William Jackson Bean (26 May 1863 in

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

– 19 April 1947 in Kew,

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant ur ...

) was a British

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

plantsman A plantsman is an enthusiastic and knowledgeable gardener (amateur or professional), nurseryman or nurserywoman. "Plantsman" can refer to a male or female person, though the terms plantswoman, or even plantsperson, are sometimes used. The word is ...

, who was curator of Kew Gardens from 1922 to 1929. He was responsible for some of the present collections of trees and woody plants there. Bean began his career at Kew Gardens as a trainee gardener. He remained at Kew for over 45 years, reaching the position of curator in 1922. Bean wrote a history of Kew Gardens, which was published in 1908. He wrote the first two-volume edition of the reference work ''Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles'', which was published in 1914. A revised four-volume edition of this work remains a standard reference work for

woody plant A woody plant is a plant that produces wood as its structural tissue and thus has a hard stem. In cold climates, woody plants further survive winter or dry season above ground, as opposite to herbaceous plants that die back to the ground until sp ...

s grown in Britain today. Bean retired from Kew in 1929. In his retirement Bean wrote three other books: ''Shrubs for Amateurs'' in 1924, ''Ornamental Trees for Amateurs'' in 1925, and ''Wall Shrubs and Hardy Climbers'' in 1939. He also revised and expanded ''Trees and Shrubs'' several times. Bean was awarded the

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 1917 and the

Veitch Memorial Medal The Veitch Memorial Medal is an international prize issued annually by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). Goal The prize is awarded to "persons of any nationality who have made an outstanding contribution to the advancement and improvement o ...

of 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 ...

in 1922.2014 RHS Awards for Exceptional Contributions to Horticulture Announced
/ref> He was awarded the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...

in 1936. His son

George Ewart Bean George Ewart Bean (1903 – 7 December 1977) was an English archaeologist and writer who specialized in classical Turkey. His father William Jackson Bean was a botanist, author, and curator of Kew Gardens. Bean was educated at St Paul's School, L ...

(1903-1977) was a leading authority on the classical heritage of

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

References

Bibliography

1863 births 1947 deaths British botanists Botanists active in Kew Gardens Victoria Medal of Honour (Horticulture) recipients Veitch Memorial Medal recipients {{UK-botanist-stub