John Tradescant the elder (
ca 1570s–1638) and his son,
John Tradescant the younger (1608–1662), must head the list of historic plantsmen.
Charles de l'Ecluse, better known as Carolus Clusius (1526–1609), and
Carl Linnaeus (1707–1778) are other examples. These early botanists, who certainly grew (and sometimes had also collected) many of the plants they described, can therefore be described as plantsmen (though such a term did not exist in their lifetimes). By contrast, adventurous
plant-hunters such as
David Douglas (1799–1834), who dedicated (and lost) his life to searching out and collecting plants from the wild, were seldom gardeners and rarely grew the plants they had collected, so perhaps do not count as plantsmen, despite their great knowledge and dedication.
Augustine Henry (1857–1930) was a pioneering plant-collector in Western China in the late 19th century who became a professor of
forestry in later life. On the other hand,
EH Wilson (1876–1930), also famed for his work in China (to the extent that he was known as Ernest "Chinese" Wilson), began as a gardener and, after working at the
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, became a plant collector, first for
James Veitch & Sons (nurserymen) and later for the
Arnold Arboretum. Irish nurseryman
William Baylor Hartland (1836–1912) specialised in daffodils in the late 19th century from his nursery in Cork. He was also an authority on apples. Because of their in-depth knowledge, specialist plant-breeders may be considered as plantsmen in their own fields (though the term is often taken to imply a more encyclopaedic interest in a wide range of plants). Influential garden writers such as
William Robinson (1838–1935) and garden-designer
Gertrude Jekyll (1843–1932) disseminated their knowledge of plants through their writing, as did a later generation of plant-lovers including
Margery Fish (1892–1969) and
Vita Sackville-West (1892–1962), whose garden at
Sissinghurst Castle, created with her husband
Harold Nicolson, is now owned by the
National Trust and one of the most popular in Britain.
Reginald Farrer (1880–1920) was a notable plant-hunter and influential writer in the more specialised area of
alpine plants and
rock gardening.
Modern plantsmen Notable modern British plantsmen include
Roy Lancaster, the late
Christopher Lloyd of
Great Dixter (1921–2006) and the late
Beth Chatto (1923–2018). American nurserymen and plant-collectors who qualify for the title include plant-breeder
Dan Heims of Terra Nova Nurseries (who styles himself a "hortiholic"),
Dan Hinkley, co-founder of
Heronswood (now an independent author, lecturer and horticultural consultant), and
Tony Avent, owner of the renowned
Plant Delights Nursery.
European candidates include the late
Princess Greta Sturdza of Le Vasterival, near
Dieppe; the late Robert and Jelena de Belder, the principal creators of
Arboretum Kalmthout, Belgium; and influential Dutch garden designer
Piet Oudolf, who has pioneered the use of "
prairie-style" planting with bold drifts of
perennials and grasses at gardens such as
Scampston Hall,
North Yorkshire and the
RHS Garden, Wisley,
Surrey in the
UK and at
Enköping in
Sweden. Oudolf is designing a Garden of Remembrance for the victims of
9/11 in
Battery Park (New York). Landscape architect
Louis Benech of France is also a famous plantsman. == References ==