Verna Pratt
Verna E. Pratt (September 30, 1930 - January 8, 2017) was an American botanist, gardening expert, and author. She was considered an expert on Alaska native plants and wildflowers and produced several field guides on the topic. Pratt is also credited for popularizing the knowledge of Alaska plants among gardeners and recreationalists.
Verna E. Pratt | |
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.jpg.webp) Verna Pratt, left, in September 2010. She is alongside an employee of the Bureau of Land Management at the Campbell Creek Science Center in Anchorage, where she received a lifetime achievement award for her work. | |
| Born | Verna Evelyn Goldthwaite September 30, 1930 |
| Died | January 8, 2017 (aged 86) |
| Known for | Author, expert on Alaska botany |
Notable work | Field Guide to Alaskan Wildflowers Commonly Seen Along Highways and Byways, Wildflowers Along the Alaska Highway, Wildflowers of Denali National Park, Alaska's Wild Berries and Berry-Like Fruit, Linnaea's World |
| Spouse(s) | Frank Pratt
(m. 1950; died 2012) |
Early life
Verna Pratt was born Verna Evelyn Goldthwaite on September 30, 1930 on a small family farm in West Newbury, Massachusetts, where she was the sixth of eight children. Her fascination with plants and flowers began in her childhood, where she would often find herself compelled by the fields of wildflowers that surrounded the farm. In 1950, at the age of 20, she married Frank Pratt.
Moving to Alaska
Frank Pratt, Verna's husband, was a boy she met in high school and married five years later.[1] With Frank serving in the Army, the family moved to Detroit and New Orleans before heading to Alaska in 1966, where he was stationed at Fort Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska. In each city they resided, Verna sought out plants, and by the time she moved to Alaska with Frank and their two children, Verna had become fascinated with the wildflowers and plants of the state.[1] With a lack of accessible information, Verna Pratt became committed to studying and documenting the plants, wild berries, and wild flowers native to Alaska.
Professional career
As Verna Pratt delved into her exploration of Alaska’s plants and wildflowers, she realized there was a lack of information present. As a mission, Verna Pratt dedicated her time to documenting Alaska’s plants and wildflowers with her husband, who took photographs of both. The couple traveled throughout the state of Alaska from the Kenai Peninsula, along the Seward Highway, the Richardson Highway, the Glenn Highway, to Dutch Harbor, and Southeast Alaska, as well as Southcentral Alaska, and Interior Alaska. In doing so, they produced their first book together: Field Guide to Alaskan Wildflowers Commonly Seen Along Highways and Byways, which was published in 1989 and has sold over 100,000 copies.[1]
In 1991, Pratt published Wildflowers Along the Alaska Highway, followed by Wildflowers of Denali National Park in 1992. In 1995, Pratt published a pocket guide on Alaskan wild berries titled Alaska’s Wild Berries and Berry-like Fruit. Upon realizing that there was no children’s literature about Alaska’s wild berries, wildflowers, and plants, Pratt wrote and published Linnaea’s World in 1996.
For her literary contributions, Verna Pratt received the Helen S. Hull Literary Award from the National Council of State Garden Clubs in both 1991 and 1993.
Field Guide to Alaska Wildflowers (1989)
Pratt wrote Field Guide to Alaska Wildflowers due to information on flowers being too scientific and advanced for a household gardener. The book was written and arranged by color, keeping in mind the everyday botanist. From her personal experience learning about the wildflowers of Alaska including her being a teacher on the subject of wildflower identification, Pratt realized that color is the first characteristic people notice when observing plants. However, Pratt noted that color is not the most important characteristic of plants, other plant features and aspects are important to the identification and must be taken into account. Each plant in the book was identified based on color, family, habitat, blooming time, and general description. The field guide also goes into more obscure plant characteristics like toxicity, edibility, and economic uses. As a note, the blooming time of plants might be two weeks ahead or behind due to changes in Alaska's climate. These climates could include snowfall, the length of the winter season, and the timing of snow melt-off. What makes Alaska so special in terms of its plants and flowers is how large the state is, covering 586,400 square miles. Elevations in the state reach up to 20,320 feet in height. These two combinations cause very diverse growing conditions and seasons. [2]
Pratt admitted it is not a complete guide to all the plants in Alaska since there are over 1500 species in the state. The book mainly focuses on plants near major highways, pull-offs, and campsites. Many species don't have pictures, but the more complex plants with different variations are described when necessary, this includes flowers with a rare amount of petals. Pratt hoped that the book encourages people to look at plants and flowers in finer detail, and most importantly, be useful to people just getting into the plant world. [2]
Other achievements
In 1982, Verna Pratt co-founded the Alaska Native Plant Society with her husband, Frank. She served as president of the society from 1982-1988. Pratt then founded the Alaska Chapter of the North American Rock Garden Society in 1997. In 1999, she received the Meritorious Service Award for producing informational sources that promoted learning. The following year, Verna Pratt was honored by the Anchorage YWCA as a Woman of Achievement. In 2002, she was elected to the national board of directors for the North American Rock Garden Society. In 2009, along with her husband, Verna Pratt was the first person awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Anchorage Chapter of Alaska Master Gardeners Association. Verna Pratt was also an avid educator. She taught classes and led hiking tours at the University of Alaska Anchorage, Denali National Park, the Alaska Botanical Garden, and the Anchorage School District. Pratt was the keynote speaker at the International Rock Garden Plant Conference in Scotland in 2001.[3][4][5]
See also
References
- Hillman, Anne (July 24, 2015). "AK: An 80-Year Love Affair With Wildflowers Still Blossoms". Alaska Public Media. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
- Pratt, Verna (1989). Field Guide to Alaskan Wildflowers Commonly Seen Along the Highways and Byways. Anchorage, Alaska: Alaskakrafts. pp. viii. ISBN 0-9623192-0-1.
- "Verna Pratt" (PDF). Alaska Women's Hall of Fame.
- "Verna Pratt Obituary". North American Rock Garden Society.
- Pratt, Verna, Frank. "Frank and Verna Pratt Papers". Archives and Special Collections – via Consortium Library, University of Alaska Anchorage.