I. Introduction Liberty Hyde Bailey was an internationally renowned American botanist, horticulturist, and agricultural educator. He was also known for being a plant breeder, visionary, prolific writer, traveler, environmentalist, among others. He was one of only two scientists to be inducted into the American Society for Horticultural Science Hall of Fame when it was established in 1990. (NASA) He was a very wise man and once told the International Congress plant sciences that “man’s conquest of the plant kingdom was in its infancy; that in the extension of the knowledge of plants and the ability to use them lies one of the great hopes of the human race. (NYT) Throughout his 96 years of life, Liberty H. Bailey wrote more than fifty books and edited numerous others, traveling more than 250,000 miles where he collected more than 275,000 plants. He has classified thousands of plants, founded numerous organizations, led countless conferences and much more. (NYT) All of his various subjects of work in the 20th century make it difficult to say to which particular area his historical importance is attributed, but he certainly had an impact in many areas of study. II. Biography A. Early YearsLiberty Hyde Bailey was born March 15, 1858 in South Haven, Michigan. He was born to Liberty Hyde Bailey Sr. and Sarah Harrison Bailey. He was born in a rural area where his father had cleared forests for their home where his family farmed, made their own soap and candles, tanned their own leather, and weaved their own clothes. (NYT) He grew up gardening with his mother, until her death when he was five, where he then used nature to cope. When Dr. Bailey was young, he roamed the surrounding lands learning the habits of plants and animals, and by his early teens he had become an expert in grafting. (NASA) Because of his expertise, he was asked by local neighbors to carry out the