Title:
James E. Vanderplank: South African and globally recognised plant pathologist
Authors:
Teresa A. Coutinho, University of Pretoria
André Drenth, The University of Queensland
Michael J. Wingfield, University of Pretoria
Published:
South African Journal of Science, Volume 116, Number 11/12 (26 November 2020)
From the article:
James Edward Vanderplank, best known to plant pathologists globally simply as ‘Vanderplank’, is widely regarded as one of the world’s most influential plant scientists. This recognition stems from his reputation as the founding father of modern quantitative plant disease epidemiology.1 Professional plant pathologists and students in the discipline are familiar with Vanderplank’s work as it provides a theoretical framework to study disease epidemics and breeding for disease resistance. The United Nations declaration of 2020 as the international Year of Plant Health provides an apt opportunity to reflect on the contributions Vanderplank has made to both plant pathology and plant breeding.