plant taxonomy Archives

Asa Gray: The Birth of American Botany’s Greatest Voice

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 18, 1810 On this day, Asa Gray (1810-1888) was born. He was a figure who would become America’s preeminent botanist and one of the most influential scientists of the 19th century. Born…

Dawn with the Iris King: Remembering William Rickatson Dykes

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 4, 1877 Today we celebrate the birth of William Rickatson Dykes [RICK-et-sun DYKES], born in Bayswater, London. Though he began his career as a classics teacher at Charterhouse School, it was his…

George Bentham: The Lawyer Who Revolutionized Botany

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. September 22, 1800 My dearest garden friends, on this day, we celebrate the birth of George Bentham, a man whose decision to abandon law for botany would alter not only his own destiny…

A Life Among Leaves: Remembering Charles Theodore Mohr

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. July 17, 1901 On this day, dear readers, we bid farewell to a most curious botanical gentleman, one Charles Theodore Mohr, who has shuffled off this mortal coil at the respectable age of…

Seeds of Discord: How Asa Gray’s Exit Bloomed Into Botanical Greatness

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. July 10, 1838 On this day, dear readers, the esteemed botanist Asa Gray resigned from the Wilkes Expedition, a decision that would alter the course of American botanical history as surely as a…

The Man Behind Your African Violets: Bill Burt’s Botanical Bequest

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. May 30, 2008 On this day, we bid farewell to the distinguished botanist Brian Lawrence “Bill” Burt, whose green fingers and taxonomic acumen have left an indelible mark upon our gardening world. A…

William Herbert: The Dean Who Renamed Your Christmas Bulbs

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. May 28, 1847 Today marks the departure of William Herbert from our mortal garden—a man whose taxonomic meddling continues to vex gardeners nearly two centuries hence. This distinguished botanist, scholar, poet, and clergyman—who…

From Gold Rush to Green Rush: The Remarkable Journey of Charles Mohr

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. January 1, 1901 On this day, the esteemed botanist Charles Theodore Mohr penned a letter that would prove to be among his last significant correspondences. In it, he expressed what can only be…

Orchids, Oaks, and One Remarkable Woman: The Legacy of Aimée Camus

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. May 1, 2023 Today, we celebrate the birthday of one Aimée Antoinette Camus (“kah-MEW”), born in 1879—a French botanist of remarkable distinction who has somehow escaped the spotlight that should rightfully shine upon…

Alphonse de Candolle: The Father of Geographical Botany and Garden Zones

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 4, 1893 On this day in botanical history, the distinguished botanist Alphonse Pyramus (“Peer-ah-mus”) de Candolle (“Cundull”) departed this earthly garden at the venerable age of 87 in Geneva in 1893 (October…