William J. Fisher: Botanizing in the Alaskan Wilderness

William Fisher's Field Notebook title page - Dried plants with Mr. Kearney, alcoholics in seed collection, 1899

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. May 26, 1830 On this day, dear garden enthusiasts, we celebrate the birth of a most intriguing figure in the annals of botanical history: William J. Fisher, the German-American naturalist, marine biologist, and…

Read More

Remembering Schultes-Award-Winning Ethnobotanist Calvin R. Sperling

Calvin R. Sperling

“Sperling traipsed over mountain slopes [in the Soviet Union] in search of wild apricot trees. He had expected to find about twenty forgotten varieties. Instead, he brought back nearly fifty different specimens.” July 3, 1993  On this day, newspapers reported on the first recipient of the Richard Evans Schultes Award: Calvin R. Sperling. Calvin was…

Read More