Weaver, Richard Edwin, 1943-

Richard Weaver received his BS in Biology from Millersville State College, his MS in Plant Taxonomy from Duke University, and in 1971 completed his doctorate at Duke with a thesis, "Monographic studies in the genus Lisianthius (Gentianaceae)." He has since compiled a lengthy list of publications. From 1973-1983, he worked as a Horticultural Taxonomist/Assistant Curator for the Arnold Arboretum. He worked under Arboretum director Richard A. Howard and alongside taxonomist Stephen A. Spongberg and horticulturalist Gary Koller. With Weaver and Spongberg on staff, the study of ligneous genera of eastern North America and eastern Asia was revived. Weaver also played a key role in shaping the grounds, responding to plant inquiries, teaching Arboretum classes and courses in taxonomy during Harvard's summer sessions. He also organized and carried out plant-collecting trips to South America, Korea, and Japan. He left the Arboretum in 1983 and started a nursery business, first in North Carolina and later in Puerto Rico.