The Veitch Memorial Medal is an international prize issued annually by the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nor ...

(RHS).

Goal

The prize is awarded to "persons of any nationality who have made an outstanding contribution to the advancement and improvement of the science and practice of horticulture".

History

The prize was first planned in 1870, in memory of James Veitch of Chelsea. At first, the prize was issued by the Veitch Memorial Trust and awarded at local horticultural shows, but from 1885 the Medals were awarded at the Orchid Conference. Since 1922, the

(RHS), having taken over the Trust, has awarded the Medal. By 2010 over 500 medals had been presented.

Winners

19th and 20th centuries

* 1883 : John Roberts (1830-1892) (Head Gardener, Charleville Castle, Co. Offaly, Ireland). * 1886 : Andy Dey * 1887 : A. Ives (Gardener to E.C.Jukes) * 1891 : John Heal (c. 1841 – 1925),

William Watson William, Willie, Bill or Billy Watson may refer to: Entertainment * William Watson (songwriter) (1794–1840), English concert hall singer and songwriter * William Watson (poet) (1858–1935), English poet * Billy Watson (actor) (1923–2022), A ...

(Assistant Curator - Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew), * 1894 :

Victor Lemoine Pierre Louis Victor Lemoine (October 21, 1823 in Delme, Moselle - December 11, 1911) was a celebrated and prolific French flower breeder who, among other accomplishments, created many of today's lilac varieties. As a result of his accomplishm ...

(France) (1823–1911), George Nicholson (1847–1908) * 1896 :

Charles Sprague Sargent Charles Sprague Sargent (April 24, 1841 – March 22, 1927) was an American botanist. He was appointed in 1872 as the first director of Harvard University's Arnold Arboretum in Boston, Massachusetts, and held the post until his death. He pub ...

(1841–1927) ( US) * 1897 : Liberty Hyde Bailey (1858–1954) ( US) * 1899 : Thomas Francis Rivers (1831–1899) * 1901 : Richard Irwin Lynch (1850–1924) Curator of the

Cambridge University Botanic Garden The Cambridge University Botanic Garden is a botanical garden located in Cambridge, England, associated with the university Department of Plant Sciences (formerly Botany School). It lies between Trumpington Road to the west, Bateman Street to ...

, Thomas Meehan (1826-1901)American Horticulture Honoured
The Garden: An Illustrated Weekly Journal of Gardening in all its Branches, Volume 59 (June 22, 1901), page 446 by William Robinson (1826–1901) ( US) * 1904 : Lucien Louis Daniel (France) * 1906 :

Ernest Henry Wilson Ernest Henry "Chinese" Wilson (15 February 1876 – 15 October 1930), better known as E. H. Wilson, was a notable British plant collector and explorer who introduced a large range of about 2000 Asian plant species to the West; some sixty bear ...

(1876–1930) * 1907 :

John Gilbert Baker John Gilbert Baker (13 January 1834 – 16 August 1920) was an English botanist. His son was the botanist Edmund Gilbert Baker (1864–1949). Biography Baker was born in Guisborough in North Yorkshire, the son of John and Mary (née Gilbert ...

(1834–1920) ;

Worthington George Smith Worthington George Smith (25 March 1835 – 27 October 1917) was an English cartoonist and illustrator, archaeologist, plant pathologist, and mycologist. Background and career Worthington G. Smith was born in Shoreditch, London, the son of a ...

(1835–1917) * 1913 :

Sir Trevor Lawrence, 2nd Baronet Sir James John Trevor Lawrence, 2nd Baronet, (30 December 1831 – 22 December 1913) was an English surgeon, horticulturalist, and art collector. He later became a Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for 17 years, retiring to become treasur ...

(1831 – 1913) * 1921 :

Robert Lloyd Praeger Robert Lloyd Praeger (25 August 1865 – 5 May 1953) was an Irish naturalist, writer and librarian. Biography From a Unitarian background, he was born and raised in Holywood, County Down. He attended the school of the Reverend McAlister and t ...

