Just prior to 1880, Van Fleet returned to Pennsylvania, where he soon graduated from Hahnemann Medical College of Philadelphia (now the Drexel University College of Medicine). He maintained a medical practice for about ten years, before abandoning it for horticulture. He focused on the introducing, cultivating, and hybridizing of roses.[3]
Twenty-nine rose cultivars were introduced by Van Fleet between 1889 and 1926. In 1921, ‘Mary Wallace’ (named after then Secretary of Agriculture Henry C. Wallace's daughter) was released. Seven years later, it was voted the number one rose in the American Rose Society's popularity poll. In addition, it won numerous medals and awards.[4]
Van Fleet was eventually named the horticultural editor of the Rural New Yorker. From 1909 until 1922, he was the staff physiologist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. He died in 1922 in Miami, Florida after an operation and is now buried at Watsontown Cemetery.[5]
In 1924, the editor of the American Rose Annual, commented, "Nowhere else in the world is there going on such a systematic and orderly attempt to obtain a better rose variety for a specific purpose... He is probably the greatest plant-breeder America has yet known."
In 1929, the National Horticultural Magazine write about him, "The honor that is due those who have made the world a more beautiful place in which to live celtainly belongs to Dr. Walter Van Fleet. He was one of the greatest plant breeders this country has had and he gave especial attention to roses. From boyhood he was interested in natural history and plant growing and the products of his unremitting and painstaking energy, combined with unlimited patience, are known to garden lovers all over the country as well as in foreign lands."[6]
Van Fleet's cultivars, 'May Queen', ‘Sarah Van Fleet’ and 'American Pillar' are still sold today and many modern cultivars include parentage from Dr. Van Fleet's work.
References
^"Dr. Walter Van Fleet, American Rosarian and Plant Hybridist" The American Rose Annual, Vol. 7. 1922
^Van Fleet, Walter. "Notes on the Rough-Winged Swallow of Pennsylvania" Quarterly Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club. April, 1876.
^Griesbach, RJ. "The Early History of Research on Ornamental Plants at the U.S. Department of Agriculture from 1862 to 1940" HortScience. Vol. 30. No. 3, 1995
^"Walter Van Fleet, M.D." Seedsmen Hall of Fame. Victory Horticultural Group. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
^"Dr. Walter Van Fleet." Garden Magazine. October, 1918
^Mulford, Furman Lloyd. "The National Horticultural Magazine" (PDF). American Horticultural Society.
March 31, 2023
walter, fleet, june, 1857, january, 1922, american, physician, horticulturalist, botanist, ornithologist, around, naturalist, circa, 1918born, 1857, june, 1857hudson, york, united, statesdiedjanuary, 1922, 1922, aged, miami, florida, united, statesalma, materh. Walter Van Fleet June 18 1857 January 26 1922 was an American physician horticulturalist botanist ornithologist and all around naturalist Walter Van Fleetcirca 1918Born 1857 06 18 June 18 1857Hudson New York United StatesDiedJanuary 26 1922 1922 01 26 aged 64 Miami Florida United StatesAlma materHahnemann Medical College PhiladelphiaBiography EditDr Walter Van Fleet was born in Piermont New York on June 18 1857 When he was young his family moved to Williamsport Pennsylvania before settling in Watsontown Pennsylvania He devoted much of his early life to the study and observation of nature Eventually he moved up to Boston Massachusetts to study and collect specimen of natural history for Harvard University and for naturalists in the area This included a collecting trip to South America for the Museum of Comparative Zoology 1 In 1876 the eighteen year old Van Fleet was published in the first issue of the Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club the first scholastic ornithological journal in American history then edited by Charles Johnson Maynard and Henry Augustus Purdie 2 Just prior to 1880 Van Fleet returned to Pennsylvania where he soon graduated from Hahnemann Medical College of Philadelphia now the Drexel University College of Medicine He maintained a medical practice for about ten years before abandoning it for horticulture He focused on the introducing cultivating and hybridizing of roses 3 Twenty nine rose cultivars were introduced by Van Fleet between 1889 and 1926 In 1921 Mary Wallace named after then Secretary of Agriculture Henry C Wallace s daughter was released Seven years later it was voted the number one rose in the American Rose Society s popularity poll In addition it won numerous medals and awards 4 Van Fleet was eventually named the horticultural editor of the Rural New Yorker From 1909 until 1922 he was the staff physiologist for the U S Department of Agriculture He died in 1922 in Miami Florida after an operation and is now buried at Watsontown Cemetery 5 In 1924 the editor of the American Rose Annual commented Nowhere else in the world is there going on such a systematic and orderly attempt to obtain a better rose variety for a specific purpose He is probably the greatest plant breeder America has yet known In 1929 the National Horticultural Magazine write about him The honor that is due those who have made the world a more beautiful place in which to live celtainly belongs to Dr Walter Van Fleet He was one of the greatest plant breeders this country has had and he gave especial attention to roses From boyhood he was interested in natural history and plant growing and the products of his unremitting and painstaking energy combined with unlimited patience are known to garden lovers all over the country as well as in foreign lands 6 Van Fleet s cultivars May Queen Sarah Van Fleet and American Pillar are still sold today and many modern cultivars include parentage from Dr Van Fleet s work References Edit Dr Walter Van Fleet American Rosarian and Plant Hybridist The American Rose Annual Vol 7 1922 Van Fleet Walter Notes on the Rough Winged Swallow of Pennsylvania Quarterly Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club April 1876 Griesbach RJ The Early History of Research on Ornamental Plants at the U S Department of Agriculture from 1862 to 1940 HortScience Vol 30 No 3 1995 Walter Van Fleet M D Seedsmen Hall of Fame Victory Horticultural Group Retrieved 19 June 2019 Dr Walter Van Fleet Garden Magazine October 1918 Mulford Furman Lloyd The National Horticultural Magazine PDF American Horticultural Society Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Walter Van Fleet amp oldid 1097707108, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
