Welcome

Introduction

Photo: Harold McBride

The Ranunculaceae Society was founded by a group led by Dr Mary Toomey, on 4th November 2003 in Dublin, Ireland in response to a great interest demonstrated by a number of gardeners and plant specialists, in the different genera, species and cultivars, which belong to the large plant family, Ranunculaceae. The inaugural meeting of the society enrolled a number of founder members and members, nationally and internationally.

Round the year gardening with Ranunculaceae

Interestingly, there is a member of this plant family in flower almost every month of the year. Some examples of popular garden plants, which belong to the Ranunculaceae (buttercup) family include, Aconitum, Actaea, Anemone, Aquilegia, Caltha, Clematis, Delphinium, Eranthis, Helleborus, Hepatica, Nigella, Pulsatilla, Ranunuculus, Thalictrum and Trollius.

Contributions to Newsletter

The chairman and newsletter editor kindly invite members of the society to contribute material for the newsletter, particularly tips on propagation and cultivation of plants belonging to the Ranunculaceae family. Please forward contributions to our newsletter editor, Carmel Duignan, at:

21 Library Road,
Shankill,
Co. Dublin,
Ireland.

E-mail: ranunculaceae@eircom.net

Dr. Mary Toomey
Founder and Chairman of the Ranunculaceae Society

Dr Mary Toomey, a keen gardener, international lecturer, author and broadcaster trained as a biologist, botanist, entomologist and soil ecologist. She has been growing and collecting clematis - a member of the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae - passionately for over 30 years. She has studied cultivation of clematis extensively, both from a practical and theoretical standpoint.

Until recently Mary was the editor of The Clematis, the journal of the British Clematis Society. She was elected an honorary member of the Society in 2000.

Her publications include An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Clematis (Timber Press, Portland, Oregon, USA) and Clematis - A Hamlyn Care Manual (Hamlyn, Octopus Publishing Group, London, UK), which has been published in both English and German. Mary also participated as a scientific and linguistic reviewer in the translation of a major botanical - taxonomical publication, Släktet Klematis by Dr Magnus Johnson of Sweden, an internationally renowned authority on Clematis. The English edition, The Genus Clematis was published in 2001.

Mary's wider interest in garden plants and members of the buttercup family in particular, was instrumental in the founding of the much-needed Ranunculaceae Society.