Gabrielle Howard facts for kids

Gabrielle Louise Caroline Howard (born Matthaei; 3 October 1876 – 18 August 1930) was a smart English scientist. She studied plants and how they grow, which is called plant physiology. She was also an economic botanist, meaning she looked at how plants could be useful for people and the economy. Gabrielle Howard was a big supporter of organic farming, a way of growing food naturally without harmful chemicals.

Early Life and Plant Science Studies

Gabrielle Matthaei was born in Kensington, London. Her family had roots in Germany, Switzerland, and France. Her mother, Louise Henriette Elizabeth Sueur, was a musician. Her father, Carl Hermann Ernst Matthaei, was a merchant. Gabrielle had a brother and three younger sisters, including Louise Howard.

Gabrielle went to the North London Collegiate School for Girls. Later, she studied at Newnham College, Cambridge, a college at the University of Cambridge.

Discovering How Plants Make Food

After college, Gabrielle worked with a famous scientist named Frederick Blackman. Together, they did important research on how plants breathe, a process called cellular respiration.

Between 1902 and 1905, Blackman and Matthaei worked to understand photosynthesis. This is the amazing process where plants use sunlight to make their own food. They were the first to do experiments to see how temperature affects photosynthesis.

They found that a key part of photosynthesis, called carbon fixation, depends on how warm or cold it is. This means that biochemical reactions inside the plant are affected by temperature. Even though this experiment is often called the Blackman Reaction, Gabrielle Matthaei did a lot of the work. A scientific paper about their findings, published in 1904, only had her name on it. This paper was shared with the Royal Society by Francis Darwin, the son of Charles Darwin.

Researching Plants for Better Farming

In 1905, Gabrielle married Albert Howard. He was an important botanist working for the government of India. The couple always worked on their research together. People even called them the "Sidney and Beatrice Webb of India," comparing them to another famous research couple.

In 1913, Gabrielle Howard became the second imperial economic botanist for the Indian government. This was a very important job.

Improving Crops in India

From 1905 to 1924, the Howards did a lot of research on important crops. They studied plants like cotton and wheat at their experiment station in Pusa, India. They also ran a fruit experiment station in Quetta from 1912 to 1919.

The Howards believed that plants should be studied in their natural environment. They also thought that food grown in soil rich in humus (decayed plant and animal matter) would be healthier for people.

Starting in 1924, they helped plan and build the Institute of Plant Industry in Indore. This institute was a big step forward for plant research in India.

Gabrielle Howard sadly died suddenly in Genoa in 1930. She passed away just before she and Albert planned to retire and move back to England. The next year, her husband Albert married her sister, Louise. Neither Gabrielle nor Albert had children.

See also

In Spanish: Gabrielle Howard para niños