Maxwell T. (Maxwell Tylden) Masters

Born in Canterbury in 1833, Maxwell Tylden Masters was an English botanist and taxonomist who also trained as a surgeon. He studied at King's College London and the University of St Andrews, and went on to build a career that linked medicine, botany, and horticulture.

Masters became closely associated with the Royal Horticultural Society, serving for many years as editor of The Gardeners' Chronicle. He was widely respected for his knowledge of plant morphology and teratology—the study of unusual or abnormal growth in plants—and for his expertise on gymnosperms. His published work included important botanical texts, and he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society.

He died in 1907, but his name still appears in botanical literature through the author abbreviation "Mast." For readers interested in the history of plant science, he stands out as a careful observer who helped make complex botanical ideas accessible to both specialists and keen gardeners.