QBARS - v22n3 Gold Medal Award Citation for Paul Jay Bowman, M.D.

Gold Medal Award Citation for Paul Jay Bowman, M.D.
May 14, 1968

For his deep devotion to the genus Rhododendron and particularly for his pioneering work in collecting and distributing rhododendrons especially suited to the California climate, the American Rhododendron Society is very pleased to present its highest honor, The Gold Medal, to Dr. Paul Jay Bowman of Fort Bragg, California.

Dr. and Mrs. Bowman's garden has long been a place of pilgrimage for all rhododendron growers. In the garden we have found the magnificent collection that represents decades of collecting and seed-raising, with a constant emphasis on better forms. In Dr. and Mrs. Bowman we have found the warm hospitality and geniality and the selfless desire to share plants and information that is the mark of the finest plantsmen.

With all rhododendrons as his province, Dr. Bowman has always taken special interest in the Maddenii Series and in other of the more tender rhododendrons, first showing by his pioneering example how thoroughly they were adapted to the coastal California climate, and then, by generously sharing his best plants, truly changing the face of California's gardens.

Even with heavy professional duties, which included the operation of a hospital, Dr. Bowman has served as the guiding force in the California Chapter, and he and Mrs. Bowman have somehow always found time to welcome all interested visitors. Dr. Bowman is responsible for first interesting countless gardeners in rhododendrons, and he has provided to rhododendron growers throughout the world information on the Maddenii Series and its affiliates that is unavailable elsewhere.

The American Rhododendron Society is thus greatly pleased to present to you, Dr. Paul Jay Bowman, its Gold Medal.