OBITUARIES 

PROFESSOR JP HUDSON

Professor John Pilkington Hudson CBE, MBE, GM and Bar, VMH, BSc, MSc, PhD,
NDH,

Professor John Hudson died at his home on 6 December 2007, aged 97. 

John Hudson was born in Chapel-en-le-Frith in Derbyshire in 1910 and, after 
leaving school at 16, he enrolled on a one year horticultural course at the 
Midland Agricultural College, Sutton Bonington, near Nottingham. He passed 
with distinction, being awarded the Ashgate Challenge Cup for the best 
horticultural student. Later, he took a BSc in horticulture (taught at Nottingham 
but accredited by London University). 

In 1935 he was briefly a lecturer at Plumpton School of Agriculture before 
becoming a horticultural adviser for Sussex County Council in the following year. 
While a student at Sutton Bonington he had met Gretta, a sister of a college 
lecturer. They married in 1936 and lived in Plumpton for three years while he 
was an adviser. 

Shortly before war began John Hudson joined the Territorial Army with the Royal 
Engineers. He was with the British Expeditionary Force in Normandy and was 
subsequently evacuated from Dunkirk. Later, due to his scientific background, 
keen observation and his own ad hoc report on his experiences with bomb 
disposal, he was summoned to London. He was to lead a team working on 
neutralizing mechanisms for unexploded bombs, with a promotion which led to 
the rank of major. He also liaised with his opposite numbers in the Navy and Air 
Force and, after America came into the war in 1941, he spent several months in 
the United States interacting with bomb experts. He was awarded a military MBE 
in 1943. In the following year he received the George Medal and then, in 1945, 
a Bar for his personal work on defusing bombs, including the first unexploded V1. 
These activities are well documented in the obituaries in The Daily Telegraph and 
The Times (available on-line), exemplifying his life of duty and commitment in all 
that he did. 

After the war John Hudson and his family went to New Zealand. He worked in 
the Department of Agriculture at Wellington and in this period initiated 
experiments on the transportation of a new fruit to the UK, the Chinese 
gooseberry, later known as the kiwi fruit. He helped to establish the 
Experimental Station at Levin. 

In 1948 he returned to the School of Agriculture, then a faculty of the new 
University of Nottingham, as a lecturer in the Horticulture Department. He 
become Head in 1950, Professor of Horticulture in 1958 and, finally, Dean of the 
Faculty of Agriculture and Horticulture in 1965. He undertook research on the 

propagation of raspberries by root cuttings and introduced from New Zealand a 
virus-free clone of the raspberry Lloyd George to the industry. He carried out 
pioneering studies with his research students on environmental factors affecting 
plant growth, particularly that of water supply, especially working with tomatoes. 
He had some rewarding collaborative research with Professor Fred Milthorpe and 
Dr Ian Cowan. Partly as a result of this work and his interest in tropical 
horticulture, he was seconded, part time, to found the Department of 
Horticulture at Khartoum University and was visiting Professor of Horticulture 
from 1961-1963. His dedication and application to his work were such that he 
was able to share his time successfully between the two universities. 

John Hudson became Chairman of the Sutton Bonington Old Students 
Association, from 1956 to 60, and he continued to take a genuine and lively 
interest in his former students throughout his life. 

In 1967 he left Nottingham to become Director of Long Ashton Research Station 
with a Chair of Horticultural Science at the University of Bristol. Initially, he 
undertook some vigorous reorganisation which he felt was desirable for the 
research staff and the horticultural industry. In the early 1970s a programme to 
investigate the value of fast growing easily propagated trees, like willows and 
poplars, was carried out to meet specific requirements for shelter in fruit as part 
of work on fruit pollination. This was then extended to shelter for vegetables, 
glasshouse crops and, finally, amenity plantings. Although he had been required 
by ARC to restrict earlier work on the willow collection, he readily gave his 
support for this new development, with the use of clonal material from the 
National Willow Collection. He initiated the annual national meeting, known as 
the Under 40s Conference, for younger research workers, advisers and growers 
to interact. 

In 1972, John Craven, then a young reporter on BBC Points West programme, 
asked John Hudson, as Director of Long Ashton: “Do you think this messing 
about with nature could be harmful? “Oh, no, not at all”, he answered, “We’re 
not messing about with nature, we’re improving on nature”. John Hudson edited 
Control of the Plant Environment, 1957, the journal Experimental Agriculture, 
between 1965 and 1982, and served on the editorial boards of the Journal of 
Horticultural Science and SPAN. He chaired the Government’s Joint Advisory 
Committee on Agricultural Education until 1973 and served on the RHS 
Examinations Board. 

