Georges Guerrard-Samuel Perrottet, a Forgotten Swiss−French Plant Collector, Experimental Botanist and Biologist in India
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HISTORICAL NOTES Georges Guerrard-Samuel Perrottet, a forgotten Swiss−French plant collector, experimental botanist and biologist in India Anantanarayanan Raman The first French trade outpost was set up the eastern coast of Peninsular India shot The only item that celebrates Perrottet is in the coastal town of Pondichéry, now into prominence in recent years, when the obelisk in JBP (Figure 1). Puducherry (1193N, 7979E), southern Ang Lee made a few segments of his India by the French East-India Company Oscar runner The Life of Pi (2012) here. (Compagnie Française pour le Com- With spectacular flowering plants and Georges Guerrard–Samuel merce des Indes Orientales) in 1674. refreshing water features, JBP has re- Perrottet This outpost grew into the earliest mained a fascinating recreational facility French settlement. Its activities driven by in Pondichéry for several years. The Perrottet (Figure 2) was born in 1790 commercial interest got triggered. One 2011 cyclone ravaged JBP and it has not (1793?) in Vully of Vaud Canton of was the exploration – which turned sub- yet recovered from the damage. Cyclonic French-speaking Switzerland. He started sequently as exploitation – of the natural rain and other natural events have irrepa- wealth of India. That in turn, led to the rably damaged similar human creations consideration of growing plants in a for- in Peninsular India in the past. The mal ‘garden’ context, because estab- Marmelon Botanic Garden in Madras lished gardens existed in France: Jardin city (1302N, 8023E), India, created du Roi in Paris initiated by Joseph Pitton by James Anderson and managed by his de Tournefort and Antoine de Jussieu, nephew Andrew Berry in 1790s, was lost pioneering botanists of the day, was permanently due to the torrential cyclone operational from 1640. that hit Madras in December 1807 (refs 4 An early ‘garden’ seems to have exi- and 5). sted in Pondichéry in 1740, although a The floral and faunal elements of formal garden, spreading over 17.5 ha, Pondichéry interested the French admin- was established only in 1826 consisting istrators and visitors. The earliest name of two sections: the Royal Garden (Jar- that resonates in Pondichéry’s biology is din du Roi) and the Colonial Experimen- Pierre Sonnerat (1748–1814). Sonnerat tal Garden (Jardin Colonial et travelled to India and China between d’Acclimation)1 situated between the 1774 and 1781. His Voyage aux Indes South Boulevard and the Oupar stream Orientales et à la Chine, Fait Ordre du (note 1) in the southeastern part of Pondi- Roi, Depuis 1774 Jusqu'à 1781 is chéry. Efforts were made to grow the remarkable. Sonnerat mostly looked at Shirazi tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum, So- birds in these nations, although he was lanaceae, from Shiraz, Persia (now Iran), equally interested in the landscape, peo- considered the finest Persian tobacco), ple and plants. Jean-Baptiste Louis Dacca cotton (Gossypium herbaceum, Théodore Leschenault de la Tour (1773– Malvaceae, also known as the source of 1826) came to Pondichéry in 1816, after the fine ‘Dhaka muslin’ material from the Napoleonic battle to establish a Dacca, Bangladesh), sugarcane (Saccha- botanic garden to be named le Jardin du rum officinarum, Poaceae), and mulberry Roi de Pondichéry, although it did not (species of Morus, Moraceae) in 1826– materialize. Leschenault de la Tour col- 1828 (ref. 2). By 1829, the garden area lected not only plants, but also worked shrunk to c. 11 ha, included about 900 on the biology of fishes and birds of plants, and was more of an experimental India6 and returned to Paris in 1822. The garden (ref. 3, note 2). According to Jac- other French naturalists who contributed quemont (ref. 3, pp. 258–259): to the natural history of Pondichéry and other French territories in India, e.g. ‘True efforts were made to study the Yanam and Chandranagore, for short behaviour of a good number of spells of time were François Louis plants, in the climate of Pondichéry, Busseuil (1791–1835), Charles Paulus though those experiments were not Bélanger (1805–1881) and A. M. M. conducted with the necessary rigour Reynaud (1804–?). Georges Perrottet and method at that time.’ took charge as the Director of JBP in Figure 1. The Perrottet memorial at Jar- 1840. Most of JBP’s botanical novelties din Botanique de Pondichéry (photo cour- The Botanic Garden of Pondichéry (Jar- and star attractions came into existence tesy: S. Prasad, l’Institut Française de din Botanique de Pondichéry, JBP) along only due to the efforts of Perrottet. Pondichéry, Puducherry). CURRENT SCIENCE, VOL. 107, NO. 9, 10 NOVEMBER 2014 1607 HISTORICAL NOTES (estimated six months) in the Nilgiris American Silk Society and Rural Econo- (1125N; 7641E) have been treated mist (Baltimore) – says the following in separately in this note. Back in Paris, the context of M. multicaulis (ref. 17, p. with support from the Ministry of Marine 