The Botanical Society of Scotland (BSS) is the national

learned society A learned society ( ; also scholarly, intellectual, or academic society) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and sciences. Membership may be open to al ...

for botanists of

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. The Society's aims are to advance knowledge and appreciation of flowering and cryptogamic plants, algae and fungi. The Society's activities include lectures (mainly held in Edinburgh, but also in other Scottish cities), symposia, field excursions, field projects and an annual Scottish Botanist's Conference, held jointly with the

Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland The Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland (BSBI) is a scientific society for the study of flora, plant distribution and taxonomy relating to Great Britain, Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. The society was founded as the Botani ...

for exchange of information between botanists working in different areas. Its publications include a twice-yearly newsletter, BSS News, and a scientific journal, ''Plant Ecology & Diversity''. The society is closely linked to the

Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) is a scientific centre for the study of plants, their diversity and conservation, as well as a popular tourist attraction. Founded in 1670 as a physic garden to grow medicinal plants, today it occupies ...

and the Scottish universities.

History

It was founded on 8 February 1836 as the Botanical Society of Edinburgh. Its founding members included Prof

Edward Forbes Edward Forbes FRS, FGS (12 February 1815 – 18 November 1854) was a Manx naturalist. In 1846, he proposed that the distributions of montane plants and animals had been compressed downslope, and some oceanic islands connected to the mainland ...

, Prof

John Hutton Balfour John Hutton Balfour (15 September 1808 – 11 February 1884) was a Scottish botanist. Balfour became a Professor of Botany, first at the University of Glasgow in 1841, moving to the Edinburgh University, University of Edinburgh and also becomin ...

and Dr Richard Parnell. In 1935 the Botanical Society of Edinburgh incorporated the Cryptogamic Society of Scotland, founded in 1875, and included its name in its title. Its name changed again in 1991 to Botanical Society of Scotland, incorporating the Cryptogamic Society of Scotland. The Botanical Society of Scotland has been a charity registered in Scotland since 19 February 1918, and became a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO) (No. SC016283) on 15 April 2014.

Activities

BSS is the only British botanical society with a keen interest in both flowering and non-flowering plants (e.g. ferns, mosses and algae) and fungi. This wide range of interest is reflected in its programme of monthly lectures during winter months, held mainly at the

. Field meetings are held during summer and autumn to record both flowering and non-flowering plants all over Scotland. BSS also runs courses in special topics such as grass identification. An annual meeting, the Scottish Botanist's Conference is held each autumn, run jointly by BSBI, BSS and the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Symposia and conferences devoted to specific topics such as Plant

Phenology Phenology is the study of periodic events in biological life cycles and how these are influenced by seasonal and interannual variations in climate, as well as habitat factors (such as elevation). Examples include the date of emergence of leav ...

are organised from time to time.

Publications

The Botanical Society of Edinburgh published its first journal, ''Transactions of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh'', from 1844 to 1990. In 1991, this was replaced with ''Botanical Journal of Scotland'', published by

Edinburgh University Press Edinburgh University Press is a scholarly publisher of academic books and journals, based in Edinburgh, Scotland. History Edinburgh University Press was founded in the 1940s and became a wholly owned subsidiary of the University of Edinburgh ...

, to reflect the change of the society's name to "Botanical Society of Scotland" in the same year. In 2008, to give the journal an international appeal, ''Botanical Journal of Scotland'' was in turn replaced by ''Plant Ecology and Diversity'', published by

Taylor & Francis Taylor & Francis Group is an international company originating in the United Kingdom that publishes books and academic journals. Its parts include Taylor & Francis, CRC Press, Routledge, F1000 (publisher), F1000 Research and Dovepress. It i ...

. Plant Ecology and Diversity was accepted for inclusion in

Scopus Scopus is a scientific abstract and citation database, launched by the academic publisher Elsevier as a competitor to older Web of Science in 2004. The ensuing competition between the two databases has been characterized as "intense" and is c ...

in 2010 and it received its first impact factor, 2.053, in 2011.

