Christiaan Willem Schmeil van Kraayenoord 1923-2012
New Zealand recently lost one of its most notable tree and land use researchers with the death on January 21, of Chris van Kraayenoord.
Chris, commonly known as "Mr Poplar", was one of a number of Dutchmen who did so much to develop New Zealand’s soil conservation systems from the 1950s through the 1980s.
Chris was born in The Hague in 1923 and gained a Masters degree in forestry, really tropical forestry, at Wageningen University, the Netherlands, in 1951.
He had studied soil erosion in Mediterranean countries and it was a chance meeting with Doug Campbell, the NZ Ministry of Works chief soil conservator, at a Soil Science Congress that led to him coming to New Zealand in 1952.
He started work at the soil conservation research station at Tangoio, north of Napier, under conditions that could only be described as primitive, a dilapidated roadman’s cottage and very limited resources.
He also completed a Soil Conservation Certificate at Lincoln in 1954. In 1955 he was transferred to Palmerston Nth and initially worked on sand dune stabilisation. However he very soon took over the poplar and willow work for which he was to become renowned locally and internationally.
His first job was a nationwide survey to identify and record what was already in the country, then in 1962 he started an 8 ha nursery adjacent to then Massey Agricultural College, preparing and breeding new material for the then Catchment Boards.
In 1973 the nursery was shifted to Aokautere to become the National Plant Materials Centre, (NPMC) with more land, much better facilities and subsequently, as part of the Aokautere Science centre, a wider mandate of surveying the sustainable use of land and the techniques to understand and maintain that sustainable use.
Ironically, poplar rust disease was discovered in New Zealand the day that the NPMC was opened. However Chris had recognised the risk of poplar rust and ensured that resistant material was quickly available, using the then new technique of tissue culture.
It was at the NPMC that most of the current generation of poplar and willow hybrids were developed and their field trials managed, along with numerous other plant species.
He was the NZ representative on the International Poplar Commission for many years, which ensured access to the international gene pool and other work on willows and poplars. The fact that Chris was fluent in four languages, (English, Dutch, German & French), was another aid in this process.
One of Chris’s lasting legacies was the publication, in 1986, of "The Plant Materials Handbook for Soil Conservation", 3 volumes detailing the use of some 200 soil conservation plants, both introduced and native. This remains an important reference for anyone and everyone involved in soil conservation work.
Chris retired in 1987 and subsequently the NPMC was largely disbanded. It had been part of the Ministry of Works, and the reorganisation of Catchment Boards into Regional Councils in 1989 plus the establishment of the CRIs in 1992 led to the Aokautere centre’s dismemberment and reallocation to languish in various CRIs. It has only been in the last 12 months that the importance of the poplar and willow work has been recognised with establishment of the NZ Poplar & Willow Research Trust, based back at Massey University.
Chris’s interests extended far beyond just poplars and willows. His enthusiasm for all trees and plants, native and exotic was demonstrated in his leadership of the Manawatu Tree Trust, and membership of numerous forestry, farming and associated organisations.
He was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2002 amongst numerous other awards. But perhaps most revealing is the real warmth and affection that his former colleagues and co-workers had for the man.
He combined scientific excellence with personal warmth and an almost mischievous sense of humour that endeared him to all who knew him. New Zealand has truly lost a great taonga.
John Dermer,
President NZFFA,
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