Luther Burbank and Plant Breeding

Luther Burbank: Plant Breeding Artist, Horticulturist, and Legend

Luther Burbank (1849–1926), the best-known horticulturist in the United States, was honored in 1940 by having a U.S. postage stamp in his honor—as a scientist! Burbank became a legend in his time as the plant inventor and horticultural wizard releasing a prodigious 800 new cultivars, a number of which are still being grown, the most famous being the ‘Burbank’ potato, the ‘Santa Rosa’ plum, and ...

Luther Burbank: honorary member of the American Breeders' Association.

Luther Burbank (1849–1926) was once widely acclaimed to be America’s most famous horticulturist and plant breeder. Today, however, his name may not be recognized by many in the general public. I found that he is also unknown to even some academic horticulturists whose formal coursework apparently did not include a history of their discipline. To those scientists who know something of him, he is...

Plant Breeding and Genetics

Genomics and Plant Breeding

The recent announcements of the breakthroughs in obtaining the oil palm genome sequence map herald a new chapter in oil palm genetic improvement. These breakthroughs will spur the further development of oil palm genomics. This article examines how genomics would impact plant and oil palm breeding. The knowledge derived from genomics research in terms of the DNA structure of a gene, how it funct...

Plant Breeding and Molecular Farming