Federico Delpino and the foundation of plant biology

Abstract

In 1867, Federico Delpino, with his seminal work "Pensieri sulla biologia vegetale" (thoughts on plant biology) established plant biology by defining it not in the broad general sense, namely as the science of living beings, but as a branch of natural science dedicated to the study of plant life in relation to the environment. today, the figure and achievements of this outstanding plant scientist is almost unknown. in the following pages, i will concisely describe the main realizations of Federico Delpino and outline the significance of his work for modern plant science. © 2010 Landes Bioscience.