My ancestor Hector Munro was born 1835 in Rosskeen, Rosshire, he arrived in South Africa a bachelor,aboard the vessel "Durban" on the 10/1/1862. From 1862 he was the chief Horticulturist/ Gardener at Government House in Pietermaritzburg. He not only landscaped and cared for plants he also wrote articles for Agricultural journals. I cannot trace his family in Scotland. My query is does anyone on the list have any idea as to where Horticultural trainings would have taken place in Scotland in the second half of the 19th Century? David Moon Pietermaritzburg South Africa

Hi David I am guessing here, but I think he would most likely learn as an apprentice on a private estate, not necessarily in Scotland. From some literature (novels) I have found that English estates often employed Scots as gardeners - we all know that there was a tradition of Scottish doctors working in England, but Scottish gardeners is less well know, if true. There are Botanic Gardens in Glasgow and in Edinburgh, but you would have to check the dates they were established. I don't know if they were in existence before 1862. Regards Sheena ----- Original Message ----- From: David Moon <cicada@sai.co.za> To: <ROSSGEN-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Tuesday, August 10, 2004 9:34 AM Subject: Munro > My ancestor Hector Munro was born 1835 in Rosskeen, Rosshire, he arrived > in South Africa a bachelor,aboard the vessel "Durban" on the 10/1/1862. > From 1862 he was the chief Horticulturist/ Gardener at Government House in > Pietermaritzburg. He not only landscaped and cared for plants he also wrote > articles for Agricultural journals. > I cannot trace his family in Scotland. > > My query is does anyone on the list have any idea as to where > Horticultural trainings would have taken place in Scotland in the second > half of the 19th Century? > > David Moon > > Pietermaritzburg > > South Africa > > ______________________________

Something I had forgotten when I made my initial reply to David. Hundreds, if not thousands of botanical specimans from North America contain the name Douglas. Douglas was an under gardener on the estate of Lord Mansfield at Perth, Scotland. His botanical exploration of North America was sponsored by the Lord Mansfield of the 19th Century. The purpose being that Douglas would send specimans back to the estate. You can imagine my astonishment in 1979, when I realized the grove of trees I was walking through, all the trees were planted in rows, were Sequoia Gigantias, giant redwoods from the Sierra Nevada of California. Marleen Van Horne