A collection of Reginald Farrer's writing, donated to the RBGE Archives in 2005 by his family, comprising mainly letters and plays.

Incomplete letter from George Forrest, China Inland Mission, Talifu, to Clementina Traill dated 28 March 1905.
The letter is incomplete, comprising pages numbered 1-12, 13 and 15. Forrest continues his description of Tali [Dali] where marble is the main product; details of production process; wood for furniture mainly walnut and other trades include silversmiths, coppersmiths and horn workers. Description of house construction, method of brickmaking, ornamentation and arrangement of buildings; female clothing, make-up and footbinding, men’s dress and hairstyles. Education consists almost entirely of learning Confucian classics; parental power of life and death over children; prevalence of opium smoking and suicide; wide variety of food available. Includes rough sketch of a two-storey house and of a pouch for holding cash.
Plants referred to: on pp.12-13: Apricot; Bean; Cabbage; Carrot; Filbert; Fig; Gleditschia; Grape; Lemon; Mandarin orange; Pea; Peach; Pear; Persimmon; Pomegranate; Potato; Rice; Sapindus; Sultana; Turnip; Walnut

Incomplete letter from George Forrest, Mission Apostolique, Tsekou, to Clementina Traill dated 28 April 1905.
The letter is incomplete, comprising 16 complete pages and fragments of pages 17 and 19. Forrest describes his journey from Talifu [Dali] to Tsekou [Cigu], going north by Chien Chuan; overnight camp in temple and first row with Chinese; loss of mule in gully and refusal of muleteers to go on; rescue by party of Lissoos who helped Forrest continue ascent through deep snow. Arrival at Wei Hsi; meeting with Pere Bourdonnec of the Mission Apostolique in Tibet and startling news of revolt amongst the lamas in the north; Tsekou mission in danger and consul Litton on his way with troops to defend it; murder of missionaries and Christian natives at Atunze and Batang; Forrest advised to remain at Wei Hsi but continued to Tsekou which he found practically in a state of siege. ‘All this is a bit of a nuisance as I cannot go far away from the place and therefore cannot do much collecting. Fortunately there isn’t much to be done at present – at least in the seed line, and, although during my journey from Tali I collected specimens of over 100 species, yet these were only flowering in the lower parts of the valleys. Here very few flowers are in bloom now, the mountains being still heavily coated with snow.’
Plants referenced: Pine (passim)

• 3 letters with their envelopes written to Thomas Douglas Grieve relating to his career - 05 January 1928, William Wright Smith to Thomas Douglas Grieve offering him a place on the probationer course; 15 March 1937, Lord Alness to Thomas Douglas Grieve offering best wishes on his post in Jamaica; 03 April 1937, John Macqueen Cowan to Thomas Douglas Grieve congratulating him on his post in Kingston, Jamaica.
• Probationer Gardener Papers- 1 lecture synopsis and 7 exam papers sat by Grieve during his probationer gardener career at RBGE - lecture synopsis, 1929-1930; exam papers: Forest Botany, 03 April 1928; Botanical Nomenclature, 25 March 1929; Book-Keeping, 17 December 1929; British Timbers, 31 March 1930; Plant Propagation, 22 July 1930; Forest Botany (2), 30 March 1931; Plant Pathology, 13 July 1931;
• copy of Dobbie's Horticultural Handbook, 1898 that mentions James Grieve (pp15, 16 and 25 (and John Downie on page 11)) - this book is now in the library collection.

A collection of 21 letters donated to the RBGE Archives in 2017, written by Reginald Farrer and sent to Lady Celia Brunel Noble.

REC/2: Roland Edgar Cooper – Correspondence and Papers, 1913-1961
REC/2/1: Correspondence and Papers – Isaac Bayley Balfour, 1913-1919
Folder of papers presumably retained by Isaac Bayley Balfour. Includes correspondence; Notes on Environment of Plants of Seed Numbers, Gathered in Bhutan, 1914, by R.E. Cooper; List of Seeds sent by Cooper, via A.K. Bulley, Sikkim and Tibet, 1913.
REC/2/2: Correspondence and Papers – British Museum, 1930,1952
Folder of correspondence between William Wright Smith and Brian Burtt of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and George Taylor of the British Museum (Natural History) regarding the sending of Cooper's specimens to the British Museum for determinations - this includes plant lists. There are also two lists with duplicates: 1-2. "Determination of Indian Plants collected by RE Cooper Esq 1914- for British Museum, 1st list, Edin." and 3-4. "Identification of Plants for the British Museum. Coll. RE Cooper, 2nd list, Jan. 1930"
REC/2/3: Correspondence and Papers – Assorted Documents, 1916-1961
Assorted documents relating to R.E. Cooper, provenance unknown and arranged by date where known.
• Extract from letter dated 18th September 1916 from Sir Isaac Bayley Balfour to Roland Edgar Cooper [in Cooper's hand? written out on Cooper's lecture notes?] Original copy in Isaac Bayley Balfour correspondence folder: GB 235 REC/2/1/19
• Typescript of two letters, the first from William Wright Smith to Isaac Bayley Balfour, 27/05/1921; the second from R.E. Cooper to William Wright Smith, 04/06/1921 from the Botanic Garden in Maymo, Burma.
• [William Wright Smith?] to R.E. Cooper, 28/06/1929 regarding identification of plants.
• R.E. Cooper's collecting numbers - brief summary by Cooper with two copies, 03/03/1931.
• Modern list outlining Cooper's ethnographic donations to the National Museums of Scotland in 1931-32.
• Partial copy of John Anthony's "Remarkable Alpine Lobelia from Bhutan" published in the Notes from the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, July 1936.
• List of determinations of Bhutan grasses sent on loan to Dr. Bor of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, 01/05/1948. "R.E. Cooper's collection"
• letter: R.E. Cooper to Harold Roy Fletcher, 10/10/1961
• Three pages of Collection Numbers entitled "Cooper's Bhutan Collection" - undated.
• "Cooper's Saxifragas, etc." arranged according to Engler et Irmscher Monograph - undated.

Set of letters and notes between William Wright Smith, A. Grove, H.D. McLaren, F.C. Puddle, and William Edgar Evans and including references to Messels of Nymans, all relating to Frank Kingdon Ward's Lilium wardii no. 6034.