St. Paul, Minn.- We had the honor of sitting down with Dr. Harold Wilkins this week for Grow with KARE. He is an unassuming man that has an amazing story. This is what Mary Maguire Lerman wrote us about her former teacher Dr. Wilkins.
A lover of flowers for all his life, Harold was born in Cobden, Union County which is the far southern tip of Illinois. His entire family, including his parents J. Harley and Pauline Wilkins, was involved in the horticulture business. A 1951 graduate of Anna Jonesboro High School, he advanced to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where he earned his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. During two years of his Ph.D program he also attended Cornell University at Ithaca, New York. Then following completion of his Ph.D, he spent an additional two years of study in post harvest physiology at the University of Florida at Bradenton. From 1966 to 1989 he taught and served as the extension floriculture professor at the University of Minnesota's Saint Paul campus. Beloved by his many students, he considers them his sons and daughters and their children his grandchildren.
His research over the years included many floral crops with a particular focus on cool weather crops that would require less energy for production. These included Easter lily, Freesia, Azaleas and Alstroemeria. Dr. Wilkins' research helped create the multi-million dollar Alstroemeria industry here in the U.S. and he is considered the Father of the Alstroemeria Industry. In addition, his research included branching control for roses, carnations and poinsettias. Ten Ph.D students were graduates of Dr. Wilkins' program and today they lead floriculture education and research at major universities and businesses in the U.S. and Canada. Hundreds of his undergraduate students continue to amaze their employers and families with their floral knowledge. He and his graduate student, John Dole, authored two editions of Floriculture Species and Production, now the standard text at universities world wide.
Teaching was a joy for Harold and his area of expertise included floral crops, bulb physiology and floral design. However, many students found it a challenge to craft the special "Wilkins' Bow" taught in his design course. As an extra curricular activity with undergraduate students he coached the intercollegiate flower judging teams at Cornell University, University of Minnesota and Ohio State.
After retiring from the University of Minnesota in 1989, he consulted in the San Francisco area for one of the largest cut flower and potted flowering wholesale growers in North America. His responsibility was to find and bring into production new species. There after he was awarded the D.C. Kiplinger Chair at The Ohio State University. Next he did research at the Hebrew University in Rehovot for two winters, explored for new species at Kirstenbach Botanic Garden in South Africa for two winters as well as Australia for one season.
In November 2004, Harold and his partner Bryan Gjebre began a new venture.
They purchased an 8 acre farm near Baldwin, Wisconsin and were so sure of the sale that they planted 24 tulips on the land before closing the deal. Over the past 8 years they have planted unusual woody and herbaceous ornamentals to sell to unique floral shops in the Twin Cities and western Wisconsin. In addition, since establishing Gold Finch Farm in Baldwin, Wisconsin, Harold and Bryan provide great cut flowers, bouquets and designs for clients who peruse the Mill City Farmer's Market on Saturday's in downtown Minneapolis. The "Wilkins' Bow" was hand-crafted by Harold for many bouquets while his customers watched the complicated procedure.
Over the years Harold has received numerous floriculture industry awards, including the Society of American Florists' Award which honored him for his research and his graduate student training efforts. President and Mrs. Rosalyn Carter presented this award to him in April 1978. Other awards are noted on the attached sheet.