(1865-1953) (Ireland) * 1922 :

William Jackson Bean William Jackson Bean (26 May 1863 in Yorkshire – 19 April 1947 in Kew, Surrey) was a British botanist and plantsman, who was curator of Kew Gardens from 1922 to 1929. He was responsible for some of the present collections of trees and woody pla ...

(1863–1947) * 1923 : Richard Irwin Lynch (1850–1924), Curator of the

(second award) * 1924 :

William Rickatson Dykes William Rickatson Dykes (4 November 1877 – 1 December 1925) was an English amateur botanist who became an expert in the field of iris breeding and wrote several influential books on the subject. He was also interested in tulips, amaryllis, ...

(1877-1925)
John Hoog

Lilian Snelling Lilian Snelling (1879–1972) was "probably the most important British botanical artist of the first half of the 20th century". retrieved 13 March 2014 She was the principal artist and lithographer to ''Curtis's Botanical Magazine'' between 19 ...

1879–1972)(silver medal) * 1925 :

David Prain Sir David Prain (11 July 1857 – 16 March 1944) was a Scotland, Scottish botanist who worked in India at the Calcutta Botanical Garden and went on to become Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Life Born to David Prain, a saddler, and ...

(1857–1944) * 1926 : George Herbert Engleheart (1851-1936);

Matilda Smith Matilda Smith (1854–1926) was a botanical artist whose work appeared in ''Curtis's Botanical Magazine'' for over forty years. She became the first artist to depict New Zealand's flora in depth, the first official artist of the Royal Botanic ...

(1854–1926) (silver medal) * 1927 : George Forrest (1873–1932) * 1928 : Gertrude Jekyll (1843-1932) * 1929 : Alfred Barton Rendle (1865–1938) * 1930 :

William Wright Smith Sir William Wright Smith FRS FRSE FLS VMH LLD (2 February 1875 Lochmaben, Dumfriesshire – 15 December 1956) was a Scottish botanist and horticulturalist. Life He was born at Parkend farm near Lochmaben in Dumfriesshire, the son of James ...

(1875–1956) * 1931 : Otto Stapf (1857–1933) * 1932 :

Leonard Cockayne Leonard Cockayne (7 April 1855 – 8 July 1934) is regarded as New Zealand's greatest botanist and a founder of modern science in New Zealand. Biography He was born in Sheffield, England where he attended Wesley College. He travelled to Austra ...

(1855–1934); Sir Fredrick William Moore (1857–1950) * 1933 : Arthur Grove * 1934 : Francis Kingdon-Ward (1885–1958) * 1935 : Sir Edward James Salisbury (1886–1978) (of Radlett) * 1936 : Robert L Harrow ;

Arthur William Hill Sir Arthur William Hill (11 October 1875, in Watford – 3 November 1941, in Richmond) was Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and a noted botanist and taxonomist. The only son of Daniel Hill, he attended Marlborough College where hi ...

(1875–1941) * 1937 : John Hutchinson (1884–1972), George Russell (1857-1951) * 1938 : Morley Benjamin Crane (1890–1983) * 1939 : Isabella Preston (1881–1965) * 1941 : Eleanor Malby * 1945 : William Henry Judd (1888-1946) (of Arnold Arboretum) * 1947 : Frederick Chittenden * 1948 :

Collingwood Ingram Collingwood "Cherry" Ingram (30 October 1880 – 19 May 1981), was a British ornithologist, plant collector and gardener, who was an authority on Japanese flowering cherries. Personal life Collingwood Ingram was a son of Sir William Ingram and M ...

(1880-1981);

George Sherriff Major George Sherriff (1898–1967) was a Scottish explorer and plant collector. Biography Born in Larbert, he was educated at Sedbergh School and attended the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. In 1918 he took a commission in the Royal Garrison ...

