Luigi Fenaroli
Encyclopedia
Luigi Fenaroli was an Italian botanist and agronomist
.
Luigi Fenaroli graduated in agriculture
at the Higher School of Agronomy
at the University of Milan
in 1921. He performed several naturalistic expeditions, on behalf of the Reale società geografica italiana (Italian Royal Geographical Society). In 1930 he was in Angola
and spent 1932 and 1933 in the Brazilian Amazon
.
In 1933 he was appointed vice-director of the Stazione sperimentale di selvicoltura (Forestry experimental station) in Florence
. In 1943 he moved to the Istituto sperimentale di pioppicoltura (Poplar experimental station) in Casale Monferrato
in Piedmont
. In 1946 he became director of the "Maize experimental station", established by eminent agronomist Tito Vezio Zapparoli
. There he directed the Hybrid Maize Program, designing, from 1948 to 1953, the experimental field tests plan for the trials of the American hybrids introduced to Italy
after the Second World War. He shaped the program for the collection of seed
accessions of traditional Italian varieties of maize during 1954 and 1955, and sponsored the program selection of inbred
lines, fixed from such varieties and their combinations with American lines, under the coordination of his pupil and friend Aureliano Brandolini
. From 1968 to 1974 he directed the newly established Istituto sperimentale di assestamento forestale e alpicoltura (Forestry and Alpiculture Management Institute) in Trento
.
Luigi Fenaroli performed several teaching assignments, starting as junior professor at the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Milan and as an interim chair of agriculture in Iseo
. He later taught tropical forestry
at the Istituto agronomico coloniale, now known as the Istituto agronomico per l'oltremare
in Florence
, and sub-tropical
and tropical agriculture
at the University of Milan. He was in charge of systematic botany
, phytogeography
, silviculture
, and alpiculture
courses at both the University of Milan and the University of Piacenza.
As a geneticist
he was visiting professor to several universities. In 1946 he traveled to Illinois
, in order to study maize breeding techniques and in 1964 he was invited by the Canadian government
to study potato
breeding. He visited Egypt
and Japan
, in order to disseminate the lessons learnt in his studies.
His scientific activity resulted in about 275 publications, on subjects ranging from phytogeography to systematic botany, forestry
to botany
, as well as on flora
and nature conservation. Several of his papers dealt with the study of the localization of endemic species in the Insubria
region, and of mountain and forestry livelihood of Northern Italy
.
His most relevant scientific books include:
As an editor he was in charge of the publishing the following books:
His bequeathed a broad scientific legacy, including a large Herbarium
and photographic archive, as well as his family's botanical garden
, in the municipality of Tavernola Bergamasca
, on the shore of the pre-alpine Lake Iseo
, where he grew plants and crops exotic
to the Lombardy
region.
He acted as:
Agronomist
An agronomist is a scientist who specializes in agronomy, which is the science of utilizing plants for food, fuel, feed, and fiber. An agronomist is an expert in agricultural and allied sciences, with the exception veterinary sciences.Agronomists deal with interactions between plants, soils, and...
.
Luigi Fenaroli graduated in agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
at the Higher School of Agronomy
Agronomy
Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants for food, fuel, feed, fiber, and reclamation. Agronomy encompasses work in the areas of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and soil science. Agronomy is the application of a combination of sciences like biology,...
at the University of Milan
University of Milan
The University of Milan is a higher education institution in Milan, Italy. It is one of the largest universities in Europe, with about 62,801 students, a teaching and research staff of 2,455 and a non-teaching staff of 2,200....
in 1921. He performed several naturalistic expeditions, on behalf of the Reale società geografica italiana (Italian Royal Geographical Society). In 1930 he was in Angola
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
and spent 1932 and 1933 in the Brazilian Amazon
Amazônia Legal
Amazônia Legal is the largest socio-geographic division of the South American nation of Brazil, which contains all of its territory in the Amazon Basin...
.
In 1933 he was appointed vice-director of the Stazione sperimentale di selvicoltura (Forestry experimental station) in Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
. In 1943 he moved to the Istituto sperimentale di pioppicoltura (Poplar experimental station) in Casale Monferrato
Casale Monferrato
Casale Monferrato, population 36,058, is a town and comune in the Piedmont region of north-west Italy, part of the province of Alessandria. It is situated about 60 km east of Turin on the right bank of the Po, where the river runs at the foot of the Montferrato hills. Beyond the river lies the...
in Piedmont
Piedmont
Piedmont is one of the 20 regions of Italy. It has an area of 25,402 square kilometres and a population of about 4.4 million. The capital of Piedmont is Turin. The main local language is Piedmontese. Occitan is also spoken by a minority in the Occitan Valleys situated in the Provinces of...
. In 1946 he became director of the "Maize experimental station", established by eminent agronomist Tito Vezio Zapparoli
Tito Vezio Zapparoli
Tito Vezio Zapparoli was an Italian agronomist and plant breeder.After graduating in agriculture, he studied the agronomic and morphological characteristics of traditional varieties of maize....
