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THE AMERICAN PHYTOPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY-CARIBBEAN DIVISION
SOCIEDAD AMERICANA DE FITOPATOLOGIA- DIVISION DEL CARIBE
APS-CD
THE FREDERICK L. WELLMAN AWARD - PREMIO FREDERICK L. WELLMAN
The American Phytopathological Society - Caribbean Division (APS-CD) grants
it’s most prestigious award, the Frederick L. Wellman Award, to an active
member of the Society for his or her contributions to the science of plant
pathology in the Caribbean – Latin America area, his or her contributions to
the parent society, in general, and in particular to the Caribbean Division
of the APS.
When describing the development of the “Frederick L. Wellman Award”, a brief
history of the American Phytopathological Society-Caribbean Division (APS-CD)
needs to be considered, since the two are intimately related. Because when
the origin of the APS-CD is explained, it becomes obvious the influence that
the life, thoughts and contributions made by Dr. Frederick Lovejoy Wellman
had on the Caribbean Division.
The first mention of the necessity to create this Division appears in a
letter dated July 14, 1959, from D.B Waite to Dr. D.H. Raddler, of the
United Fruit Company. This communication gives details of the action on the
part of a number of Central American plant pathologists toward the
establishment of a section of The American Phytopathological Society for the
Caribbean Region. A copy of that letter was sent to Dr. Frederick L.
Wellman, who at the time was Chairman of the Committee on the International
Cooperation of APS. The proposal to form a new division of APS was approved
by APS Council at the 52nd Annual Meeting in Wisconsin in August 1960.
Dr. Wellman, while working in Central America and the Caribbean Region, was
very supportive of the idea of establishing and organizing the Caribbean
Division of the APS. After approval by Council, the first meeting of the new
division was held in Miami, Florida at a joint meeting with the American
Horticultural Society. Dr. Wellman was elected as the first president of the
Caribbean division. At the Miami meeting, Dr. Wellman made a historic and
stimulating speech, “Adventures among Caribbean Plant Pathologists.” Wellman
said on that occasion:
“If you have lived and worked in some of the remote corners of the Great
Caribbean Region, you will realize, as most of us do, one of the things we
feel keenly is the tremendous amount of work there is and the lack of
contacts with fellow plant pathologists. Here and there, in our corners, may
be two or three working beside one another on plant diseases, but usually
not. What is it that is most needed in our science of plant pathology in the
tropics? I believe it is communication between us, and by that I mean
speaking voice communication, at intervals. In the case of our exciting race
to keep plants healthy and keep people from starving, particular phase of
the disease problem depend on teams of workers, although in some cases a
single mind has to do it all. Whatever develops, we, who are the scientific
workers, must know about it. The quick, the cheapest the most successful
manner in which the largest number get the most value from research is
through scientific meetings where contributions are heard and discussed. The
meetings are of utmost importance to the participating plant pathologist.
As early as the 1920's a few unplanned events in which several of us met
together occurred in communication among tropical plant pathologists. In
1959-1960, the now established Caribbean Division of the American
Phytopathological Society was first formed. I do not know what will become
of it, but we hope it will continue as an active and unique arm of the APS.
Members will be at work on problems of diverse and special nature from
several tropical countries using three or four languages. Now this
international group is not large but it has grown; some day it may number
several hundreds or a thousand or two. It will be a highly interesting,
stimulating core of the most active workers in plant pathology in the
Caribbean and contiguous areas. This is our challenge. It is here where the
future of our science is unfolding.”
Dr. Wellman was born in the village of Kamundongo, Angola (Portuguese West
Africa) in 1887, where he spent part of his boyhood. His family moved to
Wichita, Kansas where he completed his grammar and high school education. He
received his BA degree at Fairmont College (now Wichita State University)
and Ph.D degree in Plant Pathology in 1928 from the University of Wisconsin
where he was proud to be Dr. J.C Walker’s first graduate student.
Although most of Dr. Wellman’s work was on coffee diseases, he began his
career as principal plant pathologist for the United Fruit Company at La
Lima, Honduras, working on penetration and histology of Fusarium oxysporum
var. cubense, the causal organism of Panama disease of bananas.
