David Starr Jordan 



Some Experiments of 

 Luther Burbank 



R. LUTHER BURBANK, of 

 Santa Rosa, California, is beyond 

 question, the most skilful experi- 

 menter in the field of the forma- 

 tion of new forms of plant life 

 by the process of crossing and selection. He 

 is the creator of many of our most useful plant 

 forms: roots, nuts, fruits, grains and grasses, as 

 well as of many of our most beautiful flowers. 

 His methods are the practical application of the 

 theories of Darwin and his followers, and to a 

 degree wholly exceptional among plant breeders, 

 Mr. Burbank has kept in touch with most mod- 

 ern work in the field of bionomics, and very 

 much of his time and energy is devoted to experi- 

 ments of scientific interest not likely of them- 

 selves to yield immediate practical results. In the 



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