The study of the systematics of the South American species of Brunfelsia was the subject of his Ph.D. research while he was at Harvard University. After receiving his Ph.D. in 1974, Tim worked mainly on Erythroxylum, but Brunfelsia remained an area of special interest for him. He was preparing a major revision of the group, using his dissertation as a basis and backing up with further study and extensive field work, when he died in 1989. After 15 months in the field in South and Central America and the Caribbean, Tim Plowman emerged with a definitive study, a monographic revision of the genus Brunfelsia, including descriptions of several new species and varieties. The plant that Schultes drank at Conejo and that gave him such a headache is now known as Brunfelsia grandiflora subsp. schultesii. Tim Plowman approached botanical research with the intensity and rigor of a scientist, the courage of his mentor, and the flair of a poet.