Who is Luther Burbank?
Luther Burbank was a well-known horticulturist and botanist, and is widely considered to be one of the greatest innovators of agricultural science. Born in Massachusetts, Burbank spent much of his career in Northern California, working on the hybridization and development of plant life. Although occasionally disdained by the scientific community, Burbank’s legacy is widespread through both memorials and the continued popularity of his creations. In 1849, Luther Burbank was born as the thirteenth of fifteen children in a farming family in Lancaster, Massachusetts. Although he completed only a grammar school education, Burbank’s real source of learning came from his life on the farm. He purchased a small farm of his own in 1870, where he would create his first famous hybrid, the Russet Burbank potato. This vegetable would go on to become one of the most popular commercial varieties in the United States, but Luther Burbank sold the production rights to it in 1874. With the profits earned
Luther Burbank was a well-known horticulturist and botanist, and is widely considered to be one of the greatest innovators of agricultural science. Born in Massachusetts, Burbank spent much of his career in Northern California, working on the hybridization and development of plant life. Although occasionally disdained by the scientific community, Burbank’s legacy is widespread through both memorials and the continued popularity of his creations.
