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Highly regarded seaweed researcher, Dr Ruth Falshaw is also editor of the journal New Zealand Plant Protection
Seaweed named in honour of ‘accidental scientist’ As a young woman, Ruth Falshaw planned to study accountancy but instead became a scientist almost “by accident.” Elaine Fisher Four decades on she has a PhD in organic chemistry; is so highly regarded as a seaweed researcher Ruth has a seaweed named after her, and is editor of the journal New Zealand Plant Protection. “I could not have in any way envisaged where my career would take me,” says Ruth, who now lives in Rotorua and is a member of Women in Horticulture. Ruth credits a series of fortunate coincidences for her varied and stimulating career, which began when a teacher suggested she study chemistry to give her more career options than the accountancy degree she planned to pursue.
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The ORCHARDIST : FEBRUARY 2022
Ruth and her husband married the day after they both graduated as chemists from York University and moved to Birmingham where he had secured PhD funding at the university. “A few days later he came home and asked if I wanted to do a PhD,” she says. “I replied ‘not really but what was it in?’ The university had secured private funding for some polysaccharide chemistry research but the graduate who was to carry it out had been injured in a motorcycle accident. If they couldn’t find a replacement, the funding would be lost.” So, Ruth said she would take his place.
Once Ruth completed her PhD, she was employed by a chemical company in Coventry, researching and
