Munsell Color System; Color Matching from Munsell Color Company > Color & Science > The Nickerson Color Fan: A Horticultural Color Chart

The Nickerson Color Fan: A Horticultural Color Chart

In 1949, when Dorothy Nickerson was a Color Technologist for the United States Department of Agriculture, she worked to create a horticulture color chart. We wanted to share this vintage fan deck with you.

This is the Maximum Chroma – 40 Hue Fan which displays 262 color samples arranged on 40 levels. Each leaf displays samples of a single hue ranging from dark samples at the bottom to light samples at the top.

The Nickerson horticultural fan deck which came with a guide and color key

The Nickers color chart fan deck showing 262 colors

The Nickerson fan deck spread out to show 262 colors

The Nickerson horticulture color chart spread out in a fan to show 262 colors

For more about horticultural identification, check out the Plant Tissue Book of Color.

In the next few weeks we will be sharing additional information about this vintage horticultural color chart from 1957 including:


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One response to “The Nickerson Color Fan: A Horticultural Color Chart”

  1. Gert Tara-Casciano says:

    Thank you for sharing this information. I’ve studied the Mumsell system since the early 90’s and applied his color theory to my art work. It is invaluable.

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