Graham Duncan (botanist)

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Graham Dugald Duncan
Born (1959-11-28) 28 November 1959 (age 64) [1]
Citizenship South African
Alma mater University of KwaZulu-Natal
Known forSouth African geophytes
Awards Herbert Medal
Recht Malan Prize
Scientific career
Fields Botany and horticulture
Institutions SANBI, Kirstenbosch
Author abbrev. (botany) G.D.Duncan

Graham Dugald Duncan (born 28 November 1959) is a South African botanist and specialist bulb horticulturalist at the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, Cape Town, South Africa.

Contents

Life

Graham Duncan was born in 1959 [2] and grew up in the Western Cape region amongst its wild bulbous plants. He obtained his early education at the Cape Town Technikon with a National Diploma in horticulture, [1] [3] and joined the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, Cape Town, South Africa in 1978, where he came under the influence of Winsome Fanny Barker (1907–1994), then curator of the Compton Herbarium at Kirstenbosch and a Lachenalia specialist. He earned his MSc ( cum laude ) in Botany at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg in 2005. [4] [5]

Work

Graham Duncan is a specialist horticulturalist for geophytes and curates the indigenous South African geophytes collection at Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden. These are displayed in the Kay Bergh Bulb House at the Kirstenbosch Conservatory. [6] He is considered an authority on the cultivation, conservation, propagation and biology of bulbs of the Cape region, and the leading expert on the genus Lachenalia. [7] [8] [9] His research deals with the biology and taxonomy of Cape bulbs. [5]

Other than his work on Lachenalia [10] [11] he is known for his expertise on Nerine , [12] Eucomis and Agapanthus . As well as identifying a number of South African plants, [9] he has also bred cultivars such as Clivia miniata 'Kirstenbosch Splendour', which illustrates the cover of the Kirstenbosch centenary book (2013). [13] [14]

He is the author of numerous books, including several titles in the Kirstenbosch Gardening Series, scientific papers and popular articles on South African bulbous plants. [4] He is also a plant collector [2] and plant photographer (see image) and his photographs illustrate his own books and have been published in The Smallest Kingdom: Plants and Plant Collectors at the Cape of Good Hope (2011). [8] [9] [5]

Awards

In 1989, he was awarded the Recht Malan Prize for non-fiction (1989) from the Nasionale Boekhandel for his Bulbous plants of southern Africa [15] and in 2001 he was the recipient of the International Bulb Society's Herbert Medal. [16] [5]

Legacy

Plants for which Duncan is the Botanical authority include many species of Lachenalia , together with W.F.Barker. The International Plant Names Index lists 54 taxa named by him, predominantly species of Lachenalia. [17]

The standard author abbreviation G.D.Duncan is used to indicate this person as the author when citing a botanical name. [18]

Selected publications

Books

Kirstenbosch Gardening Series

Articles

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden</span> Botanical garden at the foot of Table Mountain in Cape Town

Kirstenbosch is an important botanical garden nestled at the eastern foot of Table Mountain in Cape Town. The garden is one of 10 National Botanical Gardens covering five of South Africa's six different biomes and administered by the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI). Prior to 1 September 2004, the institute was known as the National Botanical Institute.

<i>Nerine</i> Genus of flowering plants

Nerine is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae. They are bulbous perennials, some evergreen, associated with rocky and arid habitats. They bear spherical umbels of lily-like flowers in shades from white through pink to crimson. In the case of deciduous species, the flowers may appear on naked stems before the leaves develop. Native to South Africa, there are about 20–30 species in the genus. Though described as lilies, they are not significantly related to the true lilies (Liliaceae), but more closely resemble their relatives, Amaryllis and Lycoris. The genus was established by the Revd. William Herbert in 1820.

<i>Puschkinia</i> Genus of flowering plants

Puschkinia is a genus of four known species of bulbous perennials in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae. It is native to the Caucasus and the Middle East. Puschkinia scilloides is grown as an ornamental bulbous plant.

<i>Lachenalia</i> Genus of flowering plants

Lachenalia is a genus of bulbous perennial plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, which are usually found in Namibia and South Africa. Most of them have a dormancy period, but new roots will always grow every year.

<i>Eucomis comosa</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis comosa, the pineapple flower, pineapple lily or wine eucomis, is a species of flowering plant in the asparagus family Asparagaceae. A deciduous bulbous perennial used as an ornamental plant, it is endemic to South Africa. The white to purple flowers appear in summer and are arranged in a spike (raceme), topped by a "head" of green leaflike bracts.

<i>Eucomis</i> Genus of flowering plants

Eucomis is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to southern Africa. Most species of this genus are commonly referred to as pineapple flowers or pineapple lilies. They are bulbous perennials with basal rosettes of leaves and stout stems covered in star-shaped flowers with a tuft of green bracts at the top, superficially resembling a pineapple – hence the common names.

