Ruth F. Allen | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1879 |
| Died | 1963 (aged 83–84) |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | University of Wisconsin, A.B., 1905 University of Wisconsin, A.M., 1907 |
| Occupation | Plant pathologist |
| Employer(s) | University of Wisconsin, Michigan State College, Wellesley College, US Department of Agriculture, University of California, Berkeley |
Ruth Florence Allen (1879–1963) was an American botanist and plant pathologist and the first woman to earn her Ph.D. in botany from the University of Wisconsin. Her doctorate research focused on the reproduction and cell biology of ferns, particularly the phenomenon of apogamy (formation of an embryo without fertilization) (Allen, 1914).[1] Later in her career, Allen shifted her focus to plant pathology. Her major contribution to the field of mycology was furthering the understanding of rust fungi, a group of economically important plant pathogens. Allen completed many studies on Puccinia graminis, once considered a catastrophically damaging disease-causing agent in cereal crops before the discovery of current management measures (Schumann and Leonard, 2000).