Peter Posnette (real name Adrian Frank Posnette) (11 January 1914 – 17 July 2004) was a British plant pathologist. He was educated at

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Cheltenham and Christ's College, Cambridge. Posnette was a keen sportsman in his youth being a member of Pate's First X1 at football and cricket and playing football at University. He played several games for Bedouins, a 'touring' association football team that drew the majority of their players from universities. On leaving university in 1935, he joined the Colonial Agricultural Service and gained a research scholarship at Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture in Trinidad. Posnette made his name in West Africa, 1937-49, where his work helped preserve the cocoa crop through the development of the more disease resistant hybrid Trinitaro plants and led to him being dubbed 'the Father of Modern Chocolate. He returned to UK to work at the East Malling Research Station on solutions to disease in plants such as apples and strawberries. He became Head of Plant Pathology at East Malling in 1957 and Deputy Director of the station in 1972. He was also visiting Professor of Plant Sciences at

Wye College bio sciences -> social sciences -> business school Pictures of OLT, Old Hall,Cloister, Parlour --> The College of St Gregory and St Martin at Wye, commonly known as Wye College, was an education and research institution in the village of Wye ...

, then part of the University of London.

Honours and awards

He was appointed

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in the

1976 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1976 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were published on 4 June 1976 for ...

, elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

in 1971 and awarded the Royal Horticultural Society's

Victoria Medal of Honour The Victoria Medal of Honour (VMH) is awarded to British horticulturists resident in the United Kingdom whom the Royal Horticultural Society Council considers deserving of special honour by the Society. The award was established in 1897 "in per ...

in 1982. A sculpture of Peter Posnette in conversation with Prof Geoffrey Emett Blackman, sculpted by Blackman's wife Audrey, is displayed in the Fellows Rooms at the Royal Society.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Posnette, Adrian Frank 1914 births 2004 deaths British botanists British agriculturalists Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Royal Society Victoria Medal of Honour recipients Academics of Wye College