{"id":142,"date":"2011-02-16T07:28:40","date_gmt":"2011-02-16T15:28:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.nwic.edu\/bryoblog\/?p=142"},"modified":"2011-02-17T10:39:11","modified_gmt":"2011-02-17T18:39:11","slug":"dillenius-and-botany","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.nwic.edu\/bryoblog\/2011\/02\/16\/dillenius-and-botany\/","title":{"rendered":"Early History of Bryology"},"content":{"rendered":"

A German botanist, Johann Jacob Dillen (Dillenius)<\/a> (1687-1747) was an early contributor to bryology, arranging mosses and other plants into genera in his Catalogus plantarum sponte circa Gissam nascentium<\/em><\/a> and Historia Muscorum<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0 His illustration of Lichenastrum imbricatum majus<\/em> is considered to represent the liverwort Radula complanata<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0 His work<\/a> is discussed in detail in The Dillinean Herbaria<\/a>.<\/p>\n

An Italian botanist Pier Micheli<\/a>, or Pietro Antonio Micheli<\/a> (1679-1737), contributed significantly to the understanding of fungi as well as the liverworts, which he arranged into genera as discussed in The Dillinean Herbaria<\/a> (p. 3).\u00a0 He was the first author to use microscopy in the study of bryophytes and other cryptogams, making accurate and detailed illustrations of his subject matter.\u00a0 His Nova Plantarum Genera<\/em><\/a> is considered one of his most significant works.<\/p>\n

Another German botanist, Johann Hedwig<\/a> (1730-1799) is notable for his contributions to the understanding of bryophytes, particularly with reference to aspects of their growth and reproduction.\u00a0 His posthumously published Species Muscorum Frondosorum<\/em> (1801) included descriptions of nearly all mosses known at that time, and also is the starting point for moss nomenclature with the exception of Sphagnum<\/em> speices.\u00a0 Hedwig is sometimes referred to as the “Father of Bryology,” and has a moss genus named in his honor (Hedwigia<\/em>).<\/p>\n