Davidsonia

Davidsonia - A Journal of Botanical Garden Science

On the Shoulders of Giants

Editor Iain Taylor comments on the rapid pace of current research and reminds us that researchers should not forget to properly evaluate the studies of the "giants", who have come before them.

Louis-Albert Dode (1875-1945) was a noted dendrologist and founder of the Société Dendrologique de France. Born at Moulins in the Departement of Allier in the Auvergne, he became a Doctor of Law and developed an extensive personal arboretum. He published notable works on Catalpa, Davidia, Evodia, Fagaceae, Juglandaceae, Platanus, Pseudotsuga sinensis (which he described in 1912), Phellodendron, Populus and Salix, and was particularly active in describing and assessing the material that had been newly introduced into French arboreta from China.

The history of roses and botanical gardens is firmly entwined. Few plants are as revered by the public or as rewarding when well grown to both growers and garden visitors, and garden managers have found it easy and frequently profitable to capitalize on the public’s attraction to roses. In practically any jurisdiction in the temperate world, in almost every display garden, roses figure prominently. Botanical gardens from Dubuque (Iowa) to Chandigargh (India), and from Christchurch (New Zealand) to St. John’s (Newfoundland) promote themselves through their rose gardens.

Myrtaceae is a fascinating, evergreen woody plant family that demonstrates significant potential for horticulture in southwestern British Columbia. Among the group’s shared characteristics are showy floral parts and leaves containing oil glands. Their main centre of distribution is in Australasia, with secondary nodes in southern South America and equatorial Africa. The “type species” of the family, and notable exception, is Myrtus communis, which is native to the Mediterranean region of Europe and North Africa. Besides the economic importance of this group (there are significant timber-, edible fruit-, spice- and medicinal oil-producing species), some of its members have other valuable attributes, and central among these to horticulture is public amenity. Among the Australasian members are three genera containing species that are suitable for cultivation in this cool temperate climate. These are Eucalyptus, Callistemon and Leptospermum. The species discussed below are recommended by two main points: their ornamental qualities and their hardiness.

The Food Garden at the UBC Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research was the first major demonstration and display garden devoted to food plants in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia. It carries on a long tradition by responding directly to a growing need for a well documented demonstration garden that displays a wide assortment of fruits and vegetables that can be used for both demonstrations and teaching at university and public non-credit course levels.

The September installment of Judy Newton's popular series describing what to see at the UBC Botanical Garden each month of the year.