Fruit growing prior to dwarfing rootstock
Fruit growing and orchard management had remained largely the same in the U.S. until the twentieth century. Hundreds of varieties were grown, many popular only to specific regions. These varieties were grafted on seedling rootstock and offered through nursery catalogs and by traveling tree salesmen. Planted at forty-eight trees per acre, trees on seedling rootstock took as long as ten years to produce a decent crop, and the lack of predictable rootstock characteristics led to significant variations in fruit quality.
Revolution of Dwarfing Rootstock
The advent of dwarfing rootstock in the United States is largely due in part to partnership between academic research and firsthand nursery and orchard management. By the middle of the twentieth century researchers in East Malling, England, were researching the possible benefits of clonal dwarfing rootstock. H.B. Tukey, then a researcher at the Geneva, New York, research station brought many of these rootstocks to the U.S. for trial plantings but the reception was muted. Most growers, nurserymen, and researchers viewed dwarfing rootstock as a novelty, likely suitable only for backyard hobby growers.
By the 1950s, Tukey had become the head of the Department of Horticulture at Michigan State University. At MSU he continued his research on the potential commercial viability of dwarfing rootstock. Two of his students, Robert Carlson and Wallace Heuser, would move the dwarfing rootstock out of the research plot and into the hands of commercial growers.
More history will be added, please visit over the coming months!
Becoming International
Though much of Europe and other fruit growing regions were experimenting with dwarfing rootstock prior to the founding, an organization dedicated to sharing knowledge had widespread appeal. By the early 1960s, IFTA winter and summer events included speakers from England, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Holland, German, and New Zeeland. By 1972, IFTA had increased its membership from 300 members at found to more than 1,200 member spanning the fruit growing regions of the globe.
Resources on the history of IFTA
The links below will provide you with additional resources to learn about the creating and growth of the International Fruit Tree Association.
Robert Carlson’s History of IFTA
Legacy of IDFTA by Paul Larsen