(1898-1967) * 1949 : Amos Perry * 1950 :

Wilfrid Jasper Walter Blunt Wilfrid Jasper Walter Blunt (19 July 1901 - 8 January 1987) known simply as Wilfrid Blunt, was an art teacher, writer, artist and a curator of the Watts Gallery in Compton, Surrey, from 1959 until 1983. Life His parents were the Rev. Arthur S ...

(1901–1987) * 1951 :

John Macqueen Cowan John Macqueen Cowan FRSE CBE (1891–1960) was a prominent Scottish botanist in the mid 20th century. He is especially remembered for the recording and classification of trees on the Indian sub-continent. He was also an expert on Spermatophytes. ...

* 1953 :

William Bertram Turrill William Bertram Turrill FRS OBE FLS (14 June 1890 – 15 December 1961) was an English botanist. Education He was born in Woodstock, Oxfordshire to William Banbury and Thirza Mary (née Homan) Turrill and educated at the Woodstock National S ...

(1890–1961) (of Kew), Nellie Roberts (silver medal) * 1954 : Dorothy Renton (of Branklyn), Mary Knox-Finlay (of Keillour Castle) * 1955 :

Vita Sackville-West Victoria Mary, Lady Nicolson, CH (née Sackville-West; 9 March 1892 – 2 June 1962), usually known as Vita Sackville-West, was an English author and garden designer. Sackville-West was a successful novelist, poet and journalist, as wel ...

(1892-1962),

Ralph Peer Ralph Sylvester Peer (May 22, 1892 – January 19, 1960) was an American talent scout, recording engineer, record producer and music publisher in the 1920s and 1930s. Peer pioneered field recording of music when in June 1923 he took remote rec ...

(1892-1960) * 1956 : Albert Burkwood (1890-1978) * 1957 : Charles Henry Curtis (1870-1958);

Patrick Synge Patrick Millington Synge (1910-1982) was a British botanist, writer and plant hunter. Career He was a graduate of Corpus Christi College, University of Cambridge. His first book documented a British Museum Natural History expedition to East Af ...

(1884-1967); Harold Hillier (1905–1985) * 1960 : Frederick Claude Stern (1874-1967) * 1961 : T. Johnson * 1962 : Frank Reinelt * 1963 : Percy Cane (1881-1976); Frederick Augustus Secrett (1886–1964); Sir Eric Humphrey Savill (1895-1980) * 1964 :

Frances Perry Frances Mary Perry MBE VMH (19 February 1907 – 11 October 1993) was an English gardener, administrator, writer and broadcaster. Biography She was born Frances Everett in Enfield, Middlesex, where she lived most of her life at Bulls Cross. S ...

(1907–1993),

William Thomas Stearn William Thomas Stearn (16 April 1911 – 9 May 2001) was a British botanist. Born in Cambridge in 1911, he was largely self-educated, and developed an early interest in books and natural history. His initial work experience was at ...

(1911–2001) Christiaan de Wet Meiring (1900-1976 Caledon Botanical Gardens, South Africa) * 1965 :

William Douglas Cook William Douglas Cook ( New Plymouth, New Zealand, 28 October 1884 – Gisborne, New Zealand, 27 April 1967) was the founder of Eastwoodhill Arboretum, now the national arboretum of New Zealand, and one of the founders of Pukeiti, a rhododendr ...

(

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

) (1884–1967), A. Nisbet (Silver medal) * 1966 :

Graham Stuart Thomas Graham Stuart Thomas (3 April 1909 – 17 April 2003), was an English horticulturist, who is likely best known for his work with garden roses, his restoration and stewardship of over 100 National Trust gardens and for writing 19 books on garde ...

