James wins nation’s highest horticulturist honor

Local horticulturist, consultant, researcher and grower, Dr. Bryson L. James was recently selected as the 2007 B.Y. Morrison Memorial Lecturer by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service , the highest honor offered to a horticulturist in the country.

James recently traveled to Scottsdale, Ariz., to present his lecture at the American Society for Horticultural Science meeting July 16. His lecture was titled ‘Industry and Research Need Each Other.’

Since moving to Warren County in 1974, Dr. James has been an independent consulting horticulturist. Prior to that, he was professor and director of the University of Florida Agriculture Research Center in Fort Lauderdale and an associate professor at North Carolina State University in Raleigh.

In addition to the B.Y. Morrison Memorial Lecture Award, Dr. James is the recipient of the Slater Wight Memorial Award, the highest recognition given to nurserymen in the South. He also serves on the Tennessee Urban Forestry Council.

‘I don’t know why I was picked,’ James said. ‘Of course you never do, I guess, with something like this. I’ve been in horticulture a long time, and over the years I’ve tried to give back as much as I got, and I’ve gotten an awful lot from the industry. I guess I’ll go back to the old saying, ‘You make a living by what you get. You make a life by what you give.’

James says he has always tried to stay involved by helping and encouraging young people who work in the industry that has meant so much to him. This continuing involvement has been a major part of his life, and one of the most rewarding aspects of his work.

‘Like I told my audience at the lecture, the title of my talk probably should be, ‘Being Rich is Better than Being Wealthy,’ James said. ‘And I went on to explain the difference in my definition of being rich and being wealthy. Being wealthy usually refers to material things, money and things like that. But you can be rich in a lot of ways.’

The B.Y. Morrison Memorial Lecture series was established in 1968 by the Agricultural Research Service to honor the memory of Benjamin Y. Morrison and to recognize scientists who have made outstanding contributions to horticulture and other environmental sciences, to encourage the use of these sciences, and to stress the urgency of preserving and enhancing natural beauty.

First Lady Ladybird Johnson was the first to receive the honor for her unfailing dedication to environmental issues and her involvement in the Keep America Beautiful program.

Benjamin Y. Morrison (1891-1966) was a pioneer in horticulture and the first director of the U.S. National Arboretum in Washington, D.C. A scientist, landscape architect, plant explorer, author and lecturer, Morrison advanced the science of botany in the United States and fostered broad international exchange of ornamental plants. He was also chief editor of the American Horticultural Society’s magazine from its inception in 1926 until 1963, only three years before his death.

Presenters lauded Dr. James for his outstanding contributions to horticulture, particularly his efforts in promoting research, noting that, as part of these efforts, James has played a pivotal role since 1965 as the director of research for the Southern Nursery Association (SNA).

James was also recognized for heading up the planning and organizing for the annual Research Workers Conference, which brings together researchers from 16 Southern states to present research of interest to the nursery industry.

Dr. James also served as editor for the SNA Research Journal from 1974 to 1983, and served on the editorial board of the Journal of Environmental Horticulture, published by the American Nursery and Landscape Association.