Presidents

Source (1836-1937): ;Botanical Society of Edinburgh ;Botanical Society of Scotland (1990-) *1990-1992 : Dr James H. Dickson *1992-1994 : Miss J. Muscott *1994-1996 : Dr Kwiton Jong *1996–1998 : Prof. John Proctor *1998-2000 : Prof. Elizabeth Cutter *2000-2002 : Dr George Argent *2002-2004 : Mr Philip Lusby *2004-2006 : Dr Douglas Malcolm *2006-2008 : Prof. Richard Abbott *2008-2010 : Dr Christopher Jeffree *2010-2012 : Dr Barbara Sumner *2012-2017 : Prof. John Grace *2017-2019 : Dr Brian Ballinger *2019-2021 : Dr Julia Wilson *2021–2023: Dr Jill Thompson *2023-present: Prof. Jonathan Silvertown

Other notable members

Albert, Prince Consort Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Franz August Karl Albert Emanuel; 26 August 1819 – 14 December 1861) was the husband of Queen Victoria. As such, he was consort of the British monarch from their marriage on 10 February 1840 until his ...

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

, the society's first patron *

Alexander Adie Alexander James Adie FRSE MWS (7 November 1775, Edinburgh – 4 December 1858, Edinburgh) was a Scottish maker of medical instruments, optician and meteorologist. He was the inventor of the sympiesometer, patented in 1818. Life He was born t ...

Alexander von Humboldt Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von Humboldt (14 September 1769 – 6 May 1859) was a German polymath, geographer, natural history, naturalist, List of explorers, explorer, and proponent of Romanticism, Romantic philosophy and Romanticism ...

Cardale Babington Charles Cardale Babington (23 November 1808 – 22 July 1895) was an English botanist, entomologist, and archaeologist. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1851. A contemporary of Charles Darwin, he was a student of John Stevens Hen ...

* William Brand, founder member *

Robert Brown Robert Brown may refer to: Robert Brown (born 1965), British Director, Animator and author Entertainers and artists * Washboard Sam or Robert Brown (1910–1966), American musician and singer * Robert W. Brown (1917–2009), American printmaker ...

Alexander Bryson Alexander Bryson Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, FRSE Fellow of the Geological Society of London, FGS FRSSA FSAScot Royal Physical Society of Edinburgh, FRPSE (12 October 1816 – 7 December 1866) was a Scottish biologist, geologist ...

* William Carruthers *

Thomas Frederic Cheeseman Thomas Frederick Cheeseman (8 June 184515 October 1923) was a New Zealand botanist. He was also a naturalist who had wide-ranging interests, such that he even described a few species of sea slugs (marine gastropod molluscs). Biography Che ...

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...

, author of ''

On The Origin of Species ''On the Origin of Species'' (or, more completely, ''On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life'')The book's full original title was ''On the Origin of Species by M ...

'' *

Job Bicknell Ellis Job Bicknell Ellis (January 21, 1829 – December 30, 1905) was a pioneering North American mycologist known for his study of ascomycetes, especially the grouping of fungi called the Pyrenomycetes (known today as the Sordariomycetes). Born and ...

* Godfrey Howitt * Edward Janczewski *

Paul Gordon Jarvis Paul Gordon Jarvis (23 May 19355 February 2013) was a leading ecologist and Professor of Forestry and Natural Resources at the University of Edinburgh from 1975 to 2001. Education Jarvis was educated at Oriel College, Oxford graduating with a B ...

FRS, plant ecologist, Professor of Forestry and Natural Resources at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

* George Lawson, the "father of Canadian botany", was assistant secretary and curator of the society *

Lars Levi Læstadius Lars Levi Laestadius (; 10 January 1800 – 21 February 1861) was a Swedish Sami writer, ecologist, mythologist, and ethnographer as well as a pastor and administrator of the Swedish state Lutheran church in Lapland who founded the Laestadia ...

* Duncan Napier * Robert Thomson, pioneer of sanitation *

Göte Turesson Göte Wilhelm Turesson (6 April 1892 – 30 December 1970) was a Swedish evolutionary botanist who made significant contributions to ecological genetics, and coined the terms ecotype and agamospecies. He conducted extensive work to demonstrat ...

Charles Wyville Thomson Sir Charles Wyville Thomson (5 March 1830 – 10 March 1882) was a Scottish natural historian and marine zoologist. He served as the chief scientist on the ''Challenger'' expedition; his work there revolutionized oceanography and led to his ...

, chief scientist on the

Challenger Expedition The ''Challenger'' expedition of 1872–1876 was a scientific programme that made many discoveries to lay the foundation of oceanography. The expedition was named after the naval vessel that undertook the trip, . The expedition, initiated by W ...

* Katherine Sophia Kane, the first elected female member of the society *

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 19219 April 2021), was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he was the consort of the British monarch from h ...

, Honorary Fellow

References

External links

*
Botanical Scientific Journals
{{Authority control 1836 establishments in Scotland

British biology societies Charities based in Edinburgh Flora of Scotland Learned societies of Scotland Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh Scientific organizations established in 1836