|
Elmer Applegate was an amateur American botanist and plant explorer, who made many botanical discoveries primarily in Oregon and California when the area was not well-explored. His work on the lily genus Erythronium resulted in a monograph published in 1935. Though he never earned a college degree, Applegate attended Stanford University briefly and became well-connected to the botanists of the day, on both the east and west coasts, and sent much collected material for identification or description to experts. Many new species consequently were named for him. Applegate was raised on a ranch and adept at skills associated with that background, and was thus able to convince Frederick Coville to take him on as an assistant for three field seasons of collecting for USDA. When not collecting, he and his spouse Esther (also trained in botany) ran a farm in Klamath Falls, Oregon. As a farmer, Applegate was interested in water and irrigation and became Secretary of the local irrigation district for a time. He was appointed Honorary Acting Director of the Dudley Herbarium (Stanford University) in 1928, a position he held for about ten years. In his 60s, Applegate was employed as a Ranger-Naturalist at Crater Lake State Park, but his failing eyesight (he had terrible eyesight since early adulthood) became too problematic and he retired from the post at age 72. |
Wikipedia bio