Eduard Ortgies
Encyclopedia
Karl Eduard Ortgies was a German horticulturist and nurseryman.
His father was a noted plant enthusiast and owned an extensive garden, so that Eduard was encouraged to choose the same career and accordingly began as apprentice at the market garden of Herr Böckmann in Hamburg
on 1 May 1844. Here he served out 3 years of apprenticeship until December 1847. To round off his education he visited the renowned nurseries of Berlin, Potsdam, Magdeburg, Leipzig, Dresden, Erfurt and Hanover, and on 1 March 1848 started as assistant at Andrew Henderson & Co., Pineapple Place Nursery in London
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In May 1849 he joined the staff at Chatsworth House
, country seat of the Duke of Devonshire
, boasting a famous garden of great splendour, with elaborate water works, a giant fountain, an enormous conservatory and an important collection of orchids and other botanical treasures. William Cavendish
, the incumbent Duke, was a passionate gardener and collector who had inherited the title in 1811.
The designer of the sumptuous grounds and residence was gardener and architect Joseph Paxton
, who entrusted young Eduard with the care of Victoria regia which in 1849 existed in England only as a few seedlings raised by the Royal Botanic Garden at Kew. Three of the seedlings were donated to Chatsworth, Syon House
and Regents Park, and competition was intense for the honour of coaxing from this waterlily the first blossom in Europe. On the evening of 8 November 1849, Ortgies could report to the Duke that the first bud was about to open. The news was wired to Queen Victoria and to the botanists Hooker
, John Lindley
, George Bentham
who were invited to Chatsworth. This illustrious gathering attended the opening of the second bud.
Louis van Houtte
, the Ghent
horticulturist who established a garden that soon became world famous and who founded the illustrated gardening journal Flore des Serres et des Jardins de l'Europe
, was wildly enthusiastic about being the first on the Continent
to cultivate Victoria regia. The head of his cultivation section, Benedikt Roezl
, later famous as an orchid hunter, had met Ortgies in 1848 in London. Van Houtte urged Roezl to write to Ortgies and beg a seedling of Victoria and, if Paxton would agree, to employ Ortgies as head of the culture of aquatics and orchids. At that time Paxton was inundated with requests, but immediately agreed to the proposal, feeling that Ortgies, as keeper of the Victoria, should be first in line for the new seedlings. On 1 April 1850 Ortgies reported for duty at van Houtte's garden and a conservatory to his design was constructed for the Victoria. On 5 September the first flower opened, amidst a host of Nymphaea
species in full bloom.
Ortgies crossed Nymphaea dentata
with N. rubra
to produce the first Nymphaea
hybrid ever, illustrated in Flore des serres 8 t. 775, 776 under the name Nymphaea ortgiesiano-rubra. Later he managed to coax the Australian Nymphaea gigantea into flowering and setting seed.
In the spring of 1851 Ortgies was transferred to the office and placed in charge of German and English correspondence, and the compiling of catalogues, while carrying on with supervising the aquatic and orchid cultures. During this period Ortgies made business trips to England, Germany, Denmark and other European countries, creating a large circle of acquaintances and friends. In the summer of 1855 he agreed to become Head Gardener of what is now the Old Botanical Garden, Zürich, though he found it very difficult to take his leave of the van Houtte family to whom he had grown close.
His predecessor in Zurich had been the energetic Eduard August von Regel
, who took up the respected position of director of the Imperial Botanic Garden
in St. Petersburg. The Zurich Botanical Garden was poorly subsidised, necessitating the sale of plants and seed in order to cover its running costs. Ortgies was able to raise more than enough money for this purpose, so that the Garden was able to carry out urgently needed renovation of the old conservatories, start the building of new conservatories, improve the water supply, and create an Alpine rock garden. As reward for his efforts, Ortgies received the title of Inspector and a considerable increase in his salary.
