New York Botanical Garden

In 1952, the Founders Fund Award was given to The Lenox Garden Club in Massachusetts to sponsor an expedition by the esteemed horticulturalist T.H. Everett, director of horticulture at The New York Botanical Garden. Everett traveled to England and Ireland in order to collect and rescue rare plants for introduction to the United States.

Mr. Everett joined the staff of The New York Botanical Garden in 1932 as Horticulturalist and his legacy includes the creation of the famous NYBG rose garden, the development of the renowned NYBG rock garden and the establishment of The New York Botanical Garden School of Horticulture. His greatest achievement is considered to be his opus, The New York Botanical Garden Illustrated Encyclopedia of Horticulture, a ten-volume set of reference books recognized as the most complete work in the field. Everett spent 14 years laboring on the Encyclopedia and took most of the 11,500 photographs himself.

The Founders Fund Award gave Mr. Everett the opportunity to collect 200 specimens abroad, of which about 146 survived the return boat trip. According to the Department of Agriculture regulations, plants had to be transported with no earth clinging to the roots. Mr. Everett had a laboratory aboard the ship and carefully tended his acquisitions.