17 Facts About Verna Pratt

Verna E Pratt was an American botanist, gardening expert, and author.

Verna Pratt was born Verna Evelyn Goldthwaite on September 30,1930, on a small family farm in West Newbury, Massachusetts, where she was the sixth of eight children.

In each city they resided, Verna Pratt sought out plants, and by the time she moved to Alaska with Frank and their two children, Verna Pratt had become fascinated with the wildflowers and plants of the state.

In 1991, Verna Pratt published Wildflowers Along the Alaska Highway, followed by Wildflowers of Denali National Park in 1992.

In 1995, Verna Pratt published a pocket guide on Alaskan wild berries titled Alaska's Wild Berries and Berry-like Fruit.

Verna Pratt wrote Field Guide to Alaska Wildflowers due to information on flowers being too scientific and advanced for a household gardener.

From her personal experience learning about the wildflowers of Alaska including her being a teacher on the subject of wildflower identification, Verna Pratt realized that color is the first characteristic people notice when observing plants.

However, Verna Pratt noted that color is not the most important characteristic of plants, other plant features and aspects are important to the identification and must be taken into account.

Verna Pratt admitted it is not a complete guide to all the plants in Alaska since there are over 1500 species in the state.

Verna Pratt hoped that the book encourages people to look at plants and flowers in finer detail, and most importantly, be useful to people just getting into the plant world.

Verna Pratt was responsible for putting names to over 8000 plants, often naming aesthetically pleasing plants after his supporters and unattractive plants after his detractors.

In 1982, Verna Pratt co-founded the Alaska Native Plant Society with her husband, Frank.

Verna Pratt served as president of the society from 1982 to 1988.

Verna Pratt then founded the Alaska Chapter of the North American Rock Garden Society in 1997.

In 2009, along with her husband, Verna Pratt was the first person awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Anchorage Chapter of Alaska Master Gardeners Association.

Verna Pratt taught classes and led hiking tours at the University of Alaska Anchorage, Denali National Park, the Alaska Botanical Garden, and the Anchorage School District.

Verna Pratt was the keynote speaker at the International Rock Garden Plant Conference in Scotland in 2001.