Walter Davis (botanist)
Walter Davis (14 September 1847 – 18 November 1930) was an English
Career
Early life
Davis was born at Sarson Street, now part of
His travels then took him to work for Mr. C. Ryder at
James Veitch & Sons
At Chelsea, he worked under
He remained in South America for three years, during which time he crossed the Andean Cordilleras in Peru, Colombia and Bolivia at least twenty times, at elevations of up to 17,000 feet (5,200 m)[4] and, like his predecessor Gustav Wallis he traversed the continent, travelling the entire length of the Amazon River.[3]
During his trip, he was successful not only in collecting M. veitchiana but several other
"This is a beautiful thing, much like M. harryana and veitchiana.... The other parts of the flower are yellowish, white and of the deepest splendid orange inside; so that it would appear to give a most welcome contrast in a group of the scarlet and vermillion and white Masdevallias. It was discovered by a, most probably new collector, Mr. W. Davis... I have a very good opinion of this collector, who was introduced to me by a set of new dried Orchids; so I thought it my duty to attach the name of such a promising collector to such a welcome Masdevallia."[6]
Near
Return to England
On his return to England in 1877, Davis was selected to conduct a botanical analysis of
Later life
Davis continued to work for
Following a paralytic stroke which led to failing eyesight, Davis spent the last ten years of his life in retirement, in the care of his eldest daughter, in Fulham.[11] He died on 18 November 1930, and his obituary in the Journal of Botany praised his contribution to botany: "with his passing the world of orchidology bids farewell to one of the last reminders of an elegant and exciting period in orchid discovery and cultivation".[11]
Publications
- Plant Propagation (1922) – "Description of the various methods employed by both amateur and professional gardeners."[13]
References
- ^ ISBN 0-88192-737-6.
- ^ ISBN 0-9553515-0-2.
- ^ ISBN 0-7475-6066-8.
- ^ Hortus Veitchii. p. 66.
- Hortus Veitchii. p. 180.
- ^ Masdevallias: Gems of the Orchid World. p. 19.
- Hortus Veitchii. p. 457.
- Hortus Veitchii. p. 232.
- ISBN 0-88192-529-2.
- ^ Geoff Bryant. "Tuberhybrida Cultivars". Country, Farm & Garden. Retrieved 18 November 2008.
- ^ a b c d e "Walter Davis (1847–1930)". orchids.co.in. Retrieved 19 November 2008.
- ^ Seeds of Fortune – A Gardening Dynasty. p. 275.
- ^ Extracts on Million Book Project
External links
- Article on www.orchids.co.in
- Entry on Harvard University Herbarium Index of Botanists