Margaret Owen (plantswoman)
Margaret Owen | |
|---|---|
 Showing her collection in 2013 in "Extraordinary Shropshire" | |
| Born | Margaret McAllister Mackay 27 November 1930 Lea Farm, Watford |
| Died | 24 October 2014 (aged 83) |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation(s) | Farmer, gardener |
| Known for | collections of plants: Camassia, Dictamnus, Galanthus, Nerine, Veratrum |
| Spouse(s) | Godfrey Owen, (m. 9 October 1952, d. 1983) |
| Children | 4 |
| Awards | Veitch Memorial Medal (2013) |
Margaret McAllister Owen MBE (née Mackay; 27 November 1930 – 24 October 2014) was a British farmer, gardener and heritage activist.
Snowdrops
[edit]She collected, grew, arranged and exhibited plants, especially snowdrops, holding an annual snowdrop party in her Shropshire garden, The Patch, each year in February.[1] A snowdrop, Galanthus elwesii Margaret Owen was named after her.[2] She herself named a snowdrop after her husband, Galanthus elwesii Godfrey Owen.[3] This has two sets of six petals – inner and outer. This has made it especially popular, and it has been propagated by twin-scaling to make it widely available.[4]
National Collection
[edit]She was the holder of four types of plant for the National Collection: Camassia, Dictamnus, Nerine and Veratrum.[1] She bred new colour forms of camassias and pioneered nerines as a hardy plant in the UK.[5][6][7][8] She was awarded the Veitch Memorial Medal in 2013.[9]
Shrewsbury heritage
[edit]Owen campaigned to save Rowley's House museum in Shrewsbury.[10][11] She also founded The Corbet Bed Embroiders Trust to create period hangings for the sixteenth-century Corbet Bed.[12][13][14] In 2010, she was awarded the honour of Most Excellent Order of the British Empire MBE, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences.[15] [16]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Margaret Owen – obituary", The Daily Telegraph, 8 November 2014, archived from the original on 6 October 2018
- ^ "Galanthus elwesii 'Margaret Owen'", RHS Plant Finder, Royal Horticultural Society
- ^ Byfield, Andy (27 February 2015), "Snowdrops: ten of the best", The Guardian, archived from the original on 6 April 2016
- ^ Andy Byfield (27 February 2015), "Snowdrops: ten of the best – Godfrey Owen", The Guardian
- ^ Bourne, Val (22 April 2010), "Camassias like it wet", The Oxford Times, archived from the original on 18 October 2018
- ^ "Camassia", Plant Heritage, retrieved 17 October 2018
- ^ Buchan, Ursula (18 June 2008). "Traditional virtues". The Spectator. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
- ^ Mark Heath (5 October 2018), Gardeners' World, BBC
- ^ "RHS President presents 33 honours at RHS Awards Ceremony", Royal Horticultural Society, RHS, archived from the original on 20 December 2016
- ^ Steel, Patrick (2006), "Shrewsbury faces the closure of its museum until 2009", Museums Journal, archived from the original on 18 October 2018
- ^ "Win claimed in museum fight", Shropshire Star, 22 November 2006, retrieved 17 October 2018
- ^ "Corbet Bed Embroiderers Trust", Open Charities, archived from the original on 18 October 2018
- ^ "Lord Lieutenant marks end of bed project", Shropshire Star, 7 March 2010, archived from the original on 18 October 2018
- ^ Boyd, Peter (16 July 2003), "Corbet Bed 1593", Darwin Country, Shrewsbury Museums Service
- ^ Charity fundraiser's MBE honour, BBC News, 31 December 2009
- ^ "County people rewarded in Queen's honours", Shropshire Star, 31 December 2009, archived from the original on 18 October 2018
External links
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