William Rickatson Dykes

William Rickatson Dykes (4 November 1877 – 1 December 1925) was an English amateur botanist who became an expert in the field of iris breeding and wrote several influential books on the subject.

[2][3] He was a clever student and a talented athlete who attended City of London School and then Wadham College, Oxford.

[6] Dykes took over this study and completed it, a process that formed the basis for his first book, Irises (1909), a volume in the series Present-Day Gardening.

[5] A smallish book, it focuses on the decorative uses of the iris as a garden plant but also contains plenty of scientific information.

[7] By 1910, Dykes was being interviewed by Garden Life magazine as an expert amateur and recognised authority on iris cultivation.

[10] During this period, he also worked with retired engineer and plant breeder Arthur J. Bliss (1862–1931) to breed several hybrids.

[6][11] Dykes undertook a formal study of the iris genus at the botanical library at Kew Gardens Herbarium.

"[13] In April 1913, Dykes took a trip to Dalmatian coast, visiting Sarajevo, Clissa, Mostar and Bosnia.

[2] He made arrangements for nearly all of his collection of irises to be moved to Percy Murrell's Nursery at Orpington in Kent.

He retained only a few rhizomes each of some seedlings, planting them on a small plot of ground at the John Innes Research Station at Merton, Surrey.

[2] During this period, he raised several hybrid iris seedlings of which 'Amber' (pale yellow, 1924), 'Moonlight' (yellowish-white) and 'Wedgewood' (medium blue) are the best known.

[17] In 1924, Dykes married Elsie K. "Katherine" (née Kaye),[2] who also made a name for herself as an iris hybridiser and painter.

[3] The British Iris Society currently presents separate Dykes Medals in Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand.

He might be smiling just broadly like a merry schoolboy, or cross as Good Friday's bun just as the moment might take him; for he was a man of strong personality who made no attempt to disguise his emotions.