The American vine breeder Elmer Swenson (1913-2004) took over his grandfather's farm near Osceola in the US state of Wisconsin. He was inspired by the work of the Texas botanist Thomas Volney Munson (1843-1913) and began breeding vines here in 1943. Among other things, he used French hybrids from Seibel as a basis for this. One of his most important breeding goals was to create frost-resistant varieties that were suitable for the cold and harsh winters as well as for the relatively short ripening times in the northern Midwest of the USA, especially in Minnesota and Wisconsin. During the period 1979 to 1989, he also worked part-time at the University of Minnesota (Twin Cities), where he also created several new varieties. The others were created on his farm in Wisconsin.
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Dr. Christa Hanten
Fachjournalistin, Lektorin und Verkosterin, Wien