Richard Hansen (horticulturist)

Foerster, who was the leading expert in the horticultural field of herbaceous perennials, was left stranded behind the Iron Curtain after the war, and it was Hansen who took over from him.^[4] In 1947, Hansen began his career at the State Teaching and Research Institute for Horticulture (Staatliche Lehr- und Forschungsanstalt für Gartenbau) in Weihenstephan as a plant science lecturer.^[2] The same year he established a trial garden known as the Sichtungsgarten Weihenstephan.^[4] At the Sichtungsgarten, Hansen conducted testings of herbaceous perennials and their suitability to garden cultivation.^[3] The Institut für Stauden, Gehölze und angewandte Pflanzensociologie (Institute for Perennials, Shrubs and Applied Plant Sociology) was established on Hansen's initiative in 1948.^[1] In 1949 he started teaching at the Technische Hochschule München-Weihenstephan as well.^[2]

Hansen adopted the principle of Bodenständigkeit (down-to-earthedness), which was introduced into planting design by landscape architect Alwin Seifert in the early 20th century and originally strongly favored native plants. Hansen, however, sought to include foreign species to create artificial plant communities. His main goal was to propose design solutions that required minimal maintenance. Having formulated the garden habitats theory, Hansen compiled lists of plant associations suitable for garden cultivation involving both indigenous and exotic species. His approach attracted so much interest in Germany and abroad that his 1981 book, Die Stauden und ihre Lebensbereiche, was translated into English under the title Perennials and their Garden Habitats in 1993.^[3]

Hansen retired in 1977. He received numerous honors, including the Karl Foerster Ring (1972), Georg Arends Memorial Medal (1983), the Federal Cross of Merit (1983), the Friedrich Ludwig von Sckell Ring of Honor (1986), as well as the honorary membership of the German Society for Garden Art and Landscape Culture (1987). He died on 18 August 2001 in Freising-Weihenstephan.^[1]