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American · 1849-1926 · 12 quotes
American · 1849–1926
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Luther Burbank was an American botanist and horticulturist who developed over eight hundred strains and varieties of plants through cross-pollination and selection, making him one of the most prolific plant breeders in history. Born in 1849 in Lancaster, Massachusetts, he had minimal formal scientific training but possessed an extraordinary eye for variation and an intuitive grasp of the principles Darwin had articulated. He moved to Santa Rosa, California in 1875, where he spent the rest of his life at his experimental farm. Among his best-known creations are the Burbank potato (still widely grown), the Santa Rosa plum, the Shasta daisy, and the Freestone peach. He believed profoundly in the improvability of nature and in the power of environment to shape character — a conviction that made him a hero to progressive reformers and something of a controversial figure in scientific circles. He died in 1926.
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