Page 17 - Luce 2023

B ooks an d Authors

Jack Tan, PhD Researcher and Resident JCH Tutor Being an expert and
in Creative Writing and English Literature, shares enthusiastic spokesperson
with us his thoughts and reflections on Evergreen for plant conservation and
management means that Tim is
– the botanical life of a plant punk by Prof. Tim always thrust into the limelight.
Entwisle (1978), published in 2022. In the memoir, he recounts
numerous negotiations with
Evergreen - the botanical life of a plant punk is an immensely politicians, bureaucrats and
readable memoir by College alumnus and Director of the the media, sometimes over
Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, Prof. Tim Entwisle. With thorny issues such as building
an illustrious career at the world’s best botanic gardens – a noise wall along the
the Royal Botanic Gardens in Sydney and Kew Gardens in Cahill Expressway between
London prior to his current role – Tim is a trusted guide the Domain and the
to the symbiosis between humans and plants, and to the Sydney Gardens. Through
management of botanic gardens in an era of city living and these anecdotes, Tim
climate change. demonstrates that to work
at the intersection of Botanic
As a writer, Tim is disarming and personable (just as he is Gardens’ management and political wrangling requires an
face-to-face), with a gift for communicating anything with unwavering belief in the health-giving and aesthetic properties
journalistic flair, from complex plant biology to negotiations of Botanic Gardens, together with level-headedness and
with Government bureaucracy. His enthusiasm for telling the charm often during lengthy and difficult negotiations.
story of his unquenchable love for plants is expressed in the
book’s Prelude, where he introduces himself as our ‘perfect What makes this memoir so enjoyable goes beyond the
guide’ because, after more than three decades of exploring fact that our storyteller is a consummate CEO, scientist and
botanic gardens, he still feels ‘like an outsider looking in’, communicator. It is also Tim’s multi-faceted talents that make
which means that he, like us, still has ‘a sense of innocent his ‘Portrait of a CEO Botanist as a memoirist’ so readable, to
wonder and anticipation’. steal a phrase from Tim’s favourite author James Joyce. In the
memoir, Tim rhapsodises, ‘If writing, reading, radio and music
As with any good memoir, Tim chronicles his entry into his was my ether, science was the conduit through that medium
career, from his earliest passion for hiking, to an epiphany to wisdom.’
during his undergraduate Botany lecture at the University of
Melbourne when he first gazed on a giant plant cell projection As concluding words of warm recommendation of Tim’s
– a botanical awakening that plants, and life, were made of memoir, here are three moments that this reviewer
cells. Tim’s botanical career got off to an auspicious start in his particularly enjoyed:
Honours year, when he discovered a new species of red algae
during his very first field trip, leading to an enduring interest in 1.Renaming the seasons: Tim’s suggestion that the
freshwater algae and a subsequent PhD in Botany completed extended period between the current Winter and Spring
at La Trobe University. seasons for southern Australia be renamed Sprinter (August
and September) and Sprummer (October and November).
Despite taking the initial post-doctoral pathway into further Sprinter is a special period when our gardens burst into
research and publication, Tim’s entrepreneurial spirit, together flower and the quintessential Australian wattle is in peak
with his passion for plant conservation and education, quickly flowering. Sprummer is the continually changeable season
propelled him towards leadership roles in botanic gardens. bringing about a second wave of flowering.
Early in the book, Tim laid out what he believes are the
objectives of botanic gardens – ‘intrinsic beauty, science or 2. Brushes with well-known personalities: Tim
conservation’. These values are espoused by Tim throughout encountering Sir David Attenborough at Kew Gardens,
the book and his career. Readers would be delighted to when he was filming Kingdom of Plants. The latter
discover rich anecdotes and light-hearted philosophical charmingly picked Tim as Australian, not by his accent,
discussions on these values throughout the memoir. but because he was wearing a coat and beanie in the
tropical glasshouse!
Tim also reveals his passion for books (from Dickens to
Joyce, Tolkien and Spike Milligan) and his earliest dreams of 3. Tim’s closing words, quoting from his own remarks
becoming a writer. Tim’s love of the written word, coupled celebrating 175 years of Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria:
with an enthusiasm for media and communication, has ‘A great botanic garden can address the existential
resulted in a blossoming science journalism career alongside threats of our time – such as climate change and plant
his roles at the Gardens. His gift for communicating with extinction – while simultaneously serving up some of the
the general public as well as the scientific community has most exquisitely crafted landscapes you are ever likely to
seen him host the Talking Plants programme on ABC Radio, encounter.’
contribute articles for Gardening Australia, as well as blog
weekly at talkingplants.blogspot.com. At last count, the blog In January 2023, after serving ten years in the role, Prof. Tim
has over 1,110 posts, covering a range of botanical topics from Entwisle announced his resignation as Director and Executive
Australian species to visits to overseas Gardens. These are of the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, effective July 2023.
accompanied by stunning photographs of green life captured
by Tim himself, a valuable resource for plant experts and
enthusiasts alike.
J anet Clarke Hall 17