Carl Fruwirth

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Carl Fruwirth , also Karl , (born August 31, 1862 in Vienna , † July 21, 1930 in Baden (Lower Austria) ) was a k. u. k. Austrian agricultural scientist . He also worked in Germany for a decade and is regarded as an outstanding specialist in the field of plant production theory . Its official botanical author's abbreviation is " Fruwirth ".

Life path

Carl Fruwirth, son of the history painter Carl Fruwirth , studied after two years of agricultural practice at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna and in 1886 went on a four-month study trip to the United States of North America. After his return he passed the teaching examination for agricultural management and crop production and studied two more semesters at the University of Vienna .

From 1887 to 1897 Fruwirth worked as a teacher at the “Higher Agricultural College Francisco-Josephinum” in Mödling near Vienna. In 1892 he qualified as a professor at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna and has since taught crop production here at the same time. He also gave lectures on plant breeding for the first time at this university . During his time in Mödling he went on several study trips and published numerous articles on current problems in agriculture. His first book on hop growing and hop treatment (1888) was awarded a prize.

In 1897, Fruwirth accepted a call as a full professor of crop production at the Hohenheim Agricultural Academy . Here he spent ten busy years. His teaching duties included lectures on plant production theory, plant breeding, the history of agriculture and agricultural engineering . On his initiative, the Royal Württemberg State Plant Breeding Institute was founded in Hohenheim in 1905. As the first board member, he succeeded within a few years in establishing a functional private plant breeding facility in Württemberg with variety tests and seed approval.

In 1907 Fruwirth returned to Austria. As the successor to Guido Krafft , he took over the chair for agriculture and forestry at the Technical University in Vienna . At first he was only employed as an honorary lecturer. In 1910 he was made associate professor and in 1917 appointed full professor. Compared to Hohenheim, he had only a modest academic position in Vienna. There were no work opportunities available to him for experimental research. That is why he bought the "Waldhof" estate near Amstetten in Lower Austria with his own funds . Here he set up a test field that was looked after by his wife Jenny (1864–1948) and his only daughter. Fruwirth died of complications from skin cancer. He found his final resting place in the cemetery in Amstetten, near his “Waldhof” estate.

Life's work

Fruwirth's scientific work was extensive, varied and stimulating for numerous areas of agricultural plant production theory. He undertook his first experimental research work in Mödling. Here he primarily examined the variety-related agricultural-botanical properties of grain and pulses . Studies on the development of the root system in legumes also fall during this time. In Hohenheim he was primarily interested in plant breeding. Investigations into the flowering and fertilization conditions of the grain and legