Bruce Macdonald, director of UBC’s Botanical Garden will take early retirement after 13 memorable years.

     Macdonald, among a handful of gardeners who have sown seeds to benefit generations to come, will take time to devote more attention to projects such as writing and tending his own garden.

     “His exemplary leadership and strong vision for the UBC Botanical Garden have made it a community resource with an international reputation for excellence,” says Moura Quayle, dean of the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences.

     Macdonald’s influences is apparent throughout the 70-acre garden, from the entrance gate and reception and education centre, through to the Asian garden and beyond. Macdonald also developed UBC’s acclaimed and innovative Plant Introduction Scheme, which has made plants grown or developed at UBC available internationally. In 1998, Macdonald became the first Canadian to earn the Gold Veitch Memorial Award, the most prestigious award of the U.K.’s Royal Horticultural Society for “outstanding contributions to the advancement of the science and practice of horticulture.” He is past president of the International Plant Propagators Society’s Western region, and his book, Practical Woody Plant Propagation for Nursery Growers is standard text for universities as well as nurseries around the world.

     “We can see how Bruce dug into UBC’s garden and cultivated lasting relationships with nurseries and gardens such as China’s Nanjing Botanic Garden,” says David Tarrant, Botanical Garden public relations and program coordinator. “He is a ‘gardener’s gardener,’ a world renowned grafter and propagator who can transform dull, rusty pruning shears before your eyes and then create magic with them.”

     Speaking for hundreds of volunteers in UBC’s Friends of the Garden (FOGs), Charlie Sale says, “We’ve been inspired by a leading figure who has generously shared his expertise with us in a material way and given exceptional plants to all gardeners.”

     Douglas Justice is acting director of the UBC Botanical Garden.