John R. Rodman Arboretum

The John R. Rodman Arboretum is a botanical garden at Pitzer College that focuses on native Southern California plants. The grounds feature multiple gardens designed with drought-tolerant species suited to the local climate.

The arboretum began in the early 1980s when college staff and students sought to preserve native vegetation threatened by development. It became an official part of Pitzer College in 1988 and has since served as an educational resource for environmental studies courses.

The arboretum is named for Dr. John R. Rodman, a professor of environmental studies who founded it in 1984 with anthropologist Dr. Sheryl F. Miller and students. Its sixteen gardens carry donor and memorial names, among them the Eunice Pitzer Wildflower Garden, the Ellsworth Garden and the David Bloom Garden of Remembrance, dedicated in 2003.

The arboretum is accessible on the Pitzer College campus with inviting paths for exploration. Visitors can stroll through the gardens at their own pace to observe how plants thrive in natural conditions suited to the region.

The Outback Preserve, just over three acres in the campus's northeast section, protects alluvial sage scrub, described in the sources as one of the rarest ecosystems in the world. Students in Claremont Colleges courses use it as a living laboratory, removing invasive plants so native species can reestablish.