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Gold RidgeLuther Burbank's Experiment Farm
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| 7781
Bodega Avenue, Sebastopol (Map)
"I
firmly believe, from what I have seen, that this is the chosen spot of
all this earth as far as Nature is concerned."
--Luther Burbank 1849-1926
Take a tour on a self-guided
trail with a free map. Open year round,
the tour starts at the front of the Burbank Cottage. Limited parking
space is available on Bodega Avenue with more in the visitors' lot at
Burbank Heights Apartments. Or...take a Docent guided tour
with your group by appointment from April through October.
On August 2, 1997, a barn raising was held and the completed barn, reconstructed from an old photograph, now replicates Burbank's original. The original barn, located where Burbank Heights Apartments now stand, burned down in 1967. Since the barn also had an attached greenhouse, WSCHS reconstructed it too and now propagates authentic Burbank plants to sell. Plants are available at a regular plant sale held at GRF every Wednesday morning from 9 AM to 12 Noon with major sales the end of April (Apple Blossom Festival Open House) and September (see farm calendar for the year). 
Take a virtual tour of the present day Gold Ridge Farm. See some experiments that were in progress more than 70 years ago as well as other unique Burbank creations.
Four views of Gold Ridge Farm in Burbank's day. here
Get a tour brochure here
A Capsule History of Gold Ridge Farm Luther Burbank bought his 15 acre farm on Gold Ridge in 1885. During his career he introduced over 800 varieties of fruits, flowers, vegetables and grains. He developed many of California's plums and prunes, the ancestor of the Idaho Potato, the Shasta Daisy and novelties such as Plumcots, Thornless Blackberry and the Spineless Cactus. His home in Santa Rosa was primarily a showplace, but he developed and grew thousands of new hybrids, cross breeds and selections at his Experiment Farm in Sebastopol. After Luther died in 1926, Mrs. Burbank established an apple orchard on a portion of the Farm and leased the rest to Stark Bros. Nursery. When their lease expired in 1957 the property deteriorated and subsequently passed into new ownership. Local historians, intent on preserving the Burbank legacy in Sebastopol, formed the Western Sonoma County Historical Society in 1974. The cottage was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. The City of Sebastopol worked with the Society in its efforts to obtain 3 acres of the original farm and to restore the Cottage. Restoration began in 1983. Since then the Society's Farm Committee continues to maintain the cottage and Burbank plant varieties, provide a self-guiding plant walk and train Docents for guided tours. Volunteer Opportunities Opportunities are available for interested individuals to help with gardening at the Farm, be Docents, or speak about the Farm in the community and more. New memberships always welcome! Luther Burbank, 1849 - 1926. A Thumbnail Biography 
Luther Burbank was born on March 7, 1849, on a farm near Lancaster, Massachusetts. He received little more than a high school education but showed interest in nature and mechanics at an early age. Among his early inventions were a steam whistle made from a willow stick and an old teakettle and a steam engine for his rowboat. His enthusiasm for nature was encouraged by his uncle, the head of a department of a Boston museum, and his uncle's friend, Swiss-American naturalist Louis Agassiz. After his father's death, Burbank. moved with his family to a small farm in Groton. At the age of 21 he purchased 17 acres of land near Lunenberg and began a 55-year plant-breeding career. Inspired by Charles Darwin's Variation of Animals and Plants Under Domestication, Burbank determined that better plants could be developed through natural selection and new varieties created through crossbreeding, or hybridization. His first successful plant was developed through selection. In 1871 he found a potato seed ball and planted its 23 seeds in a special plot. One produced many large, firm potatoes. Burbank replanted these and reaped a small harvest of fine potatoes. He sold the rights to the potato for $150 for travel fare to California, having determined to move there. In Santa Rosa, where three of his brothers had already settled, he established a nursery garden, greenhouse, and experiment farms that became famous throughout the world. He worked by effecting multiple crosses of foreign and native strains to obtain seedlings, which he grafted onto fully developed plants for rapid assessment of hybrid characteristics. He carried on his plant hybridization and selection on a huge scale. At any one time he maintained as many as 3,000 experiments involving millions of plants. In his work on plums, he tested about 30,000 new varieties. Much of his valuable data was lost, but he wrote several books. Luther Burbank, His Methods and Discoveries and Their Practical Applications was published in 12 volumes in 1914-15. Burbank died in Santa Rosa on April 11, 1926. The Plant Patent Act of 1930 amended U.S. patent law to permit protection of new and distinct varieties of asexually reproduced plants, other than tuber-propagated plants. This legislation resulted from the growing awareness that plant breeders had no financial incentive to enter plant breeding because they could not exercise control over their discoveries. In supporting this legislation, Thomas A. Edison testified: "This (bill) will, I feel sure, give us many Burbanks." Luther Burbank was inducted into the Inventor's Hall of Fame in 1986. Plant Patent Nos. 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 41, 65, 66, 235, 266, 267, 269, 290, 291, and 1041 were issued to Burbank posthumously. New Creations Introduced by Luther Burbank POTATO: 'Burbank' FRUITS: 113 Plums and Prunes, 10 Different Apples, 16 Blackberries, 13 Raspberries, 10 Strawberries, 35 Fruiting Cacti, 10 Cherries, 2 Figs, 4 Grapes, 5 Nectarines, 8 Peaches, 4 Pears, 11 Plumcots, 11 Quinces, 1 Almond, 6 Chestnuts, 3 Walnuts GRAINS, GRASSES AND OTHER FORAGE: 9 Different kinds VEGETABLES: 26 Different kinds ORNAMENTALS: 91 Different kinds (From Luther Burbank's Plant Contributions by Walter L. Howard, University of California, Bulletin 691, March 1945.) Assessment of Luther Burbank's Life Work "The science of breeding grew and advanced rapidly during the first two decades of the new century, and though it may not be generally recognized, the movement is traceable to Burbank as a potent activator. Professor H. J. Webber, a pioneer plant-breeder and geneticist and a contemporary of Burbank, has declared that through the influence of Burbank the science of plant breeding was advanced by at least twenty years and for this accomplishment alone, he deserved a sizeable monument to his memory." (From Luther Burbank A Victim of Hero Worship, by Walter L. Howard, Emeritus Professor of Pomology, University of California, in Chronica Botanica, 1945.) QUESTIONS?
Other Links Luther Burbank Home & Gardens, Santa Rosa, California Welcome to Luther Burbank's Virtual Museum (Cathy Parker's site for students and teachers) More sources than you ever wanted about the name Luther Burbank!! The Guide
to Sonoma County Nurseries: Spring Hill Press. Last updated on March 2, 2008 |
