Richard Pearce (c.1835 – 17 July 1868) was a Britishplant collector, who introduced the tuberousbegonia to England, which led to the development of thehybrid begonias grown today.[1][2]
Pearce was born atStoke, Devonport inDevon.[3] His first employment was with Pontey's nursery inPlymouth, where he stayed until about 1858, when he went to work at the nursery ofJames Veitch atMount Radford, nearExeter.[3]
In February 1859, Pearce was sent by Veitch to South America for three years as a "collector of plants, seeds, land-shells and other objects of Natural History".[3] Pearce travelled initially toValparaíso, with instructions to collect inChile andPatagonia. In particular, he was directed to collect seeds ofLibocedrus tetragona, at that time supposed to be the tree which produced the famousAlerce timber. His agreement also required him to locate and collect the Chilean Bellflower,Lapageria rosea and its white varietyL. alba, the Chile Pine (then known asAraucaria imbricata) and other hardy trees and shrubs as well as to collectorchids and stove (hothouse) and greenhouse flowering plants.[3]
Pearce successfully carried out his instructions, and as well as the plants he was contracted to collect, he also obtained and introducedPrumnopitys elegans,Podocarpus nubigenus,Eucryphia glutinosa, severalBomareas,Cavendishia bracteata,Ourisia coccinea,Ourisia pearcei (a synonym ofOurisia coccineasubsp.coccinea) and quantities offerns, theVictorian fern craze then being at its height. His researches on this trip showed that the tree that producedAlerce timber was the Patagonian Cypress,Fitzroya cupressoides and notLibocedrus tetragona as had been previously thought.[4][5]
During 1860 Pearce made many journeys to the mountains and the interior ofChile. He wrote of the scenery of that part of theChilean Cordilleras which he explored:
"It is of the most charming description: gently undulating meadows covered with a carpet of short grass, placid lakes reflecting from their smooth surface the mountains around, foaming cataracts and gentle rivulets, deep gorges and frightful precipices, over which tumble numerous dark, picturesque waterfalls reaching the bottom in a cloud of spray. High rocky pinnacles and lofty peaks, surround one on every side.
"Nor is the vegetation less beautiful and interesting. At an elevation of 4,000 ft. the vegetation exhibits a totally different character from that of the coast. Here one finds Antarctic Beeches (Fagus antarctica andF. betuloides), which constitute withFitzroya patagonica the large forest trees. TheEmbothrium coccineum,Desfontainia spinosa,Philesia buxifolia, three species ofBerberis,Pernettya andGaultheria are the most abundant of the flowering shrubs, whilst the numerous pretty little rock-plants meet one at every step with their various forms and colours."[5]
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Early in 1862 Pearce left Chile and travelled north toPeru andBolivia, before moving on toEcuador in search of stove and greenhouse plants. FromCuenca he sent seeds of many plants, includingBefaria ledifolia,Lisianthus magnificus,Calceolaria ericoides, and several kinds ofTacsonia, before returning fromGuayaquil to Britain with six largeWardian cases of plants, amongst which was a handsome plant of theMarantaceae, which was namedCalathea veitchiana in honour of his employers.[6]
In January 1863, James Veitch again sent him to South America on another three-year expedition "to collect plants, seeds and other objects of Natural History".[6] He travelled initially toLima,Peru, from where he was to travel to "such parts of South America as by written instructions to him should be determined. Particular attention was to be directed to theTucumán Province, [Argentina] should there be facilities for reaching that country."[6] His travels took him through Peru,Ecuador andBolivia, before eventually reaching Tucumán. Amongst the plants that he discovered on this expedition and introduced to European hot-houses wereAphelandra nitens andSanchezia nobilis. From Argentina, he collectedNierembergia rivularis andN. veitchii,Palava flexuosa,Mutisia decurrens and several varieties ofPeperomia. On his return toLa Paz, in November 1865 he also sent back to England a number ofHippeastrums, includingH. pardinum andH. leopoldii and some samples ofEccremocarpus which were subsequently lost.[6]
Pearce continued to explore the Andes; one of his final discoveries before returning to Britain wasMasdevallia veitchiana, which he discovered inPeru and successfully introduced to cultivation.[7]
Whilst exploring in theAndes, Pearce discovered three varieties oftuberous begonia, which were introduced to Britain, and became the fore-runners of the many varieties now available:[8]
Pearce also brought back from Peru a species he namedBegonia rosiflora, but this has subsequently been considered to be the same asB. veitchii, since the two forms differ only slightly, mainly in flower colour.[8]
On returning fromLa Paz in 1866, Pearce's contract withJames Veitch & Sons was terminated and he returned to his home at Plymouth, where he married.[6]
In 1867 he moved to London where he was contracted byWilliam Bull to travel back to South America[6] in search ofMasdevallia veitchiana. On arrival inPanama he set off in search of a species ofCypripedium (C. planifolium) which he had been advised was growing nearby.[13] His search was in vain and following his return toPanama City, he was taken ill on 13 July, and died on 17 July 1867 (aged 33) ofyellow fever[14] transmitted by amosquito bite.[1]
According toHortus Veitchii,"as a botanical collector Pearce was one of the best, and his untimely death was a great loss to the world ofhorticulture".[14]