(in English and French sources Georges Gallesio, 23 May 1772 – 30 November 1839) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

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 ...

and researcher of the 18th and 19th centuries, specializing in

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering plant, flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as Orange (fruit), oranges, Lemon, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and lim ...

. His famous book was first printed in 1811 and reprinted in 1826 due to its popularity. In this work, he presented his findings that hybrids are offspring of outcross

pollination Pollination is the transfer of pollen from an anther of a plant to the stigma of a plant, later enabling fertilisation and the production of seeds, most often by an animal or by wind. Pollinating agents can be animals such as insects, birds ...

and not due to

grafting Grafting or graftage is a horticultural technique whereby tissues of plants are joined so as to continue their growth together. The upper part of the combined plant is called the scion () while the lower part is called the rootstock. The succ ...

as previously thought. He also studied the family barriers affecting

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

compatibility and gave a good account of the history and distribution of citrus. He was widely cited in many works of his day, and also in ''The Citrus Industry'' book, by Webber, Batchelor and others. He has a further minor claim to fame as the first person to use the expression 'dominant' (in Italian, 'dominante') to refer to the hereditary transmission of characters when plants are hybridised ("Quindi la loro combinazione, non essendo naturale, riesce inconstante nei suoi effeti, e questi portano, ora l'impronta di un principio, ora di un altro, in proporzione che ve ne è uno dominante." Gallesio, Giorgio. ''Teoria della Riproduzione Vegetale'', Pisa: Nicolo Capurro, 1816, p 79. English translation in Stubbe, Hans. ''History of Genetics'', pp. 107–08). The term appears in a passage in which Gallesio describes the hybridisation of two strains of carnations having red and white flowers.

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19th-century Italian botanists 1772 births 1839 deaths 18th-century Italian botanists {{Italy-botanist-stub