Rosemary Margaret Smith

Rosemary Margaret Smith (Glasgow, Scotland, 1933–2004) was a Scottish botanist and illustrator[1] who specialized in the taxonomy of the Zingiberaceae, or ginger family.[2] Many of the species she classified and identified as being placed into improper genera were found in Asian countries, especially in the isolated island of Borneo.

Elettariopsis smithiae, a species of ginger native to Malaysia and Thailand, is named in honour of her.[3] In 2001, a genus titled Smithatris was named after her and the two species in the genus, Smithatris supraneanae and Smithatris myanmarensis.[4][5]

Career

Smith was the first person to rename and give a colloquial title to the Malay Rose.[6] The genus Paracautleya was among the earliest defined by Smith, though it was later determined by Skornickova and Sabu (2005) that there was not enough physically differentiating traits to consider the monophyletic species separate from the Curcuma genus.[7] Alongside B. L. Burtt in 1986, Smith identified that many of the species that should have been included in the Etlingera genus had been mistakenly put into incorrect genera by researchers in the prior century.[8] Together, they have classified several species unique to Asian countries, including shell ginger.[9] In reviewing the genus Amomum exclusive to Borneo, Smith was responsible for subdividing the large number of species in the genus into five groups.[10] Similarly, she separated the Plagiostachys species in Borneo into two separate groups based on their general physical structure.[11] She was able to identify five species of Scaphochlamys that had been misidentified, with two having been mistakenly placed into the Haplochorema genus.[12]

In 1982, Smith published her research on ginger species at Gunung Mulu National Park in Malaysia. She was able to, from this investigation, identify special characteristics of the Boesenbergia genus.[13] While continuing her research in Borneo, Smith's publications in 1987 classified the six key physiological distinctions between the genera Scaphochlamys, Distichochlamys and Boesenbergia.[14] Complications over being able to successfully divide the Alpinia genus into separate genera were solved as a first step by Smith in 1990 when she created the genus Pleuranthodium and included 22 newly re-named species under that banner.[15]

From 1963 to 1979 her illustrations were published with the Plant of the Week column in The Scotsman with text by Alf Evans.[16]

Selected publications

• ——; Burtt, B. L. (1972). "Tentative keys to the subfamilies, tribes and genera of Zingiberaceae". Edinb Roy Bot Gard Notes: 171–227.
• —— (1985). "A Review of Bornean Zingiberaceae I: (Alpinieae)". Edinb Roy Bot Gard Notes. 42: 261–314.
• —— (1986). "A Review of Bornean Zingiberaceae II: (Alpinieae, concluded)". Edinb Roy Bot Gard Notes. 43: 439–466.
• —— (1987). "A Review of Bornean Zingiberaceae: III (Hedychieae)". Edinb Roy Bot Gard Notes. 44: 203–232.
• —— (1988). "A Review of Bornean Zingiberaceae: IV (Globbeae)". Edinb Roy Bot Gard Notes. 45: 1–19.
• —— (1989). "A Review of Bornean Zingiberaceae V: (Zingibereae)". Edinb Roy Bot Gard Notes. 45: 409–423.
• —— (1991). "Pleuranthodium replaces the illegitimate Psychanthus (Zingiberaceae)". Edinb Roy Bot Gard Notes. 48: 63–68.

Classifications

* Bolded names were discovered, named, or reclassified by Smith. Only a partial list is included.

• Acanthaceae (Acanthus family)
  • Linariantha[18]
    • Linariantha bicolor[18]
• Zingiberaceae (Ginger family)
  • Alpinia (Shell ginger genus)
    • Alpinia beamanii[19]
    • Alpinia zerumbet (Shell ginger)[20]
  • Amomum
    • Amomum borneense[10]
    • Amomum epiphyticum[10]
  • Elettaria
    • Elettaria surculosa[19]
  • Etlingera (Torch ginger genus)
    • Etlingera brachychila[13]
    • Etlingera elatior (Torch ginger)[21]
    • Etlingera pauciflora[19]
    • Etlingera pubescens[22]
    • Etlingera sessilanthera[23]
  • Hedychium
    • Hedychium griersonianum[24]
  • Plagiostachys
    • Plagiostachys bracteolata[19]
    • Plagiostachys crocydocalyx[11]
  • Pleuranthodium[15]
  • Scaphochlamys
    • Scaphochlamys argentea[25]
    • Scaphochlamys petiolata[12]
    • Scaphochlamys polyphylla[26]
    • Scaphochlamys reticosa[14]

