Eugene Moll Pays Tribute to KZN Botanist, Kathleen Gordon-Gray

Euegene Moll, author of What’s that Tree?, looks back on the life of the KwaZulu-Natal botanist, Kathleen Gordon-Gray, who died in Pietermaritzburg on January 13th.

Moll says that Gordon-Gray was “no ordinary woman” – she was the South African expert on Cyperaceae and collected some 4000 specimens, mainly from KwaZulu-Natal. Speaking of the personal impact she had on his life, Moll says he would have become a zoologist were it not for her influence.

KATHLEEN Gordon-Gray (née Huntley) died peacefully in Pietermaritzburg on January 13, 11 days before her 94th birthday. She is survived by her ­only daughter, Celia.

Gordon-Gray was no ordinary person. She was, in fact, a most ­extraordinary and generous woman. Not only was she the South African expert on Cyper­aceae and some other plants of ­KwaZulu-Natal (see Google ­Scholar for a list of some of her publications), she was a wife, mother, ­excellent lecturer in the then ­botany department at the University of Kwa­Zulu-Natal (UKZN), ­Pietermaritzburg campus, and a much sought-after confidante and friend to ­students and colleagues alike.

• Complete article: The Witness

Book details

• What\’s that Tree?: A Starter’s Guide to Trees of Southern Africa by Eugene Moll
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  EAN: 9781770078314
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