__NOTOC__ Carl Ludwig Sprenger was a German

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 ...

, born on 30 November 1846 at Güstrow,

Mecklenburg Mecklenburg (; nds, label= Low German, Mękel(n)borg ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schweri ...

and died 13 December 1917 on the island of

Corfu Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The isl ...

(Kérkyra). Sprenger lived in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adm ...

from 1877 to 1907, and was a partner in the horticultural house of Dammann & Co. of San Giovanni a Teduccio, Naples, Italy.

David Fairchild David Grandison Fairchild (April 7, 1869 – August 6, 1954) was an American botanist and plant explorer. Fairchild was responsible for the introduction of more than 200,000 exotic plants and varieties of established crops into the United State ...

praised Sprenger, "a brilliant botanist who had established a nursery ... he was one of those real plantsmen who both know the names of plants and how to grow them ... He enthusiastically collected seeds for

botanical gardens A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

and freely gave of his knowledge to others ... The eruption of

Vesuvius Mount Vesuvius ( ; it, Vesuvio ; nap, 'O Vesuvio , also or ; la, Vesuvius , also , or ) is a somma-stratovolcano located on the Gulf of Naples in Campania, Italy, about east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is one of ...

on 4 April 1906 buried his plants under volcanic ash, destroying hundreds of his best specimens."David Fairchild, - The World was My Garden In 1907, Kaiser Wilhelm (William II) purchased Achilleion, a palace in Corfu. Sprenger became supervisor of the Kaiser's garden. He was also so responsible for the building of the bridge that led to the beach. It was then named ''Kaiser's bridge''. Sprenger's life had no sound; Fairchild wrote that he was "very deaf". As a German national, he was imprisoned by the Serbs at the outbreak of the First World War, but after an intervention by the local administration of Corfu, they then let him go. He stayed in

until his death some years later. The man who surrounded himself with plants died on 13 December 1917. Plants named after him include: * ''Asparagus sprengeri'', Sprenger's asparagus (now ''

Asparagus aethiopicus ''Asparagus aethiopicus'', Sprenger's asparagus, is a plant native to the Cape Provinces and the Northern Provinces of South Africa. Often used as an ornamental plant, it is considered an invasive weed in many locations. Asparagus fern, aspara ...

''), a weed native to South Africa. * ''

Magnolia sprengeri ''Magnolia sprengeri'', or Sprenger's magnolia, is a species of ''Magnolia'' native to China, occurring in Gansu, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Shaanxi, and Sichuan in forests or thickets at 1300–2400 m altitude. Named for Carl Ludwig Sprenger, a ...

'', Sprenger's magnolia, a species of magnolia native to China. * '' Iris sprengeri'', a species of iris native to Turkey

Cultivars

Sprenger concluded that by constantly interbreeding the large flowered Crozy canna varieties nothing novel or more remarkable could be secured, and he therefore experimented with some new blood, employing for this purpose '' Canna flaccida'', a species from the southern USA, of medium height and large flowers, with one specially developed

petal Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corolla''. Petals are usuall ...

-like

staminode In botany, a staminode is an often rudimentary, sterile or abortive stamen, which means that it does not produce pollen.Jackson, Benjamin, Daydon; ''A Glossary of Botanic Terms with their Derivation and Accent''; Published by Gerald Duckworth & C ...

. The result was what became known as the 'orchid' cannas or the 'Italian' cannas, when in 1893 he introduced ''Canna'' 'Italia' and ''Canna'' 'Austria'. At the same time,

Luther Burbank Luther Burbank (March 7, 1849 – April 11, 1926) was an American botanist, horticulturist and pioneer in agricultural science. He developed more than 800 strains and varieties of plants over his 55-year career. Burbank's varied creations in ...

in the USA was pursuing a similar approach, the results of which were introduced some two years later than Sprenger's introductions. Sprenger is credited with many Italian Group introductionsÁrpád Mühle, 1909. Das Geschlecht der Canna and also released many new Crozy Group cultivars. Other cultivars he developed include many ''

Yucca ''Yucca'' is a genus of perennial shrubs and trees in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Agavoideae. Its 40–50 species are notable for their rosettes of evergreen, tough, sword-shaped leaves and large terminal panicles of white or whitis ...

'' hybrids in the years from 1897 to 1907.Benny's Kaktus
/ref>

Cultivars

See also

References

Further reading