Robert Allen Dyer
Encyclopedia
Robert Allen Dyer was a South African botanist and taxonomist, working particularly on Amaryllidaceae
and succulent plant
s, contributing to and editing of Bothalia and Flowering Plants of Africa and holding the office of Director of the Botanical Research Institute in Pretoria from 1944 to 1963.
and Natal University College
1919-1923, obtaining the degrees of M.Sc. in 1923 and D.Sc. in 1937. Appointed as assistant to Selmar Schonland
in Grahamstown
in 1925, as well as curator of the Albany Museum Herbarium. After doing a three-year stint (1931-1934) as liaison officer with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
, he was transferred to the National Herbarium in Pretoria
. Here he became Chief and subsequently Director from 1944 to 1963. He revived the Botanical Survey Section and started the Pretoria National Botanic Garden, as well as editing Bothalia, The Flowering Plants of Africa, Memoirs of the Botanical Survey of South Africa, and launching the Flora of Southern Africa. After retiring in 1963, he continued working at the Institute, devoting his time to producing Genera of Southern African Flowering Plants. His last major work dealt with Ceropegia, Brachysteilma and Riocreuxia and appeared in Flora of Southern Africa in 1981. In all, he produced some 450 publications.
His greatest contributions were in the field of plant taxonomy and he published extensively in Flowering Plants of Africa and Bothalia. Commemorated in the genus Radyera Bullock, Aridaria dyeri N.E.Br.
and Hereroa dyeri L.Bol. His collected botanical specimens number over 6000 and are lodged in Pretoria, Grahamstown, Kew and the Bolus Herbarium.
Amaryllidaceae
Amaryllidoideae is the subfamily of flowering plants that takes its name from the genus Amaryllis. It is part of the family Amaryllidaceae, in order Asparagales...
and succulent plant
Succulent plant
Succulent plants, also known as succulents or fat plants, are water-retaining plants adapted to arid climates or soil conditions. Succulent plants store water in their leaves, stems, and also in roots...
s, contributing to and editing of Bothalia and Flowering Plants of Africa and holding the office of Director of the Botanical Research Institute in Pretoria from 1944 to 1963.
Education and career
Attended MichaelhouseMichaelhouse
Michaelhouse is a full boarding senior school for boys founded in 1896. It is located in the Balgowan valley in the Midlands of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.- History :...
and Natal University College
University of KwaZulu-Natal
The University of KwaZulu-Natal or UKZN is a university with five campuses all located in the province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. It was formed on 1 January 2004 after the merger between the University of Natal and the University of Durban-Westville.-History:-University of...
1919-1923, obtaining the degrees of M.Sc. in 1923 and D.Sc. in 1937. Appointed as assistant to Selmar Schonland
Selmar Schonland
Professor Selmar Schonland , the founder of the Botany Department at Rhodes University, was a German immigrant, who came to the Eastern Cape in 1889 to take up an appointment as curator of the Albany Museum...
in Grahamstown
Grahamstown
Grahamstown is a city in the Eastern Cape Province of the Republic of South Africa and is the seat of the Makana municipality. The population of greater Grahamstown, as of 2003, was 124,758. The population of the surrounding areas, including the actual city was 41,799 of which 77.4% were black,...
in 1925, as well as curator of the Albany Museum Herbarium. After doing a three-year stint (1931-1934) as liaison officer with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, usually referred to as Kew Gardens, is 121 hectares of gardens and botanical glasshouses between Richmond and Kew in southwest London, England. "The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew" and the brand name "Kew" are also used as umbrella terms for the institution that runs...
, he was transferred to the National Herbarium in Pretoria
Pretoria
Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is one of the country's three capital cities, serving as the executive and de facto national capital; the others are Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein, the judicial capital.Pretoria is...
. Here he became Chief and subsequently Director from 1944 to 1963. He revived the Botanical Survey Section and started the Pretoria National Botanic Garden, as well as editing Bothalia, The Flowering Plants of Africa, Memoirs of the Botanical Survey of South Africa, and launching the Flora of Southern Africa. After retiring in 1963, he continued working at the Institute, devoting his time to producing Genera of Southern African Flowering Plants. His last major work dealt with Ceropegia, Brachysteilma and Riocreuxia and appeared in Flora of Southern Africa in 1981. In all, he produced some 450 publications.
His greatest contributions were in the field of plant taxonomy and he published extensively in Flowering Plants of Africa and Bothalia. Commemorated in the genus Radyera Bullock, Aridaria dyeri N.E.Br.
NE Brown
Nicholas Edward Brown was an English plant taxonomist and authority on succulents...
and Hereroa dyeri L.Bol. His collected botanical specimens number over 6000 and are lodged in Pretoria, Grahamstown, Kew and the Bolus Herbarium.
Major publications
- The Succulent EuphorbiaeEuphorbiaceaeEuphorbiaceae, the Spurge family are a large family of flowering plants with 300 genera and around 7,500 species. Most are herbs, but some, especially in the tropics, are also shrubs or trees. Some are succulent and resemble cacti....
(1941) with White & Sloane - The South African Cycads (Bothalia 1963)
- Flora of Southern Africa - MyrsinaceaeMyrsinaceaeMyrsinaceae, or the Myrsine family, is a rather large family from the order Ericales. It consists of 35 genera and about 1000 species....
, PrimulaceaePrimulaceaePrimulaceae is a family of flowering plants with about 24 genera, including some favorite garden plants and wildflowers. It is also known as the primrose family.- Genera :...
and PlumbaginaceaePlumbaginaceaePlumbaginaceae is a family of flowering plants, with a cosmopolitan distribution. The family is sometimes referred to as the leadwort family or the plumbago family....
(1963) - Flora of Southern Africa - StangeriaceaeStangeriaceaeStangeriaceae is the smallest family of cycads, both in number of living and fossil species. The family contains only two living genera, Stangeria and Bowenia, though the latter genus has been recommended for placement in a separate family by itself....
, ZamiaceaeZamiaceaeThe Zamiaceae are a family of cycads that are superficially palm or fern-like. They are divided into two subfamilies with eight genera and about 150 species in the tropical and warm temperate regions of Africa, Australia and North and South America....
(with I.C. Verdoorn 1966) - Genera of Southern African Flowering Plants (Vol.1, Dicots 1975) (Vol.2, Monocots with Mrs. Mauve 1976)
Awards and fellowships
- Fellow of the American Cactus and Succulent Society 1941
- Herbert Medal (American Amaryllis Society)
- President of Section C of S.A. Assoc. for Adv. of Science 1941/42
- Fellow of the Royal Society of South Africa 1945
- President of S.A. Biological Society 1948
- Senior Capt. Scott Medal (S.A. Biological Society)
- President of Pretoria Horticultural Society 1961-1972
- S.A. Assoc. of Botanists Gold Medal 1973
- Honorary D.Sc. from Witwatersrand University 1976