Seward daily gateway., 1926-04-12
LUTHER BURBANK
 HORTICULTUR|ST i
 DIES IN CALIFORNIA
DEVOTED LIFE TO SCIENTIFIC PLANT RAlSING-OBTA NEE MARVELLOUS RESULTS FROM MANY OF HIS 100000 ExPERI- MENTS
WAS BORN OF ENGLISH AND
 SCOTCH ANCESTRY, WORKER
Achieved World Wade Fame When Turned Worthless Desert Cactus Into Valuable PIant-ExperimentaL Farms Mecca for Thousands.

SANTA ROSA, Cal, April II. (P- Luther Burbank, horticulturist, diet at 12:30 o'clock Sunday morning after two weeks of illness. He sank into z comatose condition last night and die not recover consciousness.
 Acknowledged the dean of plant breeders and leader in modern crea tive plant development, the name o1 Luther Burbank became a household word turnout the civilized world. Vir tually his whole life was devoted to scientific plant breeding and many ot
 is more than 100000 experiments with various forms of vegetation attained such marvellous results that they won him the title of Plant Wizard"
 Early in life Murbank evinced a great love for growing things, select. ing plants rather than animals as his pets. His first notable success was achieved at the age of 22, when he happened to find a seed ball of the Early Rose potato, which rarely bears seed. From this he developed the world famous Burbank potato that has spread to every portion of the globe and which is said to exert a greater influence upon the food sup ply of humanity than any other single food plant.
 Soon after breeding this potato, which brought him neither fame nor money at the time, Burbank moved to California, when he obtained employ ment as farm hand. He continued as laborer until able to acquire a small farm in the town of Santa Rosa, some 50 miles north of San Francisco. With this small beginning he under took the series of experiments which long had been uppermost in his mind Thereafter his work was continuous and tireless, occupying nearly IA hours a day on the average.
 Burbank was born at Lancaster, Mass, March ', 1S49, son of Samuel w. and Office (Ross), of English and Scotch ancestry. He was the 18th of 15 children born on his fathers 200 acre farm. He attended the Lancas- ter Academy, from which he was an honor graduate.
 Next to the potato, the accomplish ment which brought first fame to Bur bank was the spineless cactus, where by he turned worthless desert growth into valuable forage and fruiting plant. In recognition of this work he received in, 1912 a United States grant, Congress under special act turn ing over 1860 acres of non-irrigable land to be located either in California Nevada or Arizona.
 It has been estimated that Burbank s 100000 or more experiments with plant life involved the planting, pol lenation, observation and propagation or destruction of a billion individual vegetable growths. From this vast number, however, only 3S5 were se- lected and recommended by him as of value to humanity Some of these were under his observation for 25 years before being given to the world.
 Several fine varieties of spineIess blackberry, now grown around the world, were bred from wild variety that was considered useless in it's na- tive state. A certain variety of rhu- barb, under Burbanks magic touch, increased it's stalks from the size of a lead pencil to that a a mans wrist, and was made perpetual, instead of bearing for few weeks only Can ners appealed to him for a perfect pea, one which would mature all of it's crop, retain uniformity of size and all ripen at the same time. After three years of work he met the de- mand.
 Flowers, fruits, grains, grasses, veg etables, even orchard and forest trees were improved and given to the world in new usefulness thru months and years of patient and frequently discouraging experiments.
 Wonderful as many of Burbank s