My father, David Mowle, who has died aged 84, became an authority on plants in mountainous areas, an interest fostered by cycling expeditions in the Lake District during his boyhood in Liverpool.
Born in the city to Walter and Nora, both teachers, David attended the Liverpool Institute, becoming head boy in 1947, and sang in the Anglican cathedral's choir. In 1951, after graduating from Liverpool University in chemistry, he undertook atomic weapons research as part of his national service and moved to west Cumbria. Here he was joined by Elizabeth Walsh, a biochemist he had met at university, and they were married in 1953.
In 1957 they returned to Liverpool with a growing family, but the call of the countryside was too strong, so in 1961 the family finally settled in Hest Bank, near Lancaster. David then took a job as a the manager of a cellulose acetate plant. Holidays usually involved towing a caravan around the Highlands of Scotland, where David developed his interest in botany.
He began to cultivate montane plants, joining the Alpine Garden Society and the Scottish Rock Garden Club. For many years he served on the bodies' joint committee at the Royal Horticultural Society. Following retirement, he lectured to fellow enthusiasts around Britain, researching and cultivating plants from mountain areas across the world, with particular interests in Androsaces and bulbs.
Botanical expeditions brought back seeds that he helped to cultivate, and he made a great contribution to the understanding of the species and varieties that originally had been introduced by Victorian plant hunters. His enthusiasm for sharing his expertise with novice growers was particularly appreciated.
In retirement David took a keen interest in the Lakeland Horticultural Society's garden at Holehird, near Ambleside, enjoyed plant-hunting holidays across Europe and developed new interests in local history and archaeology.
Jean's death in 2011 was a heavy blow, but he rose to the challenge, gardening, playing the piano, baking his own bread and never permitting a ready meal into his kitchen.
David is survived by me, my siblings, Kathleen and Colin, and six grandchildren.
