Cover of the ''Flora frisica'' David Meese (25 December 1723 – 23 August 1770) was a Dutch

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

notable for his authorship of the ''Flora frisica'' in 1760.

Career

Born into a low class family, Meese became a self taught

herbalist Herbal medicine (also called herbalism, phytomedicine or phytotherapy) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. Scientific evidence for the effectiveness of many herbal treatments ...

. His skills were recognized by the

University of Franeker The University of Franeker (1585–1811) was a university in Franeker, Friesland, the Netherlands. It was the second-oldest university of the Netherlands, founded shortly after Leiden University. History Also known as ''Academia Franekerensis'' ...

where he was placed in charge of the academic gardens at the college in 1752. Aa, A. J. (1859). Biographisch woordenboek der Nederlanden (Deel. 12-1). Retrieved from http://resources.huygens.knaw.nl/retroboeken/vdaa/#source=aa__001biog14_01.xml&page=523&view=imagePane&accessor=accessor_index&accessor_href=http://resources.huygens.knaw.nl/retroboeken/vdaa/accessor_index/index_html?page=523&source=aa__001biog14_01.xml&id=accessor_index In 1760, Meese published a flora of

Friesland Friesland ( ; ; official ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia (), named after the Frisians, is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen (p ...

, the ''Flora frisica'', which followed the Linnaean system of classification. He followed this with the publication of the two-part ''Plantarum rudimenta etc.'' in 1763, written in both Latin and Dutch.Molhuysen, P. C., Blok, P. J., Knappert, L., & Kossmann, K. H. (1911). Nieuw Nederlandsch biografisch woordenboek (Deel. 10). Retrieved from http://resources.huygens.knaw.nl/retroboeken/nnbw/#source=10&page=308&view=imagePane He was known for his experiments into

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular plant, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic phylum, division Bryophyta (, ) ''sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Wilhelm Philippe Schimper, Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryo ...

physiology. He investigated the propagation of the common hair moss, ''

Polytrichum commune ''Polytrichum commune'' (also known as common haircap, great golden maidenhair, great goldilocks, common haircap moss, or common hair moss) is a species of moss found in many regions with high humidity and rainfall. The species can be exceptional ...

'', and was among the first to write an account on the morphology of spore germination.Meyer, S. (1947). Physiological Studies on Mosses. VI. Spore Germination and Protonema Development in Physcomitrium turbinatum (Michx.) Brid. The Bryologist, 50(4), 403-408. doi:10.2307/3239646 Among his inventions was a special seeder, which was a wooden cart with two wheels and holes on the back wall to allow seed to pass through. He also invented a seed drill. The moss genus '' Meesia'' was named after him in 1788 by his contemporary

Johann Hedwig Johann Hedwig (8 December 1730 – 18 February 1799), also styled as Johannes Hedwig, was a German botanist notable for his studies of mosses. He is sometimes called the "father of bryology". He is known for his particular observations of sexual ...

Publications

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meese, David 1723 births 1770 deaths Dutch botanical writers 18th-century Dutch botanists Dutch bryologists People from Leeuwarden