153; note 5): and Colonies Department of France, Per- rottet searched for the best methods to ‘Having just referred to the multicau- rear silkworm (Bombyx mori; Lepidop- lis and its varieties, we take the occa- tera: Bombycidae) in southern France in sion to protest against the names 1839–1840 and made efforts to introduce Chinese and Canton mulberry, fre- silk industry in Cayenne, Martinique and quently applied to the genuine multi- Guadeloupe. While searching for Coffea caulis of Perrottet. The French (Rubiaceae), he found the coffee-leaf botanist (sic. Perrottet) found the par- miner that ravaged coffee plantations in ent of what he called the multicaulis the French Antilles. He studied the biol- tree – the same now so extensively ogy of this insect and named it Elachista cultivated among us (sic. in Amer- coffeella (presently Leucoptera coffeella; ica) – not in China, but in the Philip- Lepidoptera: Lyonetiidae), collaborating pine Islands. It is distinguished for with Guérin-Méneville9 (note 4). Guérin- producing the largest leaves of any Méneville and Perrottet refer to a patho- mulberry known, these having a pe- genic fungus in this memoir9, which culiar bowl shape. So far as we have Figure 2. Perrottet [photo by Albert possibly is Hemileia vastatrix (Puccin- any evidence, this tree is not found in Gockel (note 18), published in the Bulletin iomycetes: Pucciniaceae). Accepting the China. But they have in that country, de la Société Fribourgoise de Sciences Naturelles, Comptes Rendus, Fribourg, appointment as the Government Botanist varieties of the mulberry which very 10 1900]. (Regierungsbotaniker ) with a responsi- much resemble the multicaulis. Many bility to direct JBP, Perrottet returned to of these are now growing in this Pondichéry, travelling via and collecting country from seed brought from Can- as a gardener at the Vaudois Botanic plants in Aden, Bombay, Calicut and the ton. … . The leaves are large but less Garden, Fribourg, Switzerland. He joined Nilgiris in October 1842. He held this of- than those of the genuine Perrottet as the Naturalist in the expedition led by fice until his death in Pondichéry in multicaulis. They are not puckered Captain Pierre Henri Philibert (note 3) in 1870. He was succeeded by J. Contest– and bowl-shaped, but perfectly 1819–1821. Perrottet’s duties on this Lacour, who is recognized by Joseph flat. … To call the genuine multicau- expedition were to collect rare and useful Hooker for finding the economically use- lis of Perrottet the Chinese or Canton plants from Réunion, Java and the Phil- ful plant Pseudodracontium lacourii mulberry is obviously very improper, ippines, and cultivate them in French (Araceae) from Cochinchina (Khmer part as these names are only applicable to Guyana7,8. In 1824–1829, Perrottet of Vietnam)11. the product of seed imported from the explored Senegambia (Senegal and Given that production of silk was elic- Celestial Empire (note 6).’ Gambia, today), where he was the gen- iting interest and excitement in the early eral manager of the French trade office. decades of the 19th century (ref. 12, pp. Perrottet is also responsible for introduc- At this time, he introduced the nopal 1–6), the credit for introducing a variety ing the Cayenne variety of pineapple cacti (several species of Opuntieae) into of mulberry into France goes to Perrottet, (Ananas comosus, Bromeliaceae) into Senegal. Interest in the Opuntieae and which he named Morus multicaulis (ref. France18. Although other varieties of A. the cochineal insects was profound dur- 13, p. 129). Perrottet brought large col- comosus were popular in Europe from ing this period and many of the colonial lections of different tropical plants of 1690, the Cayenne variety from French administrators and naturalists were ex- economic relevance to Paris when he Guyana brought by Perrottet was differ- cited in growing the species of Opuntieae returned to France in 1821. One of them ent from its allies by its spineless leaves for raising the dye-yielding scale insect was M. multicaulis, saplings of which and delicately flavoured fruits averaging (Dactylopius opuntiae; Hemiptera: Dac- were deposited in the Royal Botanic Gar- 20 lb (9.08 kg) in mass (ref. 18, p. 103) tylopiidae) in their respective tropical den of Paris and some of them were cul- (also see note 7). colonies5. Collaborating with Jean- tivated in Lyon. Perrottet collected M. A comprehensive list of Perrottet’s Baptiste Antoine Guillemin (note 4; multicaulis from the garden of a Chinese publications and citations made of his 1796–1842) and Achille Richard (note cultivator on the banks of the Pasig works by others, and detailed notes on 4), Perrottet published the Florae River in Manila14. [Presently, M. multi- his herbaria, known as the Plantae Senegambiae Tentamen in 1833. He was caulis is a valid variant of Morus alba15.] Senegambiae and Plantae Pondicer- appointed the Economic Botanist Morus multicaulis (popularly known as the ianne, are available in Stafleu and (Botaniste Agricole) at JBP during 1834– Perrottet mulberry) was considered a bet- Cowan (ref.