Jean Michel Claude Richard (16 August 1787 – 1868) was a noted

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

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 plant collector active in Senegal, Madagascar, Mauritius, and

Réunion Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...

, and a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur. Richard was born in

Volon Volon () is a commune in the Haute-Saône department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of O ...

, Haute-Saône. He was sent to Senegal in 1816 as the colony's gardener-in-chief, but served without obvious distinction until the arrival in 1822 of Baron Jacques-François Roger (1787–1849) who entrusted to Richard the creation of an experimental garden on the left bank of the

Sénégal River ,french: Fleuve Sénégal) , name_etymology = , image = Senegal River Saint Louis.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = Fishermen on the bank of the Senegal River estuary at the outskirts of Saint-Louis, Senegal ...

, near the village of Nghiao, and named it '' Richard Toll'' (toll means "garden" in the Wolof language). Richard was responsible for all plants, buildings, and facilities, and under his direction a number of new species were introduced to Senegal, including

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", distinguis ...

s, manioc, oranges, sugar cane, and coffee. In February 1824 Richard was sent to

Cayenne Cayenne (; ; gcr, Kayenn) is the capital city of French Guiana, an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Cayenne River on the Atlantic Oc ...

. Directed on 30 July 1824 to keep a diary of his experiences, he developed a catalog of the garden's species, and left Senegal in 1825. In January 1831 Richard became second director of the Jardin du Roy (now the

Jardin de l'État The Jardin de l'État, formerly known as the Jardin du Roy, is a historic botanical garden on the island of Réunion, found in the capital Saint-Denis, Réunion, Saint-Denis. Planted with trees and spices taken from outside the island by Pierre Po ...

) in the Île Bourbon (now

), succeeding Nicolas Bréon. Under his leadership the garden achieved its golden age. He introduced some 3,000 plant species to the colony, by his reckoning, while studying cryptogams, ferns, and orchids. He also sent

lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.Mauritius to the German specialist Ferdinand Christian Gustav Arnold (1828–1901). In retrospect, Richard's life has been marred by controversy. In 1841, when the young slave Edmond Albius (1829–1880) discovered the process of hand-pollination of vanilla, Richard claimed to have discovered the technique three or four years earlier. His story created serious doubts about Albius' claims, despite the support for Albius of Féréol Marie Bellier de Beaumont (1759–1831), naturalist

Eugène Volcy Focard Eugene is a common male given name that comes from the Greek εὐγενής (''eugenēs''), "noble", literally "well-born", from εὖ (''eu''), "well" and γένος (''genos''), "race, stock, kin".Louis-Claude Marie Richard (1754-1821), *

Achille Richard Achille Richard was a French botanist, botanical illustrator and physician (27 April 1794 in Paris – 5 October 1852). Biography Achille was the son of the botanist Louis-Claude Marie Richard (1754–1821). He was a pharmacist in the Frenc ...

(1794-1852), his son (A.Rich.) *

Olivier Jules Richard Olivier Jules Richard (22 March 1836 – 7 January 1896) was a French botanist, mycologist and lichenologist who published on the anatomy and symbiosis of lichens. A native of La Mothe-Saint-Héray, he studied law in Paris. He later served as ''p ...

(1836-1896) (O.J.Rich.) * Claude Richard fl.(C.Rich) * Joseph Herve Pierre Richard (J.H.P.Rich.)

Selected works

* ''Catalogue du jardin de La Réunion'', 1 vol. in 8°, 113 pages, 1856.

References

* Guillaume Grandidier, ''Bibliographie de Madagascar'', vol. 2, Comité de Madagascar, 1935, page 862.
Aluka entry

29 May 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:Richard, Jean Michel Claude French taxonomists 1787 births 1868 deaths Botanists active in Africa 18th-century French botanists 19th-century French botanists