Pierre Antoine (Antoine) Poiteau (1766–1854)

French botanist. Worked as a gardener before securing a position at the Jardin des plantes, Paris. In 1796, appointed naturalist to an expedition to the French colony of Saint-Domingue (Hispaniola), where he established a botanic garden and taught himself how to draw and describe plants. Returned to Paris in 1801 with a large botanical collection, which he deposited in the Muséum d’histoire naturelle. Gardener of the nursery at Versailles, 1815. Chief gardener, Fontainebleau park, 1817. The king’s botanist and director of farming and royal residences in French Guyana, 1817–20. Published several works on his return to Paris. Professor of horticulture, Institut horticole, 1829–30. Founded Revue Horticole in 1829. Worked in particular on fruit trees.