Jean Witt, long time friend of the UW Botanic Gardens, passed away last week at age 95.  She was the widow of Joe Witt, the former Arboretum Curator and Professor of Urban Horticulture and for whom the Joseph A. Witt Winter Garden is named.  Together, they were well known for their joint leadership in field study trips of Washington native flora and geology (Jean’s specialty).  Arboretum Director Emeritus John Wott wrote about their life together in July 2014.

Jean was also a noted iris hybridizer, illustrator, and researcher.  Her extensive work breeding median (mid-sized) iris was recognized by the American Iris Society last year with the presentation of the Bennett C. Jones Award.  A framed set of her illustrations is on display in the Miller Library, and can also be found in The Siberian Iris by Currier McEwen.  With Bob Pries, she published in 1999 a checklist of Iris species and their variations for the Species Iris Group of North America.

Jean was a narrator in the UW Botanic Gardens’ oral history project completed in 2011.  Asked about the Washington Park Arboretum, she observed “The interesting thing about the Arboretum is that it’s very well known internationally and under-appreciated at home…”  Throughout her long life, she was an advocate for all of the UW Botanic Gardens and a friend to many of us on the staff.