scurvy prevention Archives

Georg Wilhelm Steller: Pioneer of Alaskan Natural History and Survivor of the Kamchatka Expedition

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. March 10, 1709 Dearest reader, On this day, with shovels at the ready and curiosity in bloom, we honor the birth of Georg Wilhelm Steller—a German botanist, zoologist, physician, and intrepid explorer whose…

William Barton: Navy Surgeon and Medical Botanist of Early America

Medical Botany of the United States November 17, 1786 Today is the birthday of the lawyer and medical botanist William Barton. William’s uncle was 18th-century preeminent medical botanist Benjamin Smith Barton, from whom he learned his passion for botany. In 1809 William enlisted in the Navy as a Surgeon and immediately fought to improve his…

From Scurvy to Science: Sir Frederick Hopkins’ Vitamin Victory

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. June 20, 1861 On this day, dear readers, we celebrate the birth of a most remarkable gentleman, Sir Frederick Gowland Hopkins. Born a day before the summer solstice, Hopkins would go on to…