(1909–2003), Eben Gowrie Waterhouse (1881–1977), John Scott Lennox Gilmour (of Cambridge University Botanic Garden), Leonard Broadbent (1916-2002) * 1967 : Alex J Burnett, Elizabeth Hess (Principal of Studley College) * 1968 :

John Stuart Yeates John Stuart Yeates (11 July 1900 – 24 August 1986) was a New Zealand academic and botanist. The founding head of Agricultural Botany at Massey Agricultural College, he was also an accomplished breeder of azaleas, rhododendrons and lilies. Ea ...

(

) (1900–1986), Maurice Mason (1912-1991) * 1969 : Sir Thomas Neame (1885–1973),

Donald Wyman Donald Wyman (1904 — 6 December 1993) was an American horticulturist, the head of horticulture at Harvard University's Arnold Arboretum from 1935 to 1970. He took a bachelor's degree in horticulture from Pennsylvania State College (1926) and a m ...

(1904-1993) * 1970 : Mary Pope (Flower arranger) * 1971 : B.L.Burtt (1913-2008), Frances Perry,; Helen Richardson (Daffodil breeder); W. Bishop,; T. Durrant,; A. Westall (silver medal) * 1972 :

Xenia Field Xenia Noelle Field MBE (née Lowinsky; 25 December 1894 – 24 January 1998) was a British county councillor, prison reformer, philanthropist, horticulturist and author. Early life Field was born on 25 December 1894 at Secunderabad, India, wher ...

(1894–1998),; Roy Lancaster (born 1938); Mrs T. Rochford; E. Smith (silver medal) * 1973 : Countess of Haddington * 1974 : John Bergmans (Netherlands) (1892–1980); R. Fiske * 1975 : J. Fraser Thomas Robert Noel Lothian (1915-2004) * 1976 : Alice Margaret Coats (1905–1978);

Margaret Stones Elsie Margaret Stones (28 August 1920 – 26 December 2018), was an Australian botanical illustrator. Life Stones was born on 28 August 1920 in Colac, Victoria, Australia. Stones worked as principal contributing artist to ''Curtis's Bota ...

(silver medal) * 1977 :

Iris Bannochie Iris Bannochie (1914 – 1988) was a Barbados, Barbadian horticulturalist who was the leading expert on horticulture on the island of Barbados. Life Iris Bradshaw was born in Grenada in 1914 of Barbadian parents and apart from her early childho ...

(1914–1988); A. Gray * 1978 : Gavin Brown (1910-1987); Frederick Alkmund Roach (1909-2004),; B. Fry * 1979 : Fred Whitsey (1919–2009); Gordon Rowley, J.W. Goodwin (of Pukeiti Gardens); S. Coe * 1980 : A. Healey, F. Keenan, S. Orr (silver medal), F. Potter,; Robert John Garner * 1981 :

David Robinson David Maurice Robinson (born August 6, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player who played for the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1989 to 2003, and minority owner of the Spurs. Nicknamed ...

(1928–2004), F. Cleary,

David McClintock David Charles McClintock, MBE, VMH, FLS (1913–2001) was an English natural historian, botanist, horticulturist and author. McClintock was notably active in the worlds of natural history, horticulture and botany within the UK and Europe. He ...

* 1982 : P. Teunissen * 1983 : P.B.J. Joubert (South Africa) * 1984 : (1921 - 2010),

Mary Grierson Mary Anderson Grierson (27 September 1912 – 30 January 2012) was a Welsh-born Scottish botanical artist and illustrator. The youngest of three children to parents hailing from Dumfries, she was encouraged by her mother to paint from an early a ...

