which demonstrates periods of time in the history of life. Each section has fossil records of that era, giving students a glimpse into which animals lived during what times. The distance from one side to the next represents the actual timeline of events.

Pat Farris, a biology teacher at Pierce, said they wanted to have a place where students can look at a different variety of Mediterranean plants and wildlife.

“We have different plants from Mediterranean areas,” Farris said. “We have different types of animals -- from grey egrets, snowy egrets and red tailed hawks.”