Posts Tagged ‘botanical pioneers’
Gentle Julia: The Adventurous Life of Julia Wilmotte Henshaw
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 19, 1937 On this day, Julia Wilmotte [will-MOT] Henshaw, Canadian botanist, geographer, writer, and political activist, died. Her remarkable life reads like an adventure novel – from mapping Vancouver Island’s interior to…
Read MoreWilliam Copeland McCalla: Pioneer of Alberta Botany and Botanical Photography
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 8, 1872 On this day, William Copeland McCalla was born Born into a family where his father ran a conservatory in St. Catharines, Ontario, McCalla developed twin passions that would define his…
Read MoreA Pioneering Voice in Texas Botany: Maude Jeannie Young
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 1, 1826 Maude Jeannie Fuller Young (pronounced “MAW-duh JEE-nee FULL-er YOUNG”) was born on this day in 1826. Though she would become known for many accomplishments, it’s her groundbreaking contribution to botanical…
Read MoreFrom Heartbreak to Herbarium: The Extraordinary Life of Georgiana Molloy
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. May 23, 1843 On this day, we celebrate the birth of Georgiana Molloy (books about this person), an English-Australian pioneer and one of the first botanical collectors in Western Australia. Her life, dear…
Read MoreAgnes Chase: The Fearless Botanist Who Mastered the World of Grasses
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 29, 1869 On this day, the remarkable Agnes Chase was born—an American botanist who would devote her life to grasses. Petite and self-taught, she began as an illustrator at the USDA’s Bureau…
Read MoreAdrian Hardy Haworth: British Botanist, Entomologist, and Pioneer of Succulent Studies
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 19, 1797 Dearest reader, On this day, the world welcomed the remarkable Adrian Hardy Haworth — lawyer by training, naturalist by calling. Imagine him, young and dutiful, studying the law, his mind…
Read MoreHugo von Mohl: The Botanist Who Discovered Protoplasm, Mitosis, and Chloroplasts
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 8, 1805 Dearest reader, On this day, the world welcomed Hugo von Mohl, a man celebrated by one newspaper as the “greatest botanist of his day.” His brilliant mind peered into the…
Read MoreA Turbulent Mind at Fifty: Carl Linnaeus’ Battle with Age and Despair
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: February 10, 1758 Dearest reader, On this day, the esteemed Carl Linnaeus—venerated as the “father of modern taxonomy”—was wrestling not with the names of plants this time, but with the heavy shadows of his own mind. At fifty years of age, Linnaeus found himself not…
Read MoreBreaking Ground: Helia Bravo Hollis and Her Beloved Cacti
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. September 30, 1901 Today we celebrate the birth of Helia Bravo Hollis, that most remarkable Queen of the Cacti, whose pioneering spirit broke ground not only for women in science but for our…
Read MoreRenaissance Revolutionary: Lorenz Scholz’s Medical Garden Legacy
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. September 20, 1552 Dearest garden enthusiasts, today we mark the birth of a true Renaissance rebel – Lorenz Scholz von Rosenau, who dared to grow “deadly” potatoes in his garden while fighting plague…
Read MoreThe Solitary Botanist: Mary Sophie Young’s Texas Legacy
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. September 20, 1872 Dearest garden enthusiasts, today we celebrate the birth of Mary Sophie Young, a tenacious botanist who, like her seven older brothers taught her to be, was tough enough to brave…
Read MoreFirst Lady of Mount Kinabalu: The Remarkable Legacy of Lilian Gibbs
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. September 10, 1870 On this day in horticultural history, we find ourselves transported to an era when botanical discovery required more than merely consulting The Garden magazine or ordering from the latest nursery…
Read MoreJohn Hope: Scottish Botanist and Pioneer of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
The Edinburgh Botanist May 10, 1725 Today is the birthday of the botanist, famous professor, and founder of one of the leading botanical gardens in Europe — John Hope. Alive during the Scottish enlightenment, John left his mark on the royal botanic gardens, plant classification, and plant physiology. He was appointed as the King’s botanist…
Read MoreJean White-Haney: The Botanist Who Battled Australia’s Prickly Pear
The Prickly Pear March 11, 1877 Today is the birthday of the Australian botanist Jean White-Haney. Before I tell you Jean’s story, it’s important to remember that Prickly Pear Cactus is not native to Australia. A man named Captain Arthur Phillip brought the Prickly Pear from Rio de Janeiro to Australia way back in 1787.…
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