Chrystabel Prudence Goldsmith Procter (11 March 1894 – 21 June 1982) was an English gardener, educationalist and horticulturalist. Her career focused particularly on involving institutions and people in growing their own crops and on the education of women.

Early life

Chrystabel Procter was born in London on 11 March 1894, at 11

Kensington Square Kensington Square is a garden square in Kensington, London, W8. It was built from 1692 on land acquired for the purpose in 1685 and is the oldest such square in Kensington. The houses facing, Nos. 1–45, are listed Grade II for their architec ...

, the daughter of Joseph Procter, a stockbroker, and Elizabeth Procter (née Brockbank), an artist. Her grandfather, William Brockbank, was a wealthy Manchester businessman, a patron of the arts and an accomplished amateur naturalist. Family interests in the arts and sciences influenced both Chrystabel and her younger sister,

Joan Beauchamp Procter Joan Beauchamp Procter (5 August 1897 – 20 September 1931) was a notable British zoologist, internationally recognised as an outstanding herpetologist. She worked initially at the British Museum (Natural History) and later for the Zoological ...

(b. 1897). The family homes had large gardens, which facilitated the sisters’ childhood pursuits in natural history, and they were nicknamed "Flora" (Chrystabel) and "Fauna" (Joan). She was educated at

St Paul's Girls' School St Paul's Girls' School is a private day school for girls, aged 11 to 18, located in Brook Green, Hammersmith, in west London, England. The school is included in The Schools Index as one of the world's 150 best private schools and among top ...

, London, where she studied chemistry and botany, and then at Glynde College for Lady Gardeners, Sussex. Deaf from her mid-teens as a result of an hereditary condition on her mother's side of the family, she had been steered towards a career as a horticulturalist rather than continuing formal studies as an academic botanist.

Career

Chrystabel Procter was Gardener at St Paul's Girls' School from 1916–25, and was also Gardening Mistress for much of that period. She went on to become Head Gardener of

Bingley Bingley is a market town and civil parish in the metropolitan borough of the City of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. It is sited on the River Aire and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. The town had a population of 18,040 at the United Kingdom ...

Teacher Training College in Yorkshire before taking up her best-known role as Garden Steward at

Girton College, Cambridge Girton College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was established in 1869 by Emily Davies and Barbara Bodichon as the first women's college at Cambridge. In 1948, it was granted full college status by the un ...

(as well as being an Examiner in Gardening at

Homerton College Homerton College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Its first premises were acquired in Homerton, London in 1768, by an informal gathering of English Dissenters, Protestant dissente ...

) in 1933. At Girton she was responsible for the management of the college gardens, grounds, and grounds staff. This remit included the supply of fruit and vegetables to the kitchens throughout the rationing period of the Second World War. From the end of the war until her retirement in 1950 Chrystabel Procter became Estate Steward to Bryanston School in Blandford, Dorset. In retirement she travelled to East Africa and lived for several years at the Teachers’ Training College in

Kaimosi Kaimosi is a town in western Kenya, heavily influenced by Quakers. It is rich in Agricultural Activities mostly Tea Farming and Production of African Leafy Vegetables and a Complex of learning Institutions like Kaimosi Friends University, Kaimosi ...

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

, where her friend Helen Neatby had been appointed Head.

Later life

In the early 1960s ill health forced Chrystabel and Helen to return to England, where they settled in Somerset. Procter wrote a biography of Neatby, ''Helen Neatby: A Quaker in Africa'' (1973). Procter became a Quaker in the 1960s, but rejoined the Roman Catholic church in her last years. Procter died in 1982, at a nursing home in

Weston-super-Mare Weston-super-Mare ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the North Somerset unitary district, in the county of Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. Its population ...

, aged 88 years. Her papers are archived at the Girton College Library at the University of Cambridge.Personal Papers of Chrystabel Procter
Girton College Library, University of Cambridge.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Procter, Chrystabel English gardeners 1894 births 1982 deaths Women horticulturists and gardeners People educated at St Paul's Girls' School People associated with Girton College, Cambridge 20th-century English botanists People from Weston-super-Mare English deaf people