Maxwell Tylden Masters FRS (15 April 1833 – 30 May 1907) was an English

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 taxonomist. He was the son of William Masters, the nurseryman and botanist of Canterbury and author of ''Hortus duroverni''.Desmond, R. (1994). ''Dictionary of British & Irish Botanists & Horticulturists'', p.475. Taylor & Francis, and Natural History Museum, London.

Life

Tylden Masters studied at the

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

and the University of St Andrews. He attended the lectures of

Edward Forbes Edward Forbes FRS, FGS (12 February 1815 – 18 November 1854) was a Manx naturalist. In 1846, he proposed that the distributions of montane plants and animals had been compressed downslope, and some oceanic islands connected to the mainlan ...

and

John Lindley John Lindley FRS (5 February 1799 – 1 November 1865) was an English botanist, gardener and orchidologist. Early years Born in Catton, near Norwich, England, John Lindley was one of four children of George and Mary Lindley. George Lindley w ...

. His most famous works are ''Vegetable Teratology'', which dealt with teratology (abnormal mutations) of vegetable species, and several works on Chinese plants (particularly

conifer Conifers are a group of conifer cone, cone-bearing Spermatophyte, seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the phylum, division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single ...

s), describing many of the new species discovered by Ernest Henry Wilson. The larch '' Larix mastersiana'' and the ''

Nepenthes ''Nepenthes'' () is a genus of carnivorous plants, also known as tropical pitcher plants, or monkey cups, in the monotypic family Nepenthaceae. The genus includes about 170 species, and numerous natural and many cultivated hybrids. They are mos ...

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...

'' N. × mastersiana'' are named after Tylden Masters, among other plant species. Including a genus that was published in 1871, '' Maxwellia'' from

New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...

. Tylden Masters was the editor of the '' Gardeners' Chronicle'' between 1866 and 1907, which led to him corresponding with Charles Darwin. He was elected a fellow of the Royal Society in 1870. He was made a correspondent of the

Institute of France The (; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the Académie Française. It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute m ...

in 1888. He was also a chevalier of the

order of Leopold Order of Leopold may refer to: * Order of Leopold (Austria), founded in 1808 by emperor Francis I of Austria and discontinued in 1918 * Order of Leopold (Belgium), founded in 1832 by king Leopold I of Belgium * Order of Leopold II, founded in Congo ...

. Tylden Masters died at the Mount,

Ealing Ealing () is a district in West London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. Ealing is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan. Ealing was histor ...

, on 30 May 1907. His body was cremated at

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in northwest Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'' and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement o ...

. His obituary in The American Florist credited him with preventing Kew Gardens "from being handed over to a political clique", with the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) holding onto its Chiswick Garden, and for preventing "confiscation" of the RHS

Lindley Library The Lindley Library in London is the largest horticultural library in the world. It is within the headquarters of the Royal Horticultural Society, Library The main part of the library is based at 80 Vincent Square, London, within the headquarters ...

"in the dark days of the society at South Kensington".

Family

In 1858, Tylden Masters married Ellen, daughter of William Tress, by whom he had four children. His wife and two daughters survived him.

Books

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Notes

References

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External links

* * Botanists with author abbreviations English botanists Fellows of the Royal Society 1833 births 1907 deaths Alumni of King's College London Alumni of the University of St Andrews {{UK-botanist-stub