Edith Layard Stephens (1884-1966) was a South African

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

, a leading authority on

algae Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular mic ...

and

fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...

, particularly edible and poisonous mushrooms.

Early life and education

Stephens was born on December 6, 1884 in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

Cape Colony The Cape Colony ( nl, Kaapkolonie), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British Empire, British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope, which existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when i ...

, as the daughter of Michael Stephens, who was a chief locomotive superintendent of the Cape Government Railways and Annie Hoskyn. In 1901, she matriculated at the

Rustenburg School for Girls Rustenburg Girls' High School and Rustenburg Girls'Junior School are two separate public schools with a shared history,situated in the suburb of Rondebosch in Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa. Rustenburg was founded in 1894 and divided in ...

Rondebosch, Cape Town Rondebosch is one of the Southern Suburbs, Cape Town, Southern Suburbs of Cape Town, South Africa. It is primarily a residential suburb, with shopping and business districts as well as the main campus of the University of Cape Town. History Four y ...

. She studied at the South African College (which later became the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...

) and later that year received the

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree at the University of Cape of Good Hope. In 1906, Stephans completed the BA degree with honours in botany being awarded by the Cape of Good Hope and was awarded with the gold medal for science and the Queen Victoria Scholarship and the 1881 Exhibition Scholarship in 1907, which led her to

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

Career and accomplishments

In 1908, Stephens published ''A preliminary note on the embryo-sac and embryo of certain Penaeaceae'' in the Annals of Botany, which was based on her research that she started since the South African College. Though her studies did not lead to a qualification since the Cambridge University did not award degrees to women during those years, she was elected as a fellow of the

Linnean Society of London The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature colle ...

. Around 1911, Stephhens returned to South Africa. During the first half year of 1913, she was a temporary lecturer in botany at the South African College and later succeeded W.T. Saxton, as a lecturer in botany and remained in the Department of Botany when the college became the University of Cape Town in 1918, until she retired in 1940. She then became honorary reader in plant taxonomy at

Bolus Herbarium The Bolus Herbarium was established in 1865 from a donation by Harry Bolus of his extensive herbarium and library to the South African College, which later became the University of Cape Town. Its collection of specimens numbers over 320 000, mak ...

in 1952. She made a special study in freshwater algae and fungi, known for her two illustrated booklets on poisonous and edible fungi and also contributed the Pennaeaceae. She continued as honorary reader in systematic botany (

cryptogams A cryptogam (scientific name Cryptogamae) is a plant (in the wide sense of the word) or a plant-like organism that reproduces by spores, without flowers or seeds. The name ''Cryptogamae'' () means "hidden reproduction", referring to the fact ...

) in Bolus Herbarium until her death in 1966.

Awards

The Cape Tercentenary Foundation awarded Stephens for her contribution towards preservation of natural fauna and flora in the Cape in 1957. She used this grant to buy an area called Isoetes Vlei, which she then presented to the National Botanic Gardens, known as the Edith Stephens Cape Flats Flora Reserve.

Works

* ''Notes on the Aquatic Flora of South Africa'', Cape Town : University of Cape Town, 1924. * ''The Botanical Features of the South Western Cape Province'' Cape Town : Specialty Press of S.A. Ltd., 1929. (With Robert Harold Compton; Robert Stephen Adamson; Paul Andries van der Byl and Margaret R Levyns, Mrs.) * ''Some South African Edible Fungi'', Longmans, Green and Co., Cape Town, 1953 * ''Some South African Poisonous and Inedible Fungi'', Longmans, Green and Co., Cape Town, 1953

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephens, Edith Layard 1884 births 1966 deaths 20th-century South African botanists South African women botanists Academic staff of the University of Cape Town Alumni of Rustenburg School for Girls 20th-century South African women scientists