Author
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Stover, Eddie |
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Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 4/15/2018 Publication Date: 7/1/2018 Citation: Stover, E.W. 2018. Walter Tennyson Swingle: A relentless intellect that transformed American pomology[abstract], American Society for Horticultural Science Annual Conference, July 30-August 3, 2018, Washington, DC. Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: Walter Tennyson Swingle grew up outside of Manhattan, Kansas, attended a one-room schoolhouse and had “sopped up the entire curriculum” by the time he was nine. He was then exclusively self-taught or tutored by his mother. He was notorious in his passion for botany, and based on observations, made up his own names for plants that were demonstrably different. His formal engagement with science was ignited when he discovered that plant names and taxonomic distinctions could be found in books! He attended classes at Kansas Agricultural College (now KSU) at 15, and when he graduated at 20 he had already published 27 scientific papers in plant pathology, plant breeding and genetics. It was here that he developed his lifelong friendship with David Fairchild. Swingle joined the USDA in 1891, and in July was sent to Florida to investigate diseases in orange trees. He established a USDA laboratory and began a comprehensive program to breed disease- and frost-resistant citrus. He recognized the need for genetic diversity in crops and the risks of growing them in monocultures. He proposed testing all known wild relatives for disease-resistance and other advantageous traits that could be introduced to improve citrus. This led him into his comprehensive studies of the comparative anatomy and systematics of the orange subfamily. Through this effort he discovered some new species and several new genera: the genus Swinglea and several cultivars were named in his honor. In the citrus crosses he made or directed, he originated several new categories of citrus: the tangelos, citranges and citrumelos (now critical as rootstocks), and several other intergeneric hybrids. He was an early advocate for permanent, living collections of economically important plants and their close relatives. In 1897-98, with the help of David Fairchild, he established the USDA's Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction, and new research facilities were set up in Miami. He was a champion for ensuring that introduced plants were disease and pest free. He conducted plant exploration, mainly in countries surrounding the Mediterranean, and introduced date palms, figs, table grapes, and ‘Clementine’ mandarins. He also brought in the Blastophaga wasp to pollinate Smyrna-type figs. In his duties in the USDA section of Seed and Plant Introduction, he received over 2000 plant introductions (listed as “donor” in GRIN), but hundreds of accessions in GRIN list Swingle as the collector (among them numerous Citrus, Phoenix, Pistacia, Prunus, and Vitis accessions, but few including ‘Medjool’ date and ‘Clementine’ remain active). After his retirement from the USDA, Swingle moved to Miami in 1943. It was here he completed his treatise on the taxonomy of the citrus subfamily. “Even in his retirement, Swingle inspired a generation of students with his knowledge, curiosity of nature, and insights into plants. His simple advice to students was ‘Look and look, again and again,’ words still relevant today”. |
