Samuel Cecil Salmon (1885–1975) was an agronomist who was attached to the American occupying forces in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He worked for the

Agricultural Research Service The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is the principal in-house research agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). ARS is one of four agencies in USDA's Research, Education and Economics mission area. ARS is charged with ext ...

and during his time in Japan, Salmon collected 16 varieties of wheat samples including a dwarf strain

Norin 10 is a semi-dwarf wheat cultivar with very large ears that was bred by at an experimental station in Iwate Prefecture, Japan. Its parents were a semi-dwarf Japanese landrace that may have originated in Korea in the 3rd or 4th century AD, and tw ...

which later triggered the Green Revolution.

Life and career

Salmon was born in

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

and received a B.S. degree from

South Dakota State University South Dakota State University is a public land-grant research university in Brookings, South Dakota. Founded in 1881, it is the state's largest and most comprehensive university and the oldest continually-operating university in South Dakota. The ...

, a M.S. degree from

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public instit ...

and a Ph.D. degree from the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

. He taught and conducted research on wheat production at Kansas State from 1913 to 1931. In 1931, he became Principal Agronomist in the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, ...

(USDA) "Office of Cereal Crops and Diseases". While serving as the cereal crops consultant with the U.S. Army of Occupation in Japan after World War II, Salmon noted the vigorous, productive semi-dwarf wheats developed in Japan. He collected 16 varieties of the wheats including

and sent seeds of those wheats to the USDA Small Grains Collection. These seeds were used by

Orville Vogel Orville Vogel (1907–1991) was an American scientist and wheat breeder whose research made possible the "Green Revolution" in world food production. Life and career Orville Alvin Vogel was born in Pilger, Stanton County, Nebraska, one of the four ...

Washington State University Washington State University (Washington State, WSU, or informally Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university with its flagship, and oldest, campus in Pullman, Washington. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant unive ...

to develop the variety ‘Gaines,’ which holds the world record for wheat yields, and Norin 10 was used by

International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (known - even in English - by its Spanish acronym CIMMYT for ''Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maíz y Trigo'') is a non-profit research-for-development organization that develops im ...

(CIMMYT) in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

to develop the varieties that started the Green Revolution. Salmon went on to serve two years in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

helping to rehabilitate the University of the Philippines College of Agriculture at Los Baños ( UPLB) and undertook four tours with the U.S.

Agency for International Development The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 bil ...

. He co-authored several books on experimental design in agricultural research including ''The principles and practice of agricultural research'', published by L. Hill in 1964.

References

Some Contributions of K-State Agronomists to World Agriculture During the 20th Century
* ttp://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=E1_VPNPPGN Ears of plenty: The story of wheat

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Econo ...

, Dec 20th 2005 American agronomists University of Minnesota alumni 1885 births 1975 deaths Scientists from South Dakota {{US-biologist-stub

Life and career

See also

References