|
"He was an intelligent, quiet man
with a good sense of humour, willing to help others... a
dedicated teacher with a love for classical music..."
Dr Margaret
Goodhead
Professor Emeritus
Francis Cope is noted for his groundbreaking work in the 1950s
on the breeding of cocoa plants and for his training of cocoa
planters throughout the Caribbean. His discoveries led to
improved breeding techniques, which increased crop yields and
helped to advance the cocoa industry worldwide.
Francis William Cope was born on 15th August,
1913 in Portsmouth, England. He attended Drayton Road
Primary School and later the Boys' Northern Secondary School
where he developed his love for science.
He obtained a
Bachelor of Science (BSc) (General) at the Municipal College in
Portsmouth in 1934 and, after being granted a Royal Scholarship,
he completed a second Bachelor of Science (BSc) (Special) in
geology and botany at the Royal College of Science and
Technology, University of London in 1936. He was awarded
his Master of Science (MSc) in Botany from the University of
London in 1945 and represented the Caribbean at the world's
first Cocoa Conference in London that same year.
Cope started his career in 1936 as a junior
botanist for cocoa research at the Imperial College of Tropical
Agriculture (ICTA) in Trinidad, a centre of excellence at that
time for agricultural training and research. There, he
developed an interest in understanding the reproduction of cocoa
plants, the topic of his master's thesis. These plants
reproduce by both self-pollination and cross-pollination.
From many years of research on specimens collected from
cocoa-producing countries, Cope discovered that self-compatible
trees are able to self-pollinate successfully, whereas
self-incompatible ones do not; he discovered that they produce
fewer cocoa pods. This discovery eventually led to the
interbreeding of different cocoa plants to produce higher yields
and superior tasting cocoa.
 In
the 1940's, Cope helped to develop Grenada's cocoa industry and,
in the position of Caribbean Agronomist to the Windward Islands,
he was responsible for research on cocoa breeding and the
training of cocoa plant breeders in the region.
For his decisive work
on cocoa from the 1930s to the 1950s and his research on other
tropical crops, Cope was awarded a doctorate in 1959 by the
University of London. He then taught at The University of
the West Indies (UWI) at St. Augustine, Trinidad where he edited
the Tropical Agriculture journal for many years. He
was appointed Professor of Botany by UWI and was the first Head
of the Department of Biological Sciences. When he retired
in 1973, he was given the title of Professor Emeritus.
Professor Emeritus
Francis Cope eventually returned to England in 1984 where he
lived until his death on 23rd February, 2004. He lived by
the motto, "Diligence and honesty bring their rewards."
|