(1912–2012), R. Beaumont * 1985 : Mavis Batey (1921–2013); K. Andrew, N. Luitse,; C. Mitchelmore,;

* 1986 : Ambrose Congreve (1907–2011),; R. Sagarik * 1987 : Rachel Lambert Mellon (1910-1914); K. Beckett,; Victor Fowler; R. Mellon * 1988 : E. Napier,; L. Pemberton; T. Wright * 1989 : John Alfred Codrington (1898–1991) Helen Robinson (1919-2004), J. Glazebrook, E. Scholtz, Ashley Stephenson Carl Ferris Miller (1921–2002) * 1990 : Chen Hang (born c. 1931), M. Arai, Elizabeth Scholtz * 1991 : John L. Creech (1920–2009), Lawrence James Metcalf (1928 - 2017) * 1992 : Patrice Fustier (French), D. G. Hessayon (born 1928), Olive Hilliard, Joy Larkcom, J. Ravenscroft * 1993 : Brent Elliot, Sir Peter Smithers, Brenda Hyatt, H. Suzuki * 1994 : David C.H. Austin, R. Birchall, A. Kenrick, Dick van Gelderen, T. Venison, Wang Dajun * 1995 : Gilly Drummond, Mikinori Ogisu, A. Paterson, Jane Pepper (1945-), B. Self * 1996 : Gloria D. Barretto (1916-), B. Howard, H. Noblett, C. Riley, S. Spongberg, D. Steed, Michael Upward (-2015), R. Waite * 1997 : Ray Bilton (1937-2012); B. Briggs,; Brian Rittershausen; Kiat Tan * 1998 : Bruce Macdonald (

Missouri Botanical Garden The Missouri Botanical Garden is a botanical garden located at 4344 Shaw Boulevard in St. Louis, Missouri. It is also known informally as Shaw's Garden for founder and philanthropist Henry Shaw. Its herbarium, with more than 6.6 million ...

); R. Aylett; J. Bleasdale; P. Catt; K. Cockshull; R. Elliot; E. Hetherington, M. Rix * 1999 : Sonja Bernadotte (1944–2008); Helen Dillon (1938-); Christopher Grey-Wilson; P. Hemsley; Hugh Johnson; James H. McColl; J. Quinlan,; Brian and Maurice Woodfield * 2000 : William Flemer,; F. Last; Anna Pavord; Daphne Vince-Prue; Jean O'Neill * Date unknown : Alfred Daniel Hall (1864–1942) * Date unknown : Thomas Wallace (1891–1965) * Date unknown : Werner Rauh (1913–2000) * Date unknown : Alan Bloom (1906-2005) * Date unknown : Miles Hadfield (1903-1982) * Date unknown : George Hermon Slade AM (1910-2002) (Australian orchid collector)

21st century

(See the ''Royal Horticultural Society Green Manual'' for further reference.) * 2001 : Francis Higginson Cabot (1925–2011) (US/Canadian), Brian Duncan, Silviero Sansavini (Italy), P. Thoday * 2002 :

Piet Oudolf Piet Oudolf (; born 27 October 1944) is a Dutch garden designer, nurseryman and author. He is a leading figure of the "New Perennial" movementhis designs and plant compositions using bold drifts of herbaceous perennials and grasses which are cho ...

(born 1944) (Dutch),

Stella Ross-Craig Stella Ross-Craig (19 March 1906 – 6 February 2006) was an English illustrator best known as a prolific illustrator of native flora. Early life and education Ross-Craig was born in Aldershot in 1906; her parents were Scottish and her fath ...

(1906–2006), B. Machin, John Massey, G. Ogden, Martin Rickard, Lady Emma Tennant, R. Williams * 2003 : Martin John Bukovac, Richard Bisgrove, J. Dowle, J. Moorby, Peter Raven (USA), Shirley Sherwood, Vicompte

Philippe de Spoelberch Philippe is a masculine sometimes feminin given name, cognate to Philip. It may refer to: * Philippe of Belgium (born 1960), King of the Belgians (2013–present) * Philippe (footballer) (born 2000), Brazilian footballer * Prince Philippe, Coun ...

