Background
Nel was born in 1885 in Greytown, Natal Province on a farm.
biologist Botanist university professor
Nel was born in 1885 in Greytown, Natal Province on a farm.
His formal botanical author transcript is Nel. The genus Nelia, a flowering plant of the Aizoaceae family, is named in his honor. He earned a Bachelor at the University of Stellenbosch then earned a doctorate in botany at the University of Berlin under both Adolf Engler and Gottlieb Haberlandt.
Nel emphasized African plant species in his studies, especially in the families Amaryllidaceae and Hypoxidaceae.
He provided numerous first descriptions of species of the genera Forbesia, Ianthe, Hypoxis, and Rhodohypoxis. In 1921, Nel became a Professor of Botany at the University of Stellenbosch, a position he would hold until his death.
Nel published the first book on the plant genus Lithops in the Aizoaceae family in 1946, entitled Lithops. Nel died in Stellenbosch in 1950.
The genus Nelia, discovered in 1928 by Gustav Schwantes, is named after Nel.
Other succulent plant species are also named after Nel, including:
Braunsia nelii
Conophytum nelianum
Euphorbia nelii
Gasteria Neliana
Gibbaeum nelii
Glottiphyllum nelii
Hereroa nelii
Herrea nelii
Stapelia Neliana.