Thomas William Walker, ONZM (2 July 1916 – 8 November 2010) was an Anglo-New Zealand soil scientist. He was known as "Tom" or "John" or "Johnnie" after the Johnnie Walker brand of whisky, or "The Prof" to students and latterly viewers of '' Maggie's Garden Show''. To his family he was "Baba". Born in Shepshed,

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...

, he was educated at Loughborough Grammar School and the Royal College of Science. He continued his career at Rothamsted Experimental Station, University of Manchester and for the

National Agricultural Advisory Service ADAS is a UK-based independent agricultural and environmental consultancy and provider of rural development and policy advice. ADAS provides independent science-based research, consultancy and contracting services to a wide range of organisa ...

. In 1952, he emigrated to New Zealand, to become the first professor of soil science at Canterbury Agricultural College. He returned to Britain in 1958, but came back in 1960, to his old job at the soon to be renamed Lincoln College, New Zealand. He retired in 1979, becoming emeritus professor from then until his death in 2010.

Honours

*1997: the

Rutherford Gold Medal Rutherford may refer to: Places Australia * Rutherford, New South Wales, a suburb of Maitland * Rutherford (Parish), New South Wales, a civil parish of Yungnulgra County Canada * Mount Rutherford, Jasper National Park * Rutherford, Edmonton ...

from the RSNZ *2000: appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to soil science, in the

2000 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2000 for the United Kingdom and New Zealand were announced on 31 December 1999, to celebrate the year passed and mark the beginning of 2000. The ''Honours list'' is a list of people who have been awarded one of the various or ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Thomas William 1916 births 2010 deaths People educated at Loughborough Grammar School Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit Recipients of the Rutherford Medal Lincoln University (New Zealand) faculty People from Shepshed British emigrants to New Zealand Alumni of the Royal College of Science