Mary Noble

Mary Jessie MacDonald Noble (23 February 1911 - 20 July 2002) was a seed pathologist for the Department of Agriculture for Scotland and was key in producing the Handbook of Seed-borne Diseases.

Born in Edinburgh, Noble was educated at the Mary Erskine School and went on to study at the University of Edinburgh from 1920-1935, where she earned an honours degree in botany. She then earned a PhD on the mycological aspects of seed pathology and won the Gunning Victoria Jubilee prize.

After university, she joined the plant pathology service of the Board of Agriculture (now known as SASA) based in the Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh. In Noble's career on plant pathology, seeds were her main focus. In 1958, she was elected as Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh as recognition of her abilities and knowledge. As well as becoming a Fellow, she also served as a councillor for British Mycological Society and the Association of Applied Biologists. She was also a member of the International Seed Testing Association and, along with Dr Paul Neergaard and Dr Jo deTempe, produced an Annotated List of Seed-borne Diseases (4th edition, ISTA , 1990). In 1971, she retired as principle scientific officer for seed pathology and mycology at the Agriculture Scientific Society for the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries for Scotland.

Noble died on 20 July 2002 in Lasswade.

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