Mary Dilys Glynne

Glynne was born Mary Dilys Glynne Jones in Upper Bangor, Gwynedd in North Wales on 19 February 1895. Her father, John Glynne Jones, was a solicitor and her mother, Dilys Lloyd Glynne Jones was secretary (and later vice-president) of the Association for Promoting the Education of Girls in Wales. The couple had a total of five children. Glynne, as the middle child, had both an older and younger brother and sister. Glynne's elder sister was Eryl Smith, a doctor and plant collector. Glynne's mother was one of the founders of the Bangor School for Girls, so Glynne was educated there before attending North London Collegiate School, another school with links to her mother. Her degree in botany was attained from University College of North Wales in 1917 and soon after she dropped the "Jones" from her name. ==Plant pathology==

As soon as Glynne graduated she was offered a post in the University College of North Wales department of agriculture, but within a few months she was volunteering at Rothamsted Experimental Station where E. John Russell was director. Winifred Brenchley, the first woman to work in agricultural sciences, soon offered her a permanent assistant botanist position at Rothamsted, and later founded the Plant Pathology Department. Glynne's first major work was studying Synchytrium endobioticum, the cause of potato wart disease. A modified version of her method for identifying varieties resistant to the disease, the Glynne-Lemmerzahl method, is still in use today. The award included a year's study in Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand, which she undertook in 1928 after spending time with Sweet. and made "unexpected" discoveries related to the disposal of organic material in the soil. ==Other interests==

One of Glynne's main interests was mountaineering and rock climbing, although her family did not support the hobby, Despite this, Glynne climbed throughout her life, including in Australia and New Zealand whilst she was touring there. She was recognised by the Cambodia tourist board in their printed guides to the site. ==Legacy and death==

Glynne was made a fellow of the Institute of Biology and retired that same year. Instead of giving up work completely she moved to a volunteer role at Rothamsted for two more years. In mountaineering, Glynne was a member of the Fell & Rock Climbing Club, the Pinnacle Club and vice-president of the Ladies' Alpine Club. In 1991, at the age of 96, Glynne developed bronchopneumonia and died in her nursing home in Harpenden. ==Bibliography==