My favourite photo of the week - Field Forget-me-not growing on a grassy bit which one of the local business parks is encouraging to grow as wildflowers. Smaller and paler flowers than the hulking big garden escapes I see more often in urban #Swindon. #WildflowerHour #Bloomscrolling #botany #plants #flowers #wildflowers #photography
botany
Swedish botanist Carolus Linnaeus was born #OTD in 1707.
Linnaeus introduced the two-part system of naming organisms - binomial nomenclature - where each species is given a genus name followed by a species name. This system brought consistency and clarity to the naming of organisms. His work laid the foundation for the biological classification system by categorizing living organisms into hierarchical groups based on shared characteristics.
Linné at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/9516
Scottish botanist and paleobotanist Robert Brown died #OTD in 1858.
In 1827, while observing pollen grains suspended in water under a microscope, Brown discovered the random movement of particles, later known as Brownian motion. He was the first to describe the cell nucleus, which he observed in orchid cells in 1831. He also made significant contributions to the classification of plants, introducing new families and genera.
Florentine physician, philosopher and botanist Andrea Cesalpino was born #OTD in 1524.
"De Plantis Libri XVI" (1583), is one of the earliest systematic treatises on plants. This book laid the groundwork for modern botanical classification. He organized plants based on their fruits and seeds rather than their medicinal properties, which was the common practice at the time. This method was a precursor to the binomial nomenclature system later developed by Carl Linnaeus.
French botanist and explorer Jeanne Barret was born #OTD in 1740.
She is best known for being the first woman to circumnavigate the globe with Bougainville's expedition on the Boudeuse and Étoile from 1766 to 1769. Disguised as a man, under the name Jean Barret, she enlisted as a valet and assistant to the expedition's naturalist, Philibert Commerson, shortly before the expedition's ships weighed anchor. According to Bougainville, she was an expert in botany.
Edited 54d ago
American artist and naturalist Mary Vaux Walcott was born #OTD in 1860.
She is best known for her watercolor paintings of wildflowers. She has been called the "Audubon of Botany." Vaux participated in numerous expeditions to the Canadian Rockies, where she meticulously documented and illustrated the local flora. Her work provided valuable scientific information and helped to preserve the knowledge of North America's botanical diversity.
South African botanist and taxonomist Louisa Bolus was born #OTD in 1877.
She is known for her extensive work in the field of South African flora, particularly in the classification and description of new plant species. Her extensive collection and classification efforts greatly expanded the Bolus Herbarium, making it one of the most important botanical collections in the region.
Bananas are at risk of extinction, but scientists have a plan. 🍌
From @popsci: A fungus that can infect over 100 different plants is devastating the popular fruit.
#Bananas #Food #ClimateChange #Climate #Agriculture #Botany #Science
First duck orchid of the spring starting to take flight near Genoa, VIC. These large duck orchids (Caleana major) are fairly common around Mallacoota most years but are usually out in larger numbers in October. Only saw the one early flower on the one plant this trip.
#Orchids #OzPlants #Biodiversity #Ecology #Botany #Photography #Spring #EastGippsland #InTheField #Nature
What Is Botanical Illustration? Learn About the History of This Scientific Art Form
By Emma Taggart and My Modern Met Team via @mymodernmet
