The final phase in the Natural History Museum's transformation was the completion of the Nature Gardens, Nature Lab, and the huge glass pavilion. The Nature Gardens are impressively designed gardens, interconnected with a path of decomposed granite. Although they do get you up close with nature, they often times seem un-natural. The gardens are so clean cut and perfectly landscaped they almost seem to take away from the natural beauty of the plants and animals within them. It must also be noted that the nature gardens will become less artificial over time as the life inside of them adapts to its new surr-oundings. The most interesting part of the gardens are the hummingbirds who dip and dive from bird feeders and flowers. The curators do a good job in helping you identify the different species, by providing visitors with roaming volunteers eager to answer questions about the hummingbirds and the other inhabitants of the gardens. The many drought resistant plants add a special touch, and show how southern Californians can plant and manage a garden of drought resistant plants without much water or time.
The Nature Lab located just inside from the gardens, focuses on citizen science, and invites visitors to truly approach nature with out being actually in it. Located directly to the left as you walk in, is a wall marked by a flow chart explaining how visitors can get involved with citizen science. To the right of the flow chart are long white tables which are painted with the stories of Los Angeles raised Natural History Museum employees, and depict a moment in the employee's childhood where she or he experienced nature in Los Angeles. Directly behind the tables a projector provides visitors with pictures taken in Los Angeles of birds, and mammals. Near the back of the lab, terrariums and tanks provide homes for small creatures. Another table holds microscopes where volunteers stand and take questions as well as categorize insects. The lab provides a unique place where visitors can experience nature through pictures, stories, and small animals.