. There he directed the Hybrid Maize Program, designing, from 1948 to 1953, the experimental field tests plan for the trials of the American hybrids introduced to Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
after the Second World War. He shaped the program for the collection of seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
accessions of traditional Italian varieties of maize during 1954 and 1955, and sponsored the program selection of inbred
Plant breeding
Plant breeding is the art and science of changing the genetics of plants in order to produce desired characteristics. Plant breeding can be accomplished through many different techniques ranging from simply selecting plants with desirable characteristics for propagation, to more complex molecular...
lines, fixed from such varieties and their combinations with American lines, under the coordination of his pupil and friend Aureliano Brandolini
Aureliano Brandolini
Aureliano Brandolini was an Italian agronomist and development cooperation scholar.Born in Calolziocorte, Italy, after studying at Liceo Alessandro Manzoni high school in Lecco with Giovanni Ticozzi, he graduated in agriculture at the University of Milan in 1950 and specialized in plant breeding...
. From 1968 to 1974 he directed the newly established Istituto sperimentale di assestamento forestale e alpicoltura (Forestry and Alpiculture Management Institute) in Trento
Trento
Trento is an Italian city located in the Adige River valley in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. It is the capital of Trentino...
.
Luigi Fenaroli performed several teaching assignments, starting as junior professor at the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Milan and as an interim chair of agriculture in Iseo
Iseo
Iseo is a town and comune in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy, Italy, southeast of Lago d'Iseo. It is bounded by the communes of Provaglio d'Iseo, Sulzano, Polaveno and Paratico.It is said to have the first monument ever built to Giuseppe Garibaldi....
. He later taught tropical forestry
Tropical rainforest
A tropical rainforest is an ecosystem type that occurs roughly within the latitudes 28 degrees north or south of the equator . This ecosystem experiences high average temperatures and a significant amount of rainfall...
at the Istituto agronomico coloniale, now known as the Istituto agronomico per l'oltremare
Istituto agronomico per l'oltremare
The Istituto agronomico per l'oltremare in Florence, Italy, is a technical and scientific body of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.-History:...
in Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, and sub-tropical
Subtropics
The subtropics are the geographical and climatical zone of the Earth immediately north and south of the tropical zone, which is bounded by the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, at latitudes 23.5°N and 23.5°S...
and tropical agriculture
Tropical agriculture
Worldwide more human beings gain their livelihood from agriculture than any other endeavor; the majority are self-employed subsistence farmers living in the tropics...
at the University of Milan. He was in charge of systematic botany
Systematics
Biological systematics is the study of the diversification of terrestrial life, both past and present, and the relationships among living things through time. Relationships are visualized as evolutionary trees...
, phytogeography
Phytogeography
Phytogeography , also called geobotany, is the branch of biogeography that is concerned with the geographic distribution of plant species...
, silviculture
Silviculture
Silviculture is the practice of controlling the establishment, growth, composition, health, and quality of forests to meet diverse needs and values. The name comes from the Latin silvi- + culture...
, and alpiculture
Alpine climate
Alpine climate is the average weather for a region above the tree line. This climate is also referred to as mountain climate or highland climate....
courses at both the University of Milan and the University of Piacenza.
As a geneticist
Geneticist
A geneticist is a biologist who studies genetics, the science of genes, heredity, and variation of organisms. A geneticist can be employed as a researcher or lecturer. Some geneticists perform experiments and analyze data to interpret the inheritance of skills. A geneticist is also a Consultant or...
he was visiting professor to several universities. In 1946 he traveled to Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, in order to study maize breeding techniques and in 1964 he was invited by the Canadian government
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
to study potato
Potato
The potato is a starchy, tuberous crop from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae family . The word potato may refer to the plant itself as well as the edible tuber. In the region of the Andes, there are some other closely related cultivated potato species...
breeding. He visited Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, in order to disseminate the lessons learnt in his studies.
His scientific activity resulted in about 275 publications, on subjects ranging from phytogeography to systematic botany, forestry
Forestry
Forestry is the interdisciplinary profession embracing the science, art, and craft of creating, managing, using, and conserving forests and associated resources in a sustainable manner to meet desired goals, needs, and values for human benefit. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands...
to botany
Botany
Botany, plant science, or plant biology is a branch of biology that involves the scientific study of plant life. Traditionally, botany also included the study of fungi, algae and viruses...
, as well as on flora
Flora
Flora is the plant life occurring in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring or indigenous—native plant life. The corresponding term for animals is fauna.-Etymology:...
and nature conservation. Several of his papers dealt with the study of the localization of endemic species in the Insubria
Insubria
Insubria is a historical-geographical region which corresponds to the area inhabited in Classical antiquity by the Insubres. Secondarily the name can refer to the Duchy of Milan...
region, and of mountain and forestry livelihood of Northern Italy
Northern Italy
Northern Italy is a wide cultural, historical and geographical definition, without any administrative usage, used to indicate the northern part of the Italian state, also referred as Settentrione or Alta Italia...