References

1. "Index of Botanists". Harvard University Herbaria & Libraries. Harvard University. 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
2. Burtt, B. L.; Smith, R. M. (1972). "Key species in the taxonomic history of Zingiberaceae". Notes from the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh. 31 (2): 177–227.
3. Mazza, Giuseppe (22 October 2016). "Elettariopsis smithiae". Monaco Nature Encyclopedia.
4. Kress JW, Larsen K (April 1, 2001). "Smithatris, a New Genus of Zingiberaceae from Southeast Asia". Systematic Botany. 26 (2): 226–230. doi:10.1043/0363-6445-26.2.226. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
5. Kress JW, Htun T (2003). "A Second Species of Smithatris (Zingiberaceae) from Myanmar". Novon. 13 (1): 68–71. doi:10.2307/3393567. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
6. "ROYAL BOTANIC GARDEN EDINBURGH FLORILEGIUM: List of Plants" (PDF). Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. January 21, 2019. p. 3. Retrieved January 3, 2021. Malay Rose, first named by Dr. Rosemary Margaret Smith – was RBGE’s Ginger expert in the 1980’s has since passed away
7. Skornickova J, Sabu M (2005). "The Recircumscription of Curcuma L. to Include the Genus Paracautleya R.M.Sm" (PDF). Gardens' Bulletin Singapore. 57: 37–46. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
8. Yeats H (2013). "The History and Cultivation of Etlingera - The Torch Gingers - At The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh". The Journal of Botanic Garden Horticulture (11): 71–85. doi:10.24823/Sibbaldia.2013.52. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
9. Teschke R, Xuan TD (January 31, 2018). "Viewpoint: A Contributory Role of Shell Ginger (Alpinia zerumbet (Pers.) B.L. Burtt & R.M. Sm) for Human Longevity in Okinawa, Japan?". Nutrients. 10 (2). doi:10.3390/nu10020166. PMC 5852742. PMID 29385084. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
10. Nagamasu H, Sakai S (1996). "Amomum roseisquamosum (Zingiberaceae), a new epiphytic ginger from Borneo". Edinburgh Journal of Botany. 53 (1): 39–42. doi:10.1017/S0960428600002705. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
11. Julius A, Suleiman M, Takano A (2008). "Preliminary molecular phylogeny of Bornean Plagiostachys (Zingiberaceae) based on DNA sequence data of internal transcribed spacer (ITS)" (PDF). Journal of Tropical Biology and Conservation. 4 (1): 67–80. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
12. Sam YY, Takano A, Ibrahim H, Zaveska E, Aziz F (November 29, 2016). "Borneocola (Zingiberaceae), a new genus from Borneo". PhytoKeys. 75: 31–55. doi:10.3897/phytokeys.75.9837. PMID 28127243. S2CID 8485173. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
13. Aimi Syazana, S., Meekiong, K., Rohaiza, D., Syauqina, M.Y. & Miraadila, M.I. 2017. Comparison Study on Diversity of Gingers (Zingiberaceae) from Two Limestone Hills in the North Western of Sarawak. In: Forest Department Sarawak & Faculty of Resource Science and Technology (UNIMAS). [Meekiong, K., Azahari, O., Pungga, R.S.,Wasli, M.E., Freddy, Y.K.S. & Marconi, S.J., (eds.)]. Proceedings of Colloquium on the Dered Krian National Park – Scientific Expedition 2016. Kuching, Sarawak. 121–127.
14. Poulsen A, Searle R (2005). "Scaphochlamys calcicola (Zingiberaceae): a New and Unusual Species from Borneo" (PDF). Gardens' Bulletin Singapore. 57: 29–35. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
15. Kress WJ, Liu AZ, Newman M, Li QJ (January 2005). "The Molecular Phylogeny of Alpinia (Zingiberaceae): A Complex and Polyphyletic Genus of Gingers". American Journal of Botany. 92 (1): 167–178. doi:10.3732/ajb.92.1.167. JSTOR 4123962. PMID 21652395. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
16. Edinburgh, Royal Botanic Garden. "Contemporary Illustrations Collection". www.rbge.org.uk.
17. IPNI.  R.M.Sm.
18. Neo L, Wong KM, Tan H (September 29, 2020). "A synopsis of the endemic plant genera of Borneo". Nordic Journal of Botany. 38 (9): 17. doi:10.1111/njb.02871. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
19. Trimanto (May 2017). "Ginger species in Besiq Bermai forest, East Borneo: Inventory and collection". AIP Conference Proceedings. 1844 (1): 050002. Bibcode:2017AIPC.1844e0002T. doi:10.1063/1.4983440. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
20. "Classification for Kingdom Plantae Down to Species Alpinia zerumbet (Pers.) B.L. Burtt & R.M. Sm". Natural Resources Conservation Service. United States Department of Agriculture. 2020. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
21. "Etlingera elatior (Jack) R.M. Sm". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
22. Daniel-Jambun D, Ong KS, Lim YY, Tan JB, Lee WL, Muhamad A, Yap SW, Lee SM (October 2018). "Antioxidant properties of Etlingera pubescens, an edible ginger plant endemic to Borneo". Food Bioscience. 25: 44–51. doi:10.1016/j.fbio.2018.07.007. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
23. Jambun D, Dwiyanto J, Lim YY, Tan JB, Muhamad A, Yap SW, Lee SM (July 2017). "Investigation on the antimicrobial activities of gingers (Etlingera coccinea (Blume) S.Sakai & Nagam and Etlingera sessilanthera R.M.Sm.) endemic to Borneo". Journal of Applied Microbiology. 123 (4): 810–818. doi:10.1111/jam.13536. PMID 28708293. S2CID 22303355. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
24. Ashokan A, Gowda V (February 6, 2019). "Hedychium ziroense (Zingiberaceae), a new species of ginger lily from Northeast India". PhytoKeys. 117: 73–84. doi:10.3897/phytokeys.117.24951. PMID 30783381. S2CID 67749719. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
25. Ooi IH, Wong SY (March 2020). "Floral biology of Scaphochlamys (Zingiberaceae) focusing on Bornean taxa". Feddes Repertorium - Journal of Botanical Taxonomy and Geobotany. 131 (1): 9–45. doi:10.1002/fedr.201900008. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
26. Ooi IH, Wong SY (August 2014). "Scaphochlamys stenophylla (Zingiberaceae): a new species from Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo". Willdenowia. 44 (2): 241–245. doi:10.3372/wi.44.44205. JSTOR 24750954. S2CID 86547679. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

Further reading

• Cantoria MC (1986). "The Identification of Zingiber purpureum Rosc" (PDF). Transactions of the National Academy of Science and Technology. 8: 139–150. Retrieved January 7, 2021.

External links