Hendrik de Wit
Hendrik Cornelis Dirk de Wit | |
|---|---|
| Born | 24 October 1909 Purmerend, The Netherlands |
| Died | 16 March 1999 (aged 89) Heelsum, The Netherlands |
| Citizenship | Dutch |
| Alma mater | University of Amsterdam |
| Known for | studies on Cryptocoryne and Lagenandra |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Plant taxonomy |
| Institutions | Wageningen University and Research Centre |
| Author abbrev. (botany) | de Wit |
| Signature | |
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Hendrik (Henk) Cornelis Dirk de Wit (24 October 1909 – 16 March 1999) was a Dutch systematic botanist who contributed significantly to the knowledge of the Aroid genera Cryptocoryne and Lagenandra.[1][2] He grew up in the Waterland, a marshy area in the Northwest Netherlands, and had a lifelong interest in aquatic plants.
Career
[edit]De Wit studied biology at the University of Amsterdam from 1931 to 1937.[2] In 1937 he left for Pretoria, South Africa, where he worked as an agricultural research officer with the Department of Agriculture.[3] In 1941 he obtained his Ph.D. with a thesis on the genus Setaria from the grass family (Poaceae).[4] In the same year, he moved to the Dutch East Indies (nowadays Indonesia).[3]
During World War II de Wit worked in the 's Lands Plantentuin te Buitenzorg. After his return to The Netherlands in 1946 he worked for the Flora Malesiana Foundation.[3] De Wit was a gifted teacher[2] and on 20 September 1953[2] he became a lecturer at Leiden University[5] where he taught plant taxonomy and morphology of flowering plants[3] and on 1 November of the same year also at the Wageningen University and Research Centre, where he taught taxonomy and tropical and subtropical plant geography.[2] In 1959 he left Leiden to become full professor in Wageningen[3] and on 15 September 1969 he became the head of the Laboratory of Plant Taxonomy and Plant Geography there.[2] De Wit retired in 1980, at which occasion a Festschrift was published in his honour.[6]
Scientific work
[edit]De Wit was especially interested in the Aroid genus Cryptocoryne, as well as the closely related Lagenandra on which he published extensively.[5] In all, he described 21 new species of Cryptocoryne and 6 species of the related genus Lagenandra.[5] A lifelong hobby were freshwater aquaria and in the late 1950s he edited an encyclopaedia for aquarists in 15 volumes, 2 of which (volumes 5 and 6) dealt with aquarium plants and were written by himself.[7] In 1966 these volumes were revised and published together as the first edition of his book Aquariumplanten was published.[8][9] It was translated in English in 1964[10] and in German in 1971.[11][12] After his retirement, he wrote a history of biology (Ontwikkelingsgeschiedenis van de biologie) in three volumes (1982–1989). A popularized version appeared in 1993 (Wat is leven? Een cultuurgeschiedenis van de biologie).
Primitiae Africanae
[edit]The first results of research workers in African botanical taxonomy, prepared under supervision of de Wit, were published in a series named Primitiae Africanae. Twelve articles were published in total, in different taxonomic journals.[13]
Eponymous species
[edit]Several plant species were named in his honour, such as Begonia bonus-henricus J.J. de Wilde,[14] Crudia dewitii Kostermans,[15] Cryptocoryne dewitii Jacobsen,[16][17][18] Dichapetalum witianum Bret.,[19] Homalium dewitii Kostermans,[20] Bauhinia dewitii K.Larsen & S.S.Larsen,[21] Rinorea dewitii Achound.,[22] and Lagenandra dewitii Crusio et de Graaf.[23]
Major works
[edit]- de Wit, H.C.D. (1982–1989). Ontwikkelingsgeschiedenis van de biologie (in Dutch). Vol. 1, 2a, 2b. Wageningen, The Netherlands: PUDOC, Centrum voor Landbouwpublicaties en Landbouwdocumentatie. pp. xxxiii+1429. ISBN 9022007839.
References
[edit]- ^ Bos, J.J. (1999). "In Memoriam Professor Dr. H.C.D. de Wit (1909–1999)". Taxon. 48 (4): 847–848.
- ^ a b c d e f Bogner, J.; Bastmeijer, J. (2001). "In Memoriam - H.C.D. de Wit (1909–1999)". Aroideana. 24: 3–5.
- ^ a b c d e Boelema, G. (1980). "Preface". In Arends J.C., Boelema G.; de Groot C.T.; Leeuwenberg A.J.M. (eds.). Liber Gratulatorius in Honorem H.C.D. de Wit. Miscellaneous Papers Landbouwhogeschool. Vol. 19. Wageningen, The Netherlands: H. Veenman & Zonen BV. pp. 1–2.