.
His most relevant scientific books include:
- Il larice nelle Alpi orientali italiane (Larch in the Eastern Italian Alps), 1936, for which he was awarded the prize of the Accademia d’Italia;
- L’ambiente fisico-agrario dei paesi caldi (The Physical-Agronomic Environment in Hot Climate Countries), 1943;
- Le Palme e la loro utilizzazione (Palms and their uses), 1945;
- Il castagno (The Chestnut Tree), 1946;
- Il genere Populus (The Populus Genus), 1946;
- La flora delle Alpi (Flora of the Alps), 1956;
- I Carex d’Italia (The Carex in Italy), 1951;
- Il genere Styzolobium (The Styzolobium Genus), 1952;
- La vegetazione e flora delle prealpi lombarde (Plants and Flora of the Lombardy Pre-Alps).
As an editor he was in charge of the publishing the following books:
- Iconographia Mycologica by Giacomo Bresadola, in collaboration with G. B. Traverso, 1936;
- Flora illustrata delle Alpi e degli altri monti d’Italia (The Pictorial Flora of the Alps and other Italian mountains), by Otto Penzig, 1932;
- Colture tropicali by Oreste Campese, 1937;
- Flora d’Italia (Italian Flora), by T.C.I., with Valerio Giacomini, 1958;
- Dendroflora Italiana: alberi (Flora of Italian Trees), with Germano Gambi and others, 1976;
- Carta della vegetazione reale d’Italia (Italian Plants Map), for the Italian Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, 1969.
His bequeathed a broad scientific legacy, including a large Herbarium
Herbarium
In botany, a herbarium – sometimes known by the Anglicized term herbar – is a collection of preserved plant specimens. These specimens may be whole plants or plant parts: these will usually be in a dried form, mounted on a sheet, but depending upon the material may also be kept in...
and photographic archive, as well as his family's botanical garden
Botanical garden
A botanical garden The 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. is a well-tended area displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names...
, in the municipality of Tavernola Bergamasca
Tavernola Bergamasca
Tavernola Bergamasca is a comune in the Province of Bergamo in the Italian region of Lombardy, located about 70 km northeast of Milan and about 30 km east of Bergamo. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 2,242 and an area of 12.4 km².Tavernola Bergamasca borders the...
, on the shore of the pre-alpine Lake Iseo
Lake Iseo
Lake Iseo or Lago d'Iseo or Sebino is the fourth largest lake in Lombardy, Italy, fed by the Oglio river.It is in the north of the country in the Val Camonica area, near the cities of Brescia and Bergamo. The lake is almost equally divided between the Provinces of Bergamo and Brescia...
, where he grew plants and crops exotic
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
to the Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
region.
Affiliations
Luigi Fenaroli was a fellow of the following academies:- Academia Colombiana de ciencias exactas, fisioquímicas y naturales, BogotáBogotáBogotá, Distrito Capital , from 1991 to 2000 called Santa Fé de Bogotá, is the capital, and largest city, of Colombia. It is also designated by the national constitution as the capital of the department of Cundinamarca, even though the city of Bogotá now comprises an independent Capital district...
, ColombiaColombiaColombia, 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...
; - Instituto Ecuadoriano de ciencias naturales, QuitoQuitoSan Francisco de Quito, most often called Quito , is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in north-central Ecuador in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains...
, EcuadorEcuadorEcuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
; - Società di scienze naturali del Trentino Alto Adige, TrentoTrentoTrento is an Italian city located in the Adige River valley in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. It is the capital of Trentino...
, ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
; - Atheneum of science, arts and letters, BresciaBresciaBrescia is a city and comune in the region of Lombardy in northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, between the Mella and the Naviglio, with a population of around 197,000. It is the second largest city in Lombardy, after the capital, Milan...
and BergamoBergamoBergamo is a town and comune in Lombardy, Italy, about 40 km northeast of Milan. The comune is home to over 120,000 inhabitants. It is served by the Orio al Serio Airport, which also serves the Province of Bergamo, and to a lesser extent the metropolitan area of Milan...
, Italy; - Accademia nazionale di agricoltura, BononiaBononiaBononia is the Roman name of several cities, including:* Bologna, Italy* Boulogne-sur-Mer, France* Vidin, Bulgaria* Banoštor, Serbia...
, Italy; - Accademia italiana di scienze forestali, FlorenceFlorenceFlorence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, Italy.
He acted as:
- President of the committee honoring Giacomo Bresadola, Trento;
- Vice-president of the Fondazione per i problemi montani dell’arco alpino, Milan;
- Academic at the Club alpino Italiano (Italian Alpine Club).