Career

Collecting localities

Collections

Literature

Biographical data

 

Brandes, Elmer Walker

(

Source: Flora Malesiana ser. 1, 8: Cyclopaedia of collectors, Supplement II)

 

Born: 1891, Washington, D.C., U.S.A.

 

career:

Plant pathologist, educated at Michigan State College (B.S. 1913, M.S. 1915); student at Cornell University (1916-17), and Ph.D. University of Michigan (1919). Up to 1959 he made an impressive career in sugar-plant investigations, mainly of the Dept of Agriculture in Washington. Many were the honours bestowed on him.

He was sponsored by the said Agricultural Department to collect sugar-cane varieties in Australian New Guinea, together with Jeswiet (see Cycl. Fl. Mal. I, 1, 1950) and Pemberton (See this Suppl.). In total 292 varieties were brought home.1

 

Collecting localities:

1928. E. New Guinea: Fly River, Palmer R., Ok-Tedi R., Strickland R., Lake Murray, Port Moresby, Rigo, Sepik R., Lae.

 

collections:

Jeswiet brought back many herbarium specimens, but whether the other members did, is not known to me.

 

literature:

(1) Cf. Hawaiian Plant. Rec. 55, 1958, p. 213; E.W. Brandes: ‘Into primeval Papua by seaplane’ (Nat. Geogr. Mag. 56, 1929, p. 253-332, ill.); ‘Cane Growers’ Quart. Bull. Brisbane 15, 1951, p. 41-42.

 

biographical data:

Who was who in America 1961-68, vol. 4; Amer. Men of Science, Phys. & Biol. Vol., ed. 10.