I. B. (Illtyd Buller) Pole Evans

Born in Wales in 1879, he studied at the University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire and then at Cambridge, where he focused on mycology and plant pathology. He moved to South Africa in the early 1900s and became an important figure in the young scientific institutions studying the region’s flora.

His career was closely tied to government botanical and agricultural work. He served as a mycologist and plant pathologist, later led major botanical services, and played a key role in building research collections and scientific publishing. He is especially remembered for advancing the study of South African plants and for encouraging systematic botanical exploration.

Pole-Evans published widely and became known for both scientific leadership and field knowledge. He died in 1968, leaving behind a body of work that helped shape how southern African plant life was studied and documented.