(Belgian) * 2005 : ** Anne-Marie Evans (A leading figure in botanical illustration, her worldwide influence has led a resurgence of interest in and greater understanding of the depiction of plants) ** W.H. Frederick, M. Solomon, Sir Richard Storey (1937-), Timothy Whiteley * 2006 : Phillip Cribb, Otto Eisenhut, Aljos Farjon, A. Langton, Norman Looney *2007 : Rex Dibley, Daniel John Hinkley (born 1953), Lord Charles Howick
2007 RHS Manual
/ref> *2008 **Dr James B. Beard for his lifelong contribution to the development and application of scientific principles to turfgrass culture. Dr Beard founded the International Sports Turf Institute and has served the international horticultural community for the past 50 years through research, teaching and leadership. ** John Nelson for his outstanding practical work over many years in the restoration of the

Lost Gardens of Heligan The Lost Gardens of Heligan ( kw, Lowarth Helygen, meaning "willow tree garden") are located near Mevagissey in Cornwall, England and are considered to be amongst the most popular in the UK. The gardens are typical of the 19th century ...

, one of Cornwall's best-known tourist attractions. *2009 **David Wheeler (founder and editor of Hortus: A Gardening Journal)''The Garden'', August 2009, page 512 (Royal Horticultural Society) **Dr Joan Morgan (writer and historian) **Jozef van Assche (Secretary ISHS) *2010 :

Stefan Buczacki Stefan T. Buczacki (born 16 October 1945) is a British horticulturist, botanist, biographer, novelist and broadcaster. Early life Buczacki grew up in Duffield, Derbyshire, where he was educated at The Ecclesbourne School. He gained a first-clas ...

, Bob Brown, Arabella Lennox-Boyd, Haruhiko Nagata, Jennifer Owen *2011 : Graham Ross (Australia), Christopher Bailes (U.K.), Rosemary Alexander (U.K.), Keshab Pradhan (Sikkim, India) *2012 : Susyn Andrews (U.K.), John Elliott (Singapore), Chris Lane (U.K.), Hugh McAllister (U.K.), Beverley McConnell * 2013 ** Peter Del Tredici, Peter Furniss, Sue Minter, Alec Pridgeon and Margaret Owen **Dr Keith Hammett, New Zealander whose horticultural interests include Sweet Peas, Dahlias and Clivias * 2014 : Mark Chase, Martin Gardner, Antonio de Almeida Monteiro, Philip Baulk and Gianfranco Giustina (Italy) * 2015 : Gillian Barlow, Robert Berry, Neil Bragg, Fergus Garrett, Charles Nelson, Penny Snell and John Pilbeam * 2016 : Sarah Carey, Diana Grenfell, Ernst van Jaarsveld (of

Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden Kirstenbosch is an important botanical garden nestled at the eastern foot of Table Mountain in Cape Town. The garden is one of 10 National Botanical Gardens covering five of South Africa's six different biomes and administered by the South Af ...

), Marco Polo Stufano and Dr Ken Thompson. * 2017 : Dominic Cole, Rod Leeds, Philippe Lecoufle,

William McNamara William West McNamara (born March 31, 1965) is an American film and television actor. Personal life Born in Dallas, Texas, McNamara is the son of a Ford Motor Company employee and an interior designer. He attended Salisbury School, Columbia Un ...

and Andrew McIndoe * 2018 : Prof Rosemary Collier, Gerald Edwards, Michael Hudson and Dr Douglas Needham. * 2019 : Ursula Drioli, Fabio Garbari, John Tan Jiew Hoe and Rachel Lever * 2020 : John Anderson, Owen Johnson, Rosie Peddle, Derek Spicer and Ian Young * 2021 : Junonia Colley, John Hughes, Phil Lusby and Long Yayi * 2022 : James Alexander-Sinclair, Dr Matthew Jebb, Harri Lorenzi, Paul Meyer and Thomas Pakenham

References

External links

Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Awards Nominations
{{DEFAULTSORT:Veitch Memorial Medal Royal Horticultural Society Gardening in the United Kingdom British science and technology awards Veitch Nurseries