When he retired from Long Ashton in 1975 he was appointed CBE, for services to 
horticulture, and in the following year received the prestigious Victoria Medal of 
Horticulture from the Royal Horticultural Society. Among his many awards was 
an Associateship of Honour by the Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture. 
He was a former President of the Horticultural Educational Association, a founder 
member and Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Horticulture. 

He retired in 1975 and lived in the village of Wrington, near Bristol. He and 
Gretta enjoyed touring in a caravan and tending their large garden. John worked 
actively for the Samaritans, took gliding lessons and joined his local choral 
society and church choir, reckoning on practising his singing for an hour a day. 
His 90th birthday in 2000 provided an occasion for a weekend celebration by his 
family, many friends and former students ending with a rousing rendition by the 
Wrington Choral Society of the Hallelujah Chorus rearranged to the words of 
“Happy Birthday”! A committed Christian throughout his life he continued taking 
part in his church choir where, by his 95th birthday, he formed 50% of the bass 
section! 

Sadly, John Hudson`s wife, Gretta, died in 1988 and his son, Colin, an 
accomplished tropical agronomist (who received an award from Her Majesty on 
the same day as his father) died in 2004. He was survived by his younger son, 
Richard, Emeritus Professor of Linguistics at University College, London. 

Sylvia Parrett 
Brian Self 

Reflections by Brian Self about J P Hudson

It is not often that a church is packed at a funeral for someone in their nineties. 
All Saints’ Church in the village of Wrington, Somerset, was full for John 
Hudson’s Celebration Service on a very cold morning on 17 December. John had 
made many good friends in his local community as he had around the world 
during his long life. 

In the 1998 edition of Who’s Who, under the heading “Recreations”, John listed 
“Talking with my friends”. He was an extraordinarily modest man; he always 
seemed genuinely interested in the person with whom he was talking. Even on 
his 97th birthday, when he was not feeling too well, he spoke little about himself 
but was keen to enquire about his guests’ health, activities and family. 

Surprising to us today, John left school at 16 with no qualifications and no clear 
ambitions! He admitted to an interest in physics, though his teacher dissuaded 
him from pursuing avenues in this direction. (It was his ready grasp of physics 
that subsequently saved his life and many others). It must have been sheer 
determination that drove him to apply himself and study to gain the necessary 
academic qualifications to secure entrance to a degree course in the dark days of 
the 1920s. 

This dynamic man was so unassuming that he never mentioned his war exploits 
to his students! Some only learnt from the comparatively recent Channel 4 TV 
series on UXB (exploded bombs). In the 1950s John always wore his Royal 
Engineers tie. 

John recalled “It was an interesting time building up the Department” and he was 
justly proud to have occupied the first Chair of Horticulture at Nottingham where 
he formerly graduated. He was also the first horticulturist in the country to have 
occupied such a post. 

He certainly had that rare gift to see the obvious and to cut through unnecessary 
detail. Did he bring a military approach to the direction of scientific endeavour? 
He had a flair for organisation; things had to go to plan -and they did. Perhaps 
the only time he looked defeated was when a Barton bus of students on one of 
the unique study tours came to a stop facing a “No Through Road” sign outside 
Richmond Park! 

John had a crystal clear mind which he obviously applied with great effect in 
removing bomb fuses and to the management of staff and students as well as 
teaching and research programmes. Directorship of Long Ashton in the late 
1960s was a testing time since there were shadows of research budget 
reductions on the horizon; he introduced essential changes while retaining the 
confidence of staff. And he thoroughly enjoyed the job and the friendship of his 
colleagues. “Prof”, as he was known by staff, always made himself available to 
any who that wished to see him. 

John was a good communicator and could present scientific information clearly. 
He spoke with apparent ease, though, like Churchill, he would be thoroughly 
prepared. His lectures were ordered and delivered with precise timing. He tried 
to instil the latter attribute into his students; he had the unfortunate habit of 
bringing an alarm clock to student seminars which rang noisily when the forecast 
time of the presentation was exceeded! 

