Abstract
A PAPER by John M. Cowan (J. Roy. Hort. Soc., 65, Pt. 3; March 1940) describes the various botanical personalities who have contributed thought and organization to the development of the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh. This is one of the oldest ‘physic’ gardens in Britain, and was established in 1670 by Robert Sibbald, with help from his friends Andrew Balfour and Patrick Murray. The first ‘intendant’ was James Sutherland, whose subsequent appointment as the first professor of botany at the University of Edinburgh ensured that close co-operation between academic plant science and practical horticulture which has been so marked a feature of the institution throughout its history. The Prestons, Charles Alston and John Hope succeeded Sutherland, each adding patiently a solid quota of work. Rutherford, discoverer of nitrogen, was also in charge of the garden, and more recently, J. Hutton Balfour and Sir Isaac Bay ley Balfour have enhanced the reputation of the garden as an academic centre. It now possesses modern laboratories, and provides a stimulating part of the curriculum for students in medicine, arts, pure science, forestry and agriculture.
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The Edinburgh Botanic Garden. Nature 145, 1014 (1940). https://doi.org/10.1038/1451014c0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/1451014c0