<i>Eucomis autumnalis</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis autumnalis, the autumn pineapple flower, or autumn pineapple lily, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to Malawi, Zimbabwe and southern Africa. It is a mid to late summer flowering deciduous bulbous perennial. The flower stem reaches about 40 cm (16 in), rising from a basal rosette of wavy-edged leaves. The green, yellow or white flowers are arranged in a spike (raceme), topped by a "head" of green leaflike bracts. It is grown as an ornamental garden plant and can also be used as a cut flower.

<i>Eucomis vandermerwei</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis vandermerwei is a South African bulbous perennial flowering plant, a member of the asparagus family, and like other members of Eucomis is commonly known as pineapple lily for its superficial resemblance to that plant, although not closely related to it. This species is one of the smallest in the genus, and is native to a high-rainfall region of western Mpumalanga in South Africa. The dense rosette of leaves, either prostrate or ascending, is heavily blotched with purple, and the leaf-edges are markedly crisped or wavy. The star-shaped burgundy flowers appear in midsummer, and are borne on a spike (raceme) topped by a "head" of leafy bracts.

<i>Eucomis bicolor</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis bicolor, the variegated pineapple lily or just pineapple lily, is a bulbous species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to Southern Africa. The pale green, purple-margined flowers are arranged in a spike (raceme), topped by a "head" of green leaflike bracts. It is cultivated as an ornamental bulbous plant, although its flowers have an unpleasant smell, attractive to the main pollinators, flies.

<i>Eucomis pallidiflora</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis pallidiflora, the giant pineapple lily, is a bulbous species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to southern Africa. The white to green flowers appear in summer and are arranged in a spike (raceme), topped by a "head" of green leaflike bracts. Some forms reach almost 2 m when in flower. The species is cultivated as an ornamental plant, although it is not hardy in areas where severe frosts occur.

<i>Eucomis zambesiaca</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis zambesiaca is a bulbous plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to southern Africa, from Zimbabwe through Malawi to the Limpopo Province of South Africa. One of the smaller species in the genus, it has a rosette of leaves about 45 cm (18 in) across and white flowers in a spike to about 30 cm (12 in) tall.

<i>Eucomis montana</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis montana is a plant species in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, found in South Africa and Eswatini (Swaziland). When in flower in summer, the plant reaches a height of up to 45 cm, with a dense spike (raceme) of greenish flowers, topped by a "head" of green bracts.

Peter Goldblatt is a South African botanist, working principally in the United States.

<i>Eucomis regia</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis regia is a species of bulbous flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to the Cape Provinces of South Africa. It is sometimes cultivated, but requires protection in a greenhouse in temperate climates.

Eucomis amaryllidifolia is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to the Cape Provinces. It is a short, summer-flowering bulbous plant, with a dense spike (raceme) of yellowish-green flowers topped by a "head" of leafy bracts. In Afrikaans it is called kliplelie.

Eucomis grimshawii is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to the Cape Provinces. It was first described by Graham Duncan and Ben Zonneveld in 2010.

<i>Eucomis humilis</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis humilis is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to KwaZulu-Natal and Lesotho. It was first described by Baker in 1895. The greenish to purplish flowers appear in summer and are arranged in a spike (raceme), topped by a "head" of green leaflike bracts. Cultivated as an ornamental plant, it can be grown successfully outside where frosts are not too severe.

<i>Eucomis schijffii</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis schijffii is a bulbous species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to the Cape Provinces, KwaZulu-Natal and Lesotho. It was first described by William Frederick Reyneke in 1976. The reddish purple flowers appear in summer and are arranged in a spike (raceme), topped by a "head" of green leaflike bracts. It is cultivated as an ornamental plant and can be grown successfully outside where frosts are not too severe. The smallest of the species of Eucomis, it is particularly suited to being grown in rock gardens or containers.

<i>Lachenalia viridiflora</i> Species of flowering plant

Lachenalia viridiflora, commonly known as the green-flowered Cape cowslip or turquoise hyacinth, is a species of flowering plant in the asparagus family native to the southwest Cape Provinces of South Africa. It was discovered in the 1960s, and first described in 1972 by Winsome Fanny Barker.

Lachenalia variegata, also known as the spotty viooltjie, is a species of plant from the Western Cape of South Africa.

References

  1. 1 2 Codd & Gunn 1984, Duncan, Graham Dugald
  2. 1 2 JStor Plants 2016, Duncan, Graham Dugald
  3. Glen & Germishuizen 2010, p. 158
  4. 1 2 3 SANBI 2010.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Kamenetsky & Okubo 2012.
  6. SANBI 2015.
  7. Duncan 1988.
  8. 1 2 Fraser & Fraser 2011.
  9. 1 2 3 Anderson 2007, Lachenalia p. 493
  10. Duncan & Edwards 2006.
  11. Duncan & Helme 2014.
  12. Duncan 2002b.
  13. Hartigh 2013.
  14. Huntley 2013.
  15. du Plessis & Duncan 1989.
  16. IBS 2008.
  17. IPNI. List of plant names with authority G.D.Duncan.
  18. International Plant Names Index.  G.D.Duncan.
  19. Hutchinson 2008.

Bibliography

Books and monographs

Articles and websites

Works by Graham Duncan