Alwin Berger (28 August 1871 – 20 April 1931) was a German
botanist best known for his contribution to the nomenclature of
succulent plants, particularly
agaves and
cacti. Born in Germany he worked at the
botanical gardens in
Dresden and
Frankfurt. From 1897 to 1914 he was curator of the
Giardini Botanici Hanbury, the
botanical gardens of Sir
Thomas Hanbury at
La Mortola, near
Ventimiglia in northwestern Italy, close to the border with France. After working in Germany from 1914 to 1919, Berger studied in the United States for three years, before spending his final years as director of the department of botany of the natural history museum in
Stuttgart
His main work, Die Agaven, published in 1915, described 274 species of agave, divided into 3 subgenera, Littaea, Euagave and Manfreda. He also recognised a new genus of cactus, Roseocactus, in 1925.
Proposed congratulatory address to Sir Thomas Hanbury ... of la Mortola, Ventimiglia : prepared for the celebration of his Seventy-fifth birthday, 21st June 1907. [S.l.]: [S.n.], 1907.
Sukkulente Euphorbien. Beschreibung und Anleitung zum bestimmen der kultivierten Arten, mit kurzen Angaben über die Kultur. Stuttgart: Eugen Ulmer, 1907.
Einige neue afrikanische Sukkulenten. Leipzig: W. Engelmann, 1910.
Stapelieen und Kleinien, einschliesslich einiger anderer Verwandter Sukkulenten. Beschreibung und Anleitung zum bestimmen der wichtigen Arten mit kurzer Angabe über die Kultur. Stuttgart: Eugen Ulmer, 1910.