While attending the Heirloom Expo in Santa Rosa, I made a point of also visiting The Source of Great Historic Breeding, Luther Burbank's Home and Gardens. This is where so many of our prized plants today come from - they literally were born here. I was thrilled to trod the very same pathways and visit the actual greenhouse that germinated the Russet Burbank Potato, Shasta Daisy, and Santa Rosa Plum among a billion others! Excellent and informative signage is in the garden, and docent-led tours are offered hourly and well worth the minimal expense.
Here’s a taste of what I enjoyed.
Here’s a taste of what I enjoyed.
 The Russet Burbank Potato - his first horticultural discovery, from an 'Early Rose' variety when he was 24 years old in Massachusetts. Early and blight-resistant, 'Burbank's Seedling' is today's "Idaho Baker." |  The Shasta Daisy was a cross of the wild oxeye daisy with two European daisies to increase size and beauty; then adding a Japanese Nippon daisy, resulting in the bright white we know today. |  'Fourth of July' is an exquisite rose with variegated-color petals. |
 Burbank bred spikeless cactus for cattle feeding, but it wasn't commercially successful. |  Burbank intercrossed petunias and nicotianas - 'nicotunias' - successfully after 10,000 attempts! |  Burbank became intrigued with California's native plants in 1880-1881 in "Geyser Country" just north of Santa Rosa. He worked with Eriogonum to increase grain production, simply choosing plants that spontaneously produced larger, plumper and lighter-colored heads. |
 Quinoa – Burbank offered his selections of this “Mother Grain of the Incas” as a breakfast cereal in 1887. This ‘Brilliant Rainbow’ variety is available today in specialty catalogs. |  Sunflowers! |  'Burbank Scarlet Bugle" was introduced in 1915. The pictured variety in the garden today is Penstemon x gloxinioides. |
THE MASTER'S GREENHOUSE - where it all happened!
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