John’s career embraced research, teaching and advisory spheres. Dr Peter 
Waister, a former postgraduate, who spoke at his funeral, said he excelled in all 
aspects. “I was impressed by his ability to balance the three areas and to be 
inspirational in them all, a rare achievement”. 

He applied his horticultural craftsmanship in developing two splendid gardens; at 
West Leake near Sutton Bonington and at Wrington. The latter had trees (some 
lovely birches), shrubs, herbaceous plants, bulbs, vegetables and fruit. With the 
exception of the lawns and hedges, he managed all himself well into his nineties. 

Sadly, no more birthday gatherings on the lawn at Wrington, but pleasant 
memories of one who had a remarkable influence on people’s careers, lifestyle 
and behaviour. So many are grateful for his fellowship. 

John Hudson was one of horticulture’s gentlemen 

Professor John Hudson

John had an eventful life. In recent years his wartime exploits have received 
well-deserved publicity, first in a television programme a couple of years ago and 
more recently in the national press. 

As a result of these activities, which included exposure to bomb chemicals, his 
health suffered and after the war he and his young family moved to the better 
climate of New Zealand, to a post as a horticulturist in the Department of 
Agriculture. In his three years there he made an impact such that he was made 
an Associate of Honour of the Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture. 
Among other things he initiated experiments on transporting a new fruit to the 
UK. This was originally called the Chinese gooseberry, but was rebranded and 
became a major success for NZ growers as the kiwi fruit. 

In 1948 he returned to Britain to the University of Nottingham School of 
Agriculture, first as a horticultural lecturer, then Head of Department, and in 
1958 the first Professor of Horticulture. He went on to serve as Dean of the 
School of Agriculture. Between 1961 and 1963 he spent six months each year in 
the Sudan setting up a new Department of Horticulture in Khartoum University. 
In 1967 he was invited to serve as Director of the Long Ashton Research Station, 
and was appointed Professor of Horticultural Science in the University of Bristol. 

I first met him in 1960 when he accepted me as a PhD student in his 
Department. He excelled in teaching, in research, and in communicating the 
results of his Department’s work to the horticultural industry. I was impressed, 
and remained so, by his ability to balance the three areas and to be inspirational 
in them all, a rare achievement. 

It would clearly be impossible to do justice to John’s professional career in a few 
minutes. What I should like to do is spend the time available talking about 
John’s personality. He was a warm caring person, and a happy family man. He 
and Gretta raised two sons, Colin and Dick, who went on to distinguish 
themselves in different fields and to embody the values of their parents. John 
relished his role as father, grandfather and great grandfather. After he retired in 
1975 he and Gretta lived a happy and contented life in Wrington, in Somerset, 
enjoying their house and garden and their many friends in the village. Sadly, 
Gretta suffered a stroke in 1986 which left her paralysed down one side and 
unable to speak. John, with his customary positive attitude, cared for her for the 
next three and a half years, and said later that these were golden days. 

When Gretta died in 1989, his life entered a new phase where he followed a 
variety of interests. He became a volunteer with Weston super Mare Samaritans, 
a task for which I suspect he was ideally qualified. It requires an individual who 
is non-judgemental, another of John’s admirable qualities. He joined the village 
choral society and the church choir, and became a member of a gliding club. He 
told me that he had once aspired to do a parachute jump but was required to be 
agile enough to stand the impact of jumping to the ground from about 4 feet. 
When he went to a ledge of this height he found he could not climb up, let alone 
jump down, so he abandoned the idea. It was typical of him to tell such stories 
against himself. Given all his achievements he was a remarkably modest man. 

In September 1991 he started what was to become regular visits to Scotland, 
where he and Gretta had enjoyed caravanning holidays. My wife (Stella 
Pickworth PhD Animal Physiology SB 1960-63) had had multiple sclerosis for a 
number of years and John offered very welcome support to us, both at home and 
when he joined us on holiday when we rented cottages in sometimes remote 
parts of the countryside. Colin Hudson was also able to join us on three of these 
holidays. I shall always be grateful that John was with us when my wife died 
while we were on holiday in 1994 in an isolated farmhouse on a Highland estate. 

