Sabine Johanne Marie Hannemann Helms

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A true pioneer of botany in our region is a remarkable woman by the name of Sabine Helms.

 

Sabine was born in Denmark but lived in Childers from 1895 with her husband who managed the Childers Sugar Mill.  She was a dedicated botanist who studied, painted and collected specimens of plants from the Isis Scrub, an area of rainforest which was rapidly being cleared at that time. She identified 2 new species of plants which were named in her honour.  She established an herbarium of 4000 plants collected from the Childers area and as far north as Cairns.

 

In the year 2000 another dedicated conservationist in our region, Maureen Schmitt suggested to Isis Shire Council that a small but significant remnant of the Isis Scrub be named “Helms Scrub” to recognise Sabine’s contribution and raise awareness of her incredible achievements.

 

In 2014, Sabine’s grandson John Helms contacted Bundaberg Regional Council of behalf of the Helms family and asked to visit Helms Scrub.  John was a professor at the University of California and travelled all the way to Childers to visit the Scrub, meet with representatives of local groups and present a folder of information about Sabine’s life and her botanical legacy.

 

Helms Scrub contains some rare and unusual rainforest plants, and provides a glimpse of what the huge Isis Scrub may have looked like before it was logged for timber and cleared for cropping.  More importantly, it reminds visitors of how ordinary but dedicated women and men can make extraordinary contributions to society.

 

Please take the time to read below the “Memories, Writings and Botanical Notes of Sabine Johanna Marie Hannemann Helms 1866-1929” collated and edited by John A Helms and Katie Helms.​

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Gin Gin Landcare pays respects to all pioneering botanists and conservation-minded people whose work continues to inspire us.