Eleanor Vachell

Eleanor Vachell (1879–1948) was a British botanist who is remembered especially for her work identifying and studying the flora of Glamorgan and her connection with the National Museum of Wales where she was the first woman to be a member of its Council and Court of Governors. The museum now holds her botanical diary, notes, books, records and specimens.

Early life She was the eldest child of Winifred and Charles Tanfield Vachell, a physician in Cardiff where she was born on 8 January 1879, followed in the 1890s by her brother Eustace and sister Sylvia. She went to school in Cardiff, Malvern, and Brighton. Her father was a keen amateur botanist, and from childhood she went with him on botanical trips across the UK and Ireland as well as in Brittany, Norway and Switzerland. She started keeping a botanical diary when she was twelve and used it throughout her life to record expeditions and finds. Her ambition was to see in situ every plant recognised as a British species and she ticked off her finds by colouring illustrations in a reference book. This eventually led to her building up an almost unrivalled knowledge of UK and Irish plants in their native habitats. It is believed she saw all but thirteen species during her life. and he offered encouragement to her in her botanical work. and, in 1936-7, was the society's first woman president. In the 1930s she discovered the hybrid Limosella aquatica x subulata with Dr Kathleen B. Blackburn.

Every week from 1921 to 1948 she contributed a column on wild flowers to the Western Mail In 2012 she was one of thirteen women featured in an exhibition called "Inspirational Botanists – Women of Wales" at the National Botanic Garden of Wales.

The standard author abbreviation Vachell is used to indicate her as the author when citing a botanical name.