- ^ de Wit, H.C.D. (August 1941). "Contributions to the knowledge of the genus Setaria Beauv. in South Africa". Bulletin of Botanic Gardens, Buitenzorg, Series III. XVII: 87 pp.
- ^ a b c "In memoriam Hendrik Cornelis Dirk de Wit (1909 – 1999)". Archived from the original on 2012-10-08. Retrieved 2009-02-21.
- ^ Arends J.C.; Boelema G.; de Groot C.T.; Leeuwenberg A.J.M., eds. (1980). Liber Gratulatorius in Honorem H.C.D. de Wit. Miscellaneous Papers Landbouwhogeschool. Vol. 19. Wageningen, The Netherlands: H. Veenman & Zonen BV. OCLC 7215638.
- ^ de Wit, H.C.D., ed. (1957–1958). Het Handboek voor de Aquariumhouder. Vol. 1–15. Baarn, The Netherlands: Hollandia.
- ^ de Wit, H.C.D. (1966). Aquariumplanten (1st ed.). Baarn, The Netherlands: Hollandia. p. 360.
- ^ de Wit, H.C.D. (1983). Aquariumplanten (4th ed.). Baarn, The Netherlands: Hollandia. p. 360. ISBN 90-6045-172-4.
- ^ de Wit, H.C.D. (1964). Aquarium Plants. London, UK: Blandford Press. p. 255.
- ^ de Wit, H.C.D. (1971). Aquarienpflanzen (1st ed.). Stuttgart, Germany: Eugen Ulmer Verlag. p. 365.
- ^ de Wit, H.C.D. (1990). Aquarienpflanzen (2nd ed.). Stuttgart, Germany: Eugen Ulmer Verlag. p. 464. ISBN 978-3-8001-7185-9.
- ^ Crusio, W. (1979). "A revision of Anubias Schott (Araceae). (Primitiae Africanae XII)". Mededelingen Landbouwhogeschool Wageningen. 79 (14): 1–48 (p. 47).
- ^ de Wilde, J.J.F.E.; Arends, J.C. (1980). "Begonia section Squamibegonia Warb. A taxonomic revision". In Arends J.C.; Boelema G.; de Groot C.T.; Leeuwenberg A.J.M. (eds.). Liber Gratulatorius in Honorem H.C.D. de Wit. Miscellaneous Papers Landbouwhogeschool. Vol. 19. Wageningen, The Netherlands: H. Veenman & Zonen BV. pp. 377–421.
- ^ "Crudia dewitii". Archived from the original on 2012-06-03. Retrieved 2009-02-21.
- ^ Jacobsen, Niels (1977). "Cryptocoryne dewitii N. Jacobsen sp.nov. (Araceae)". Botaniska Notiser. 130: 381–382.
- ^ Jan D. Bastmeijer. "Cryptocoryne dewitii". Retrieved 2009-02-21.
- ^ Idei, Takashige (2010). "Der natürliche Standort von Cryptocoryne dewitii N. Jacobsen (Araceae) in Papua Neuguinea". Aqua Planta. 35 (1): 23–38. Archived from the original on 2010-01-19. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
- ^ Breteler, F.J. (1980). "The African Dichapetalaceae VI. Three new species from western Central Africa". In Arends J.C.; Boelema G.; de Groot C.T.; Leeuwenberg A.J.M. (eds.). Liber Gratulatorius in Honorem H.C.D. de Wit. Miscellaneous Papers Landbouwhogeschool. Vol. 19. Wageningen, The Netherlands: H. Veenman & Zonen BV. pp. 81–88.
- ^ Kostermans, A.J.G.H. (1980). "Notes on Ceylonese plants. I". In Arends J.C.; Boelema G.; de Groot C.T.; Leeuwenberg A.J.M. (eds.). Liber Gratulatorius in Honorem H.C.D. de Wit. Miscellaneous Papers Landbouwhogeschool. Vol. 19. Wageningen, The Netherlands: H. Veenman & Zonen BV. pp. 205–230.
- ^ Larsen, K.; Larsen, S.S. (1978). "Bauhinia dewitii, a new Bornean species" (PDF). Gard. Bull. Singapore. 31 (1): 1–3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-10-29. Retrieved 2014-01-22.
- ^ Achoundong, Gaston (2005). "Two Further New Species of Rinorea (Violaceae) from Cameroon". Kew Bull. 60 (4): 581–586. JSTOR 25070244.
- ^ Crusio, W.E.; de Graaf, A. (1986). "Lagenandra dewitii Crusio et de Graaf (Araceae), eine neue Art aus Sri Lanka". Aqua Planta. 11: 56–59.
- ^ International Plant Names Index. de Wit.
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