Most of his distinguished professional life was spent in the American
Tropics, but he also served for short terms as pathologist and plant
explorer for the U.S. Department of Agriculture in places such as the Middle
East and northern Africa. Dr. Wellman initiated and gave technical support
to coffee research programs at the Interamerican Institute of Agricultural
Sciences (IICA) in Turrialba, Costa Rica. His presence at IICA had a strong,
positive influence on teaching and research and strengthened the coffee
program already in existence in Turrialba.
The need for effective measures to keep coffee rust out of the Western
Hemisphere was always of concern to Dr. Wellman. Therefore, in the early
1950's, he traveled to coffee-producing countries in Africa and Asia to
learn more about the latest control measures for coffee rust, as well as to
collect coffee material resistant to rust. Shortly after his trip in 1952,
he visited the Centro de Investigacao das Ferrugens de Caffee in Oeiras,
Portugal, and made arrangements with the Center to provide technical
assistance to coffee-producing countries in the Western Hemisphere should if
coffee rust ever be established. As we now know, these efforts were rewarded
handsomely during and after the establishment of coffee rust: first in
Brazil in 1970 and later in other coffee-producing countries in the Western
Hemisphere. Perhaps one of Dr. Wellman’s greatest contributions was the 1961
publication, Coffee: Botany, Civilization and Utilization. This outstanding
book has been standard text on coffee production for many years.
Dr. Wellman was also a notable teacher. Many students who trained under him
at IICA went on to pursue careers in Latin American counties, as well as
other parts of the world.
In 1957, Dr. Wellman became head of the Department of Plant Pathology and
Botany at the Agricultural Experimental Station of the University of Puerto
Rico, in Rio Piedras. When he retired from this position in 1963 he was
appointed Visiting Professor at North Carolina State University in Raleigh.
In 1971 he was appointed Professor Emeritus at NC State, where he continued
to be an active writer.
Dr. Wellman was the founder and first president of the Caribbean Division of
the American Phytopathological Society. He also served as Councilor and
chairman of the APS Committee on International Cooperation. He received the
Award of Merit from the Caribbean Division for distinguished service to
tropical plant pathology and in 1974 was designated a Fellow of the American
Phytopathological Society.
We can say without any doubt that Dr. Wellman’s second career, following his
retirement, has been an inspiration to his colleagues. During this time, he
wrote and published three books: Plant Diseases, An Introduction for the
Layman in 1971; Tropical American Plant Diseases in 1972; and Dictionary of
Tropical American Crops and Their Diseases, published in 1977.
Dr. Wellman died Thursday, 21 April 1994 at the age of 97 at Rex Hospital in
Raleigh, NC, following a short illness. He was preceded in death by his wife
of 72 years, Dora U’Ren Wellman, who passed away 24 December 1992.
The Frederick L. Wellman Award was established in his honor at the business
meeting at the 35th Annual Meeting of the Division in October 1995 held in
Grosier, in the Island of Guadaloupe. The first recipient of this award was
Dr. Roberto García Peña at the Annual Division Meeting held iin Guadalajara,
Jalisco, Mexico in 1996.
Chronological order of recipients of the Frederick L. Wellman Award:
- 1996 Dr. Roberto García-Espinosa, Mexico (presented in Mexico)
- 1997 Dr. David Monterroso Salvatierra, CATIE/MIP, Guatemala (presented in Nicaragua)
- 1998 Dr. Marvin Miller, Texas A&M University, Weslaco, Texas, (presented in Costa Rica)
- 1999 Dr. Julio Bird-Piñero, University of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico (presented in Puerto Rico)
- 2000 Dr. Jose Amador, Texas A&M University, Weslaco, Texas, (presented in Santo Domingo)
- 2001 Dr. Rodrigo E. Chavez Badel, University of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico (presented in Cuba)
- 2002 Dr. Edward R. French, Internacional Potato Center, Lima, Peru (presented in Guatemala)
- 2003 Dr. Robert T. McMillan, University of Florida, Homestead, Florida, (presented in USA)
- 2004 Dr. Richard Lee, USDA ARS, Riverside, California (presented in Cuba)
- 2005 Dr. Jim Steadman, University of Nebraska (presented in Costa Rica)
- 2006 Dr. Ramón Lastra, University of Venezuela. (presented in Colombia)
- 2007 - No award given.
- 2008 Dr. Judith Brown, University of Arizona. (presented in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, at the 2008 APS Centennial Meeting)
- 2009 - No award given.
