Émile Burnat
Encyclopedia
Émile Burnat was a Swiss botanist.
He began herborizing while still in his teens, and later worked at the Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques in Geneva
. He is remembered for his studies of flora found in the
Maritime Alps
. His impressive herbarium
is now part of the botanical conservatory in Geneva.
Burnat's name is lent to the botanical genus Burnatia
and the saxifrage
cultivar
Saxifraga × burnatii.
He began herborizing while still in his teens, and later worked at the Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
. He is remembered for his studies of flora found in the
Flora of the Alps
The flora of the Alps is diverse. In the mountains, the vegetation gradually changes with altitude, sun exposure, and location on the mountain. There are five successive life zones, each with distinct landscapes and vegetation characteristics: premontane, montane, subalpine, alpine, and...
Maritime Alps
Maritime Alps
The Maritime Alps are a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps. They form the border between the French département Alpes-Maritimes and the Italian province of Cuneo. The Col de Tende separates them from the Ligurian Alps; the Maddalena Pass separates them from the Cottian Alps...
. His impressive 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...
is now part of the botanical conservatory in Geneva.
Burnat's name is lent to the botanical genus Burnatia
Burnatia
Burnatia is a genus in the family Alismataceae. It includes three species from tropical Africa....
and the saxifrage
Saxifrage
Saxifraga is the largest genus in the family Saxifragaceae, containing about 440 species of Holarctic perennial plants, known as saxifrages. The Latin word saxifraga means literally "stone-breaker", from Latin + ...
cultivar
Cultivar
A cultivar'Cultivar has two meanings as explained under Formal definition. When used in reference to a taxon, the word does not apply to an individual plant but to all those plants sharing the unique characteristics that define the cultivar. is a plant or group of plants selected for desirable...
Saxifraga × burnatii.
Written works
- Flore des Alpes maritimes ou Catalogue raisonné des plantes qui croissent spontanément dans la chaîne des Alpes maritimes, etc.; (7 volumes 1892-1931, with John Isaac BriquetJohn Isaac BriquetJohn Isaac Briquet was a Swiss plant collector.-References:...
and François Cavillier) - Catalogue raisonné des Hieracium des Alpes Maritimes; (1883, with August GremliAugust GremliAugust Gremli was a Swiss physician and botanist born in Kreuzlingen.He studied medicine in Berlin and Munich, and afterwards attended an apprenticeship as a pharmacist in Karlsruhe. From 1876 he worked as a curator in the herbarium of botanist Émile Burnat in Nant near Vevey. He died in...
)