James ('Jim') Boughtwood Comber (1929 – 7 September 2005) was born at

Garlieston Garlieston ( gd, Baile Gheàrr Lios, IPA: �paləʝeaːᵲʎis̪ is a small planned coastal village in the historical county of Wigtownshire in Dumfries and Galloway, south west Scotland. It was founded in the mid 18th century by Lord Garlies, la ...

, Scotland, into a famous horticultural family. His father was the noted collector and lily breeder

Harold Frederick Comber Harold Frederick Comber ALS (31 December 1897 – 23 April 1969) was an English horticulturist and plant collector who was to specialise in the study of lilies ''Lilium'' sp. The eldest child of three, and only son of James and Ethel Comber, he ...

ALS Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most com ...

, while his grandfather, James Comber VMH was Head Gardener at Nymans. His brother Richard gained a PhD in plant biochemistry. from Southampton University in 1955. His sister, Mary Comber-Miles, became the resident botanical artist at the University of British Columbia.Hsu, E. (2011). Harold Comber and his introductions. ''The Plantsman'', Vol. 10, Part 4, Dec. 2011.

Career

On leaving school, Comber worked briefly for the seed company of Sutton & Son at Reading before beginning an apprenticeship at the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew in 1951. National Service interrupted his training, but his posting to Singapore was to inspire his 35-year career in South East Asia and interest in its flora. After National Service, Comber returned to Kew, completing his course in 1955. Later that year he was given leave to join Anglo-Indonesian Plantations (AIP) in Java. After resuming studies at degree level, he graduated in 1960, whereupon he accepted the post of Assistant Manager with AIP at the Sapang rubber plantation in Sabah (then British North Borneo but part of Malaysia from 1963), later becoming Manager, and spending much of his leisure time collecting and photographing orchids.Burgess, G. (2005) James (Jim) Boughtwood Comber 1929-2005. ''The Journal of the Kew Guild''. Vol. 14, No. 110, 2005. Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. During this time, Comber formed a close and philanthropic association with the native population, taking much interest in their culture and learning local languages. However, much of this period coincided with the

Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation The Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation or Borneo confrontation (also known by its Indonesian / Malay name, ''Konfrontasi'') was an armed conflict from 1963 to 1966 that stemmed from Indonesia's opposition to the creation of the Federation of ...

over the sovereignty of the region, and Comber's activities were to arouse the suspicions of the authorities as many of his workforce had come from Indonesia. He was declared persona non grata. Comber eventually moved in 1971 to the post of agronomist with Ciba-Geigy near Medan in

Sumatra Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...

, and later Thailand, during which time he was able to further his knowledge of the hundreds of orchid species. Comber was to write three books, and numerous articles for orchid journals, about the orchids of South-east Asia (see 'Works'), describing well over 1000 species, all illustrated with photographs he had taken; the publication by the RBG Kew of one of these tomes, ''The Orchids of Java'', he personally funded. He inevitably discovered many new species, and two are named in his honour: ''

Sarcoglyphis comberi ''Sarcoglyphis'' is a genus of flowering plants from the orchid family, Orchidaceae. It is native to Southeast Asia, the Himalayas and southern China. Species currently accepted as of June 2014: #'' Sarcoglyphis arunachalensis'' A.N.Rao - Aruna ...

'' J. J. Wood and ''

Bulbophyllum comberi ''Bulbophyllum comberi'' is a species of orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, th ...

'' J. J. Vermeulen.Comber, J. B. (1990). ''Orchids of Java''.

RBG Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. An internationally important botanical research and education institution, it employs 1,100 ...

. Comber retired in 1991, returning to the UK and settling in Southampton.

Death

James Comber died suddenly at his home in Southampton on 7 September 2005 following a knee operation.

Personal life

Comber married Riam Tiekseeboon shortly before his retirement; they had two children, Elizabeth and John.

Works

* Comber, J. B. (1981). ''Wayside Orchids of South-east Asia''. Heinemann-Asia, Kuala-Lumpur. * Comber, J. B. (1990). ''Orchids of Java''.

. * Comber, J. B. (2001). ''Orchids of Sumatra''.

/ Natural History Publications, Kota Kinabalu.

References

Notes

See also note by Phillip Cribb in Kew Gardens Orchid Research Newsletter No.47, January 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:Comber, James 20th-century British botanists Orchidologists 1929 births 2005 deaths Botanists active in Asia People from Dumfries and Galloway