Biography

South African botanist with an interest in indigenous flora, especially succulents, who worked as a botanical assistant at the Albany Museum Herbarium (1921-1984). Appointed as Temporary Junior Lay Assistant under Selmar Schönland by the newly constituted Botanical Survey of South Africa, she had the second longest uninterrupted service record in the Department of Agriculture. Highly regarded for her knowledge of Eastern Cape flora she developed the Euphorbia garden, started as a research adjunct by Allen Dyer, into an indigenous garden and exchanged live plants with Robert Broom, Louisa Bolus, Helen Boswell, Fred Eyles, Hans Herre and many others. Sadly, this garden was lost in repeated building expansion of the museum. She is best remembered for her Flower Table Displays, comprising indigenous local flowers that she collected twice weekly and set out with labels giving their names, common names and uses, a practice which she started in 1930 and continued for the next 40 years. She was an expert on the genus Haworthia and is honoured in the species Haworthia britteniana Poelln. and Haworthia venusta C.L. Scott, the specific epithet being a Latin translation of the name Grace.

Sources:
Personal communication.

Biography

South African botanist with an interest in indigenous flora, especially succulents, who worked as a botanical assistant at the Albany Museum Herbarium (1921-1984). Appointed as Temporary Junior Lay Assistant under Selmar Schönland by the newly constituted Botanical Survey of South Africa, she had the second longest uninterrupted service record in the Department of Agriculture. Highly regarded for her knowledge of Eastern Cape flora she developed the Euphorbia garden, started as a research adjunct by Allen Dyer, into an indigenous garden and exchanged live plants with Robert Broom, Louisa Bolus, Helen Boswell, Fred Eyles, Hans Herre and many others. Sadly, this garden was lost in repeated building expansion of the museum. She is best remembered for her Flower Table Displays, comprising indigenous local flowers that she collected twice weekly and set out with labels giving their names, common names and uses, a practice which she started in 1930 and continued for the next 40 years. She was an expert on the genus Haworthia and is honoured in the species Haworthia britteniana Poelln. and Haworthia venusta C.L. Scott, the specific epithet being a Latin translation of the name Grace.

Sources:
Personal communication.