Ortgies was interested in acquiring new or rare plants, and for this his contacts abroad were ideal. This project caused seemingly endless problems for Ortgies, though it brought financial security to the Garden, an enormous diversity of plants, especially orchids, and a greatly enhanced reputation in and outside Switzerland
.
Arranged through Ortgies, collections by Roezl streamed onto the Zurich plant market. Roezl managed a huge import nursery, holding auctions in London with business contacts in most European gardens. That Roezl had become affluent was in no small part due to his friend Ortgies.
His part in Roezl's success led to his being approached by the collector Gustav Wallis
whose contracts with Jean Linden and Veitch Nurseries
had been terminated. Ortgies acted as his agent for a few years, but Wallis fell ill and went into a gradual decline up to his 1878 death at the hospital of Guayaquil
. Wallis was followed by Lehmann
in Colombia
and Ricardo Pfau in Costa Rica
- both shipped their most interesting plants to the Zurich Botanical Garden. There was also Fuchs in Guatemala
, Garnier
in Cuba, Gaibrois and Bruchmüller in Colombia, and Besserer in Mexico.
After 38 years with the Botanical Garden, Ortgies retired to Kilchberg
to be with his family.
This botanist is denoted by the author abbreviation Ortgies when citing
a botanical name
.
His father was a noted plant enthusiast and owned an extensive garden, so that Eduard was encouraged to choose the same career and accordingly began as apprentice at the market garden of Herr Böckmann in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
on 1 May 1844. Here he served out 3 years of apprenticeship until December 1847. To round off his education he visited the renowned nurseries of Berlin, Potsdam, Magdeburg, Leipzig, Dresden, Erfurt and Hanover, and on 1 March 1848 started as assistant at Andrew Henderson & Co., Pineapple Place Nursery in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Chatsworth House
Chatsworth House is a stately home in North Derbyshire, England, northeast of Bakewell and west of Chesterfield . It is the seat of the Duke of Devonshire, and has been home to his family, the Cavendish family, since Bess of Hardwick settled at Chatsworth in 1549.Standing on the east bank of the...
, country seat of the Duke of Devonshire
Duke of Devonshire
Duke of Devonshire is a title in the peerage of England held by members of the Cavendish family. This branch of the Cavendish family has been one of the richest and most influential aristocratic families in England since the 16th century, and have been rivalled in political influence perhaps only...
, boasting a famous garden of great splendour, with elaborate water works, a giant fountain, an enormous conservatory and an important collection of orchids and other botanical treasures. William Cavendish
William Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire
William George Spencer Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire KG, PC , styled Marquess of Hartington until 1811, was a British peer, courtier and Whig politician...
, the incumbent Duke, was a passionate gardener and collector who had inherited the title in 1811.
The designer of the sumptuous grounds and residence was gardener and architect Joseph Paxton
Joseph Paxton
Sir Joseph Paxton was an English gardener and architect, best known for designing The Crystal Palace.-Early life:...
, who entrusted young Eduard with the care of Victoria regia which in 1849 existed in England only as a few seedlings raised by the Royal Botanic Garden at Kew. Three of the seedlings were donated to Chatsworth, Syon House
Syon House
Syon House, with its 200-acre park, is situated in west London, England. It belongs to the Duke of Northumberland and is now his family's London residence...
and Regents Park, and competition was intense for the honour of coaxing from this waterlily the first blossom in Europe. On the evening of 8 November 1849, Ortgies could report to the Duke that the first bud was about to open. The news was wired to Queen Victoria and to the botanists Hooker
William Jackson Hooker
Sir William Jackson Hooker, FRS was an English systematic botanist and organiser. He held the post of Regius Professor of Botany at Glasgow University, and was the first Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. He enjoyed the friendship and support of Sir Joseph Banks for his exploring,...
, John Lindley
John Lindley
John Lindley FRS was an English botanist, gardener and orchidologist.-Early years:Born in Catton, near Norwich, England, John Lindley was one of four children of George and Mary Lindley. George Lindley was a nurseryman and pomologist and ran a commercial nursery garden...
