Which botanist published the most popular botany book of his time?
John Gerard John Gerard, also spelt John Gerarde, (c. 1545–1612) was a botanist and herbalist. He maintained a large herbal garden in London. His chief notability is as the author of a large (1,484 pages) illustrated "Herball, or Generall Historie of Plantes". First published in 1597, it was the most widely circulated botany book in English in the 17th century. Except for the additions of a number of plants from his own garden and from North America, Gerard's "Herbal" is largely an unacknowledged English translation of Rembert Dodoens's herbal originally published in 1554, itself also highly popular (in Dutch, Latin, French and other English translations).
List of botanists by author abbreviation (I–J) This is an incomplete list of botanists by their author abbreviation, which is designed for citation with the botanical names or works that they have published. This list follows that established by Brummitt & Powell (1992). Use of that list is recommended by Rec. 46A Note 1 of the "International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants". The list is kept up to date online at The International Plant Names Index and Index Fungorum.