Famed Rare Fruit Grower Passes Away

Category(-ies): Botanists and Horticulturists

Bill Whitman, horticulturist, inventor and surfer, died on Wednesday, May 30, 2007. Bill was famous for overturning conventional wisdom on what could and could not survive and produce fruit in Florida. Some of his accomplishments include having the first outdoor mangosteen to bear fruit in North America, popularizing miracle fruit, and cultivating rambutan and langsat.

In the past ten years, Bill had also donated five million dollars to the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden.

• Surfer, horticulturist William Whitman dies from the Miami Herald
• Bill Whitman, 92, Is Dead; Scoured the Earth for Rare Fruit via the New York Times

Thanks to Sean Graham for suggesting this for the weblog.

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 11:31 AM

Christopher Lloyd (Christo) 1921-2006

Category(-ies): Botanists and Horticulturists

Renowned garden writter, Christopher Lloyd, affectionately called "Christo" by his friends, passed away January 27, 2006.

UBC Botanical Garden staff and Friends of the Garden share their memories of Christopher Lloyd:

I like to think I knew Christopher Lloyd pretty well, having both stayed at Dixter on a number of occasions and corresponded with him for fifteen years. Still, I think it was pretty easy for anybody to know Christo if they spent any amount of time with him. He was exactly who he appeared to be. Some people didn’t like what they saw. I recommended him to a good friend who was travelling to England some years ago, and upon meeting, they had an instant, mutual dislike. He certainly didn’t have that effect on me—he could be obstreperous, inflexible and demanding, and even unkind, but he was also a brilliant teacher, a scientist, an enviable artist, an excellent cook and the best writer I’ve ever met. I found I could reconcile the various aspects of his character and generally enjoy his company.

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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:35 PM

Ten Years of Botany in Action

Category(-ies): Botanists and Horticulturists

Inspired by a conference on global biodiversity, sponsored by their local garden club, Susan Clancy and Paula Cook Sculley wanted to do something to help curb the loss of species. Ten years ago this summer, they founded Botany in Action to help fund the training of the next generation of botanists. All the money raised by the organzation goes to fund graduate students' field work in botany, ecology and ethnobotany.

Awards from Botany in Action have funded students' work in areas rich in biodiversity, many of which are threatened by development. At a time when so much of the available funding is going toward biomolecular and genetic research, the agency's funding can really make a difference to developing botanists.

Link: Decade-old Botany Program Reaps Rewards from the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 11:12 AM | Comments (0)

Nepenthes University

Category(-ies): Botanists and Horticulturists , Plant Explorers

Michael Catalani began growing carnivorous plants at an early age. Intrigued by a photo that he saw in an old set of encyclopedias on a visit to his grandmother in 1975, his fascination with the genus Nepenthes began. The plants were very rare in cultivation at the time, but eventually he found a source and ordered his first specimen. Since that time he has grown more than 80 of the recognized species of genus.

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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:24 PM

George W. Douglas, Ph.D, 1938-2005

Category(-ies): Botanists and Horticulturists

We note the passing of British Columbian botanist, George W. Douglas, who died February 10, 2005 of cancer. George was born in New Westminster, BC, in 1938. His work as an ecologist led to botanical exploration of the North Cascades region and southwest Yukon. After his first bout with cancer he devoted his work time to botany. "Late in his career he joined the British Columbia public service as chief botanist for the BC Conservation Data Centre." (BEN)

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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 2:36 PM

Botany in the Movies

Category(-ies): Botanists and Horticulturists

Although they play a central role in life on earth, plants are rarely the subjects of film and the people who study them are often quirky supporting characters. Sarah Gage, takes a look at Hollywood's portrayal of botany and botanists in a recent issue of the Botanical Electronic News.

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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 12:45 PM

Dr. David Mabberley Joins Faculty at Univ. of Washington

Category(-ies): Botanists and Horticulturists , Other Botanical Gardens

David J. Mabberley, an internationally renowned botanist, has been hired as director of the University of Washington's Center for Urban Horticulture and Seattle's Washington Park Arboretum. He will join the faculty at UW as professor of economic botany in the College of Forest Resources and hold the UW's Orin and Althea Soest Chair in Horticultural Science.

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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 1:43 PM

Joseph Dalton Hooker

Category(-ies): Botanists and Horticulturists

The life and work of Joseph Dalton Hooker, one of the most notable botanists of the nineteenth century, is chronicled in this website: Joseph Dalton Hooker.

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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 12:40 PM

Who is David Mabberley?

Category(-ies): Botanists and Horticulturists

Who is David Mabberley, and how has he affected UBC Botanical Garden?

Dr. David Mabberley is giving a lecture entitled "Botanical Art of Ferdinand Bauer (click link for information) on September 24 at UBC. For those who don't know Dr. Mabberley, I thought I'd assemble some facts about him and his work (particularly as it relates to UBC Botanical Garden).

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Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:35 AM