In the next three years he continued to visit Scotland and enjoyed hillwalking 
and coastal walks, and it was at this time that we had a little incident that 
amused him, at least in retrospect. We had gone over to a wide expanse of sand 
at the mouth of the Tay. The tide was out and we walked a long way out to 
where we could see seals on a sandbank. John was particularly impressed by 
their singing. We had the place to ourselves apart from two people some 
distance away. I was suddenly aware that they were running along the sand 
behind us in obvious alarm. The tide had come in through a deep channel 
behind us and had linked in an arc with the sea again, at which point small 
waves were breaking on a sand bar. We headed for that point and John asked if 
we needed to run. I did not know whether that was a greater risk than getting a 
soaking, so we compromised and hurried, and all was well after a little wading. 
He said later that he dined out on the story telling people that he had survived 
Dunkirk but had nearly been drowned by a friend on a Scottish beach. 

On each of his trips in these three years John visited his sister Mollie, who lived 
alone in Perth, about 15 miles from where I live. However as she became more 
frail John spent a week with her about every six weeks, for a further six years. 
In an established pattern he spent the first night of his visit at my home and 
came back for the last night, bearing a bottle of champagne. These champagne 
suppers were something to look forward to. Over the years until his sister’s 
death in 2003 he made the long journey from Wrington to Perth by train many 
times, occupying his hours on the way by reading issues of the New Scientist. 

In addition to all this care for his sister he was at the same time actively helping 
friends here in Wrington. 

I find that whenever people who have known John get together it is not long 
before they are exchanging anecdotes, invariably happy ones. The most recent 
one came from a student (Bob Exley - Horticulture 1952-54) who attended his 
lectures in Sutton Bonington 55 years ago. The lecture room was a prefabricated 
building with a concrete floor. John would have a tin drum on a table alongside 
him and, if he noted students dozing off, he would drop the drum on the floor 
with a crash, and carry on as though nothing had happened. 

One of the first things that struck me was his optimistic outlook and readiness for 
new experiences, typified by a comment he made in 1961 when we were in 
Sudan and drove through the desert to visit the huge irrigation scheme of the 
Gezira. On the return trip he spotted a group of tribesman with their camels on 
the banks of the Nile. We diverted so that John could fulfil his ambition to ride a 
camel, which he did, though its owners held firmly to its head. This was 
apparently a fast riding camel, not the usual slow beast of burden. That was the 
first occasion when I heard his phrase, to be often repeated over the years, in 
many places and situations, “that made my day”. 

Someone said that a philosopher is one who has preserved a child’s sense of 
wonder. John undoubtedly possessed this, allied to an urge to understand things 
that many of us take for granted. It was stimulating to see and experience 
things in his company. 

In more recent times, when his mobility decreased, he enjoyed sitting in his 
garden looking across to the church in Wrington. Typically, he said more than 
once that he sat there wondering about the men who built it, and how they went 
about it. One more example of his sense of wonder . 

John will remain in the memories of all who knew him, and will continue to 
influence all of us. I have often found myself, when faced with a difficulty, 
asking how he might have responded. I am very grateful to have had his 
friendship. 

A tribute from Peter Waister (PhD Horticulture SB 1960-64) 

Professor John P Hudson

My first contact with John Hudson was when he taught Agricultural Systems 
(superseded in more modern times by Applications in Biology) to all year 1 
students at SB in 1966. I recall thoroughly enjoying his lectures because he had 
travelled and worked in several countries and brought those experiences to life in 
his lectures. At that time he had a particular interest in the effect of climate and 
weather on crops and worked on soil-plant water having worked in Sudan (later 
developed into Environmental Physics by John Monteith and colleagues). 

I met him from time to time after he moved to Long Ashton Research Station – 
mainly while attending conferences based there or through activities of the then 
Horticultural Education Association (superseded by the Institute of Horticulture). 

After retirement he started a forum for young horticultural scientists which held a 
conference annually – unfortunately, by then, I had passed the upper age limit 
for this forum! I also had the good fortune to visit him at his home in the village 
of Wrington – just a few miles from my mother’s house. I recall his enthusiasm 
and knowledge of garden plants and his pride that his garden in Wrington was 
the ninth he had designed. 

I feel honoured to have known John Hudson. He was an amazing person. He 
was a dedicated horticulturalist, overflowing with ideas, easy to talk to and 
friendly – a role model in many ways. He always had time to see people and 
could recall all about you even after long periods without contact. He was also 
humble and very calm – perhaps qualities that helped him through his incredible 
experiences in bomb disposal in WW2. 

Peter Alderson, Alumni ‘69 

"All who came into contact with him, including family, friends,colleagues and 
students, counted themselves privileged that he had been part of their lives." 

Julian Wiseman