Lindsay Pryor

Lindsay Dixon Pryor AO (26 October 1915 – 17 August 1998) was an Australian botanist noted for his work on Eucalyptus taxonomy and his role in the landscape design of Canberra, including the foundation of the Australian National Botanic Gardens.

Pryor was born in Moonta, South Australia; he attended Norwood High and the University of Adelaide and later went on to study at the Australian Forestry School in Canberra. His father, the cartoonist Oswald Pryor, encouraged him to pursue a career in forestry, and Pryor is said to have wanted to become a forester from age 12. He graduated BSc in 1935 and was awarded a Diploma of Forestry in 1936. In 1936 he was appointed ACT Assistant Forester, he worked under Charles Lane Poole. In this position he surveyed the native vegetation of the ACT and in 1939 received his Masters in Science from Adelaide University for this work. He married in 1938, and he and his wife Wilma Pryor had four children - Elizabeth, Anthony, Geoffrey and Helen.

In 1939, Pryor was promoted to Assistant Research Officer in the Forestry and Timber Bureau and then to Acting Forester in 1940. He served as the ACT's forester until he was appointed the Director of Parks and Gardens in 1944. He carried on the work of Charles Weston, choosing and propagating native and exotic species to expand the range of vegetation in the growing city of Canberra. He continued development of the Yarralumla Nursery and worked on landscape design for the city; some of his many projects include Commonwealth, Griffith and Telopea Parks, Westbourne Woods and the grounds of the Australian National University. Between 1945 and 1958 he was involved in planning and establishing the Australian National Botanic Gardens, including the main gardens in Acton and at the Annexe at Jervis Bay and an Alpine Annexe at Mount Gingera, which has since been abandoned.

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