Alwin Berger
Encyclopedia
Alwin Berger was a German
botanist best known for his contribution to the nomenclature of succulent plants, particularly agave
s and cacti
. Born in Germany
he worked at the botanical garden
s in Dresden
and Frankfurt
. He was curator of the Giardini Botanici Hanbury
, the garden of Sir Thomas Hanbury in La Mortola, near Ventimiglia
in northwestern Italy
, close to the border with France
, from 1897 to 1914. After working in Germany from 1914 to 1919, he studied in the U.S. for three years, before spending his final years as director of the department of botany of the natural history museum in Stuttgart
His main work, Die Agaven, published in 1915, described 274 species of agave, divided into 3 subgenera, Littaea, Euagave and Manfreda
. He also recognised a new genus of cactus, Roseocactus, in 1925.
The genera
Bergerocactus (Cactaceae) and Bergeranthus (Mesembryanthemaceae) are named in his honour.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
botanist best known for his contribution to the nomenclature of succulent plants, particularly agave
Agave
Agave is a genus of monocots. The plants are perennial, but each rosette flowers once and then dies ; they are commonly known as the century plant....
s and cacti
Cactus
A cactus is a member of the plant family Cactaceae. Their distinctive appearance is a result of adaptations to conserve water in dry and/or hot environments. In most species, the stem has evolved to become photosynthetic and succulent, while the leaves have evolved into spines...
. Born in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
he worked at the 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...
s in Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
and Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
. He was curator of the Giardini Botanici Hanbury
Giardini Botanici Hanbury
The Giardini Botanici Hanbury , also known as Villa Hanbury, are major botanical gardens operated by the University of Genoa. They are located at Corso Montecarlo 43, Mortola Inferiore, several km west of Ventimiglia, Italy, and are open daily...
, the garden of Sir Thomas Hanbury in La Mortola, near Ventimiglia
Ventimiglia
Ventimiglia is a city and comune in Liguria, northern Italy, in the province of Imperia. It is located southwest of Genoa by rail, and 7 km from the French-Italian border, on the Gulf of Genoa, having a small harbour at the mouth of the Roia River, which divides the town into two parts...
in northwestern 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...
, close to the border with France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, from 1897 to 1914. After working in Germany from 1914 to 1919, he studied in the U.S. for three years, before spending his final years as director of the department of botany of the natural history museum in Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
His main work, Die Agaven, published in 1915, described 274 species of agave, divided into 3 subgenera, Littaea, Euagave and Manfreda
Manfreda
Manfreda is a genus of about 20 species of flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Agavoideae. Along with Polianthes, members are commonly called tuberoses. Some authorities place Manfreda in genus Polianthes, while others group place both genera in Agave...
. He also recognised a new genus of cactus, Roseocactus, in 1925.
The genera
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Bergerocactus (Cactaceae) and Bergeranthus (Mesembryanthemaceae) are named in his honour.
External links
- A Study of the Proposed Genus Roseocactus
- Bergeranthus
- Hanbury Garden (in ItalianItalian languageItalian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
) - Die Agaven (1915)