, George Bentham
George Bentham
George Bentham CMG FRS was an English botanist, characterized by Duane Isely as "the premier systematic botanist of the nineteenth century".- Formative years :...
who were invited to Chatsworth. This illustrious gathering attended the opening of the second bud.
Louis van Houtte
Louis van Houtte
Louis Benoit van Houtte was a Belgian horticulturist who was with the Jardin Botanique de Brussels between 1836 and 1838 and is best-known for the journal Flore des Serres et des Jardins de l'Europe, produced with Charles Lemaire and M...
, the Ghent
Ghent
Ghent is a city and a municipality located in the Flemish region of Belgium. It is the capital and biggest city of the East Flanders province. The city started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Lys and in the Middle Ages became one of the largest and richest cities of...
horticulturist who established a garden that soon became world famous and who founded the illustrated gardening journal Flore des Serres et des Jardins de l'Europe
Flore des Serres et des Jardins de l'Europe
Flore des Serres et des Jardins de l'Europe was one of the finest horticulture journals produced in Europe during the 19th century, spanning 23 volumes and over 2000 coloured plates with French, German and English text...
, was wildly enthusiastic about being the first on the Continent
Continent
A continent is one of several very large landmasses on Earth. They are generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria, with seven regions commonly regarded as continents—they are : Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia.Plate tectonics is...
to cultivate Victoria regia. The head of his cultivation section, Benedikt Roezl
Benedikt Roezl
Benedikt Roezl Czech traveller, gardener and botanist...
, later famous as an orchid hunter, had met Ortgies in 1848 in London. Van Houtte urged Roezl to write to Ortgies and beg a seedling of Victoria and, if Paxton would agree, to employ Ortgies as head of the culture of aquatics and orchids. At that time Paxton was inundated with requests, but immediately agreed to the proposal, feeling that Ortgies, as keeper of the Victoria, should be first in line for the new seedlings. On 1 April 1850 Ortgies reported for duty at van Houtte's garden and a conservatory to his design was constructed for the Victoria. On 5 September the first flower opened, amidst a host of Nymphaea
Nymphaea
Nymphaea is a genus of aquatic plants in the family Nymphaeaceae. There are about 50 species in the genus, which has a cosmopolitan distribution.-Name:The common name, shared with some other genera in the same family, is Water Lily....
species in full bloom.
Ortgies crossed Nymphaea dentata
Nymphaea lotus
Nymphaea lotus, the Tiger Lotus, White lotus or Egyptian White Water-lily, is a flowering plant of the family Nymphaeaceae-Description:It grows in various parts of East Africa and Southeast Asia....
with N. rubra
Nymphaea pubescens
The Hairy water lily or Pink water-lily is a species of water lily.-Distribution:This plant is common in shallow lakes and ponds throughout temperate and tropical Asia:...
to produce the first Nymphaea
Nymphaea
Nymphaea is a genus of aquatic plants in the family Nymphaeaceae. There are about 50 species in the genus, which has a cosmopolitan distribution.-Name:The common name, shared with some other genera in the same family, is Water Lily....
hybrid ever, illustrated in Flore des serres 8 t. 775, 776 under the name Nymphaea ortgiesiano-rubra. Later he managed to coax the Australian Nymphaea gigantea into flowering and setting seed.
In the spring of 1851 Ortgies was transferred to the office and placed in charge of German and English correspondence, and the compiling of catalogues, while carrying on with supervising the aquatic and orchid cultures. During this period Ortgies made business trips to England, Germany, Denmark and other European countries, creating a large circle of acquaintances and friends. In the summer of 1855 he agreed to become Head Gardener of what is now the Old Botanical Garden, Zürich, though he found it very difficult to take his leave of the van Houtte family to whom he had grown close.
His predecessor in Zurich had been the energetic Eduard August von Regel
Eduard August von Regel
Eduard August von Regel was a German horticulturalist and botanist. He ended his career serving as the Director of the Russian Imperial Botanical Garden of St. Petersburg...
, who took up the respected position of director of the Imperial Botanic Garden
Saint Petersburg Botanical Garden
The Saint Petersburg Botanical Garden, also known as the Botanic Gardens of the Komarov Botanical Institute or the Komarov Botanical Garden, is the oldest botanical garden in Russia, consisting of outdoor and rich indoor collections, which is situated on Aptekarsky Island in Saint Petersburg and...
in St. Petersburg. The Zurich Botanical Garden was poorly subsidised, necessitating the sale of plants and seed in order to cover its running costs. Ortgies was able to raise more than enough money for this purpose, so that the Garden was able to carry out urgently needed renovation of the old conservatories, start the building of new conservatories, improve the water supply, and create an Alpine rock garden. As reward for his efforts, Ortgies received the title of Inspector and a considerable increase in his salary.
Ortgies was interested in acquiring new or rare plants, and for this his contacts abroad were ideal. This project caused seemingly endless problems for Ortgies, though it brought financial security to the Garden, an enormous diversity of plants, especially orchids, and a greatly enhanced reputation in and outside Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
.
Arranged through Ortgies, collections by Roezl streamed onto the Zurich plant market. Roezl managed a huge import nursery, holding auctions in London with business contacts in most European gardens. That Roezl had become affluent was in no small part due to his friend Ortgies.
His part in Roezl's success led to his being approached by the collector Gustav Wallis
Gustav Wallis
Gustav Wallis was a German plant collector, who introduced over 1,000 plant species to Europe, many of which were named after him.-Early life:...
whose contracts with Jean Linden and Veitch Nurseries
Veitch Nurseries
The Veitch Nurseries were the largest group of family-run plant nurseries in Europe during the 19th century. Started by John Veitch sometime before 1808, the original nursery grew substantially over several decades and was eventually split into two separate businesses - based at Chelsea and...
had been terminated. Ortgies acted as his agent for a few years, but Wallis fell ill and went into a gradual decline up to his 1878 death at the hospital of Guayaquil
Guayaquil
Guayaquil , officially Santiago de Guayaquil , is the largest and the most populous city in Ecuador,with about 2.3 million inhabitants in the city and nearly 3.1 million in the metropolitan area, as well as that nation's main port...
. Wallis was followed by Lehmann
Johann Georg Christian Lehmann
Johann Georg Christian Lehmann was a German botanist.Born at Haselau, near Uetersen, Holstein, Lehmann studied medicine in Copenhagen and Göttingen, obtained a doctorate in medicine in 1813 and a doctorate in philosophy from he University of Jena in 1814...
in Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
and Ricardo Pfau in Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
- both shipped their most interesting plants to the Zurich Botanical Garden. There was also Fuchs in Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
, Garnier
Garnier
Garnier is a mass market cosmetics brand of L'Oréal that produces hair care and skin care products. Much like other brands from L'Oréal, it is sold in several markets around the world.- Advertising Slogans :...
in Cuba, Gaibrois and Bruchmüller in Colombia, and Besserer in Mexico.
After 38 years with the Botanical Garden, Ortgies retired to Kilchberg
Kilchberg, Zurich
Kilchberg is a municipality in the district of Horgen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.Its coat of arms features a sky-blue shield with a trillium.Kilchberg is also the site of a regional cemetery.-History:...
to be with his family.
This botanist is denoted by the author abbreviation Ortgies when citing
Author citation (botany)
In botanical nomenclature, author citation refers to citing the person who validly published a botanical name, i.e. who first published the name while fulfilling the formal requirements as specified by the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature...
a botanical name
Botanical name
A botanical name is a formal scientific name conforming to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature and, if it concerns a plant cultigen, the additional cultivar and/or Group epithets must conform to the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants...
.