Council of Heads of Australasian Herbaria |
Richard Simmons, trained in botany and
horticulture in Ireland, before coming to Rockhampton.
He
worked for several years under J.S. Edgar at the Rockhampton Botanic
Gardens before establishing his own nursery.
He was
appointed Curator of the Gardens after Edgar retired, and served for
almost thirty years (1902-31).
He was keenly interested
in native plants, sent specimens for identification to J.H.
Maiden and F.M. Bailey, and made collections of native
grasses from near Rockhampton and the Central West.
He became familiar with the flora of the region, and was
able to assist visiting botanists. Notable among these
was C.J. Chamberlain of Chicago University, whose
special interest was in cycads. Richard Simmons directed him to Byfield, where,
with the help of the Meilland brothers, he collected specimens of Macrozamia
miquelii and Bowenia serrulata.
His son, Henry George Simmons (1889-1974) took over as Curator of the Rockhampton Botanic Gardens after his death.
Source: Extracted from: Queensland Naturalist 44: 1-3, p.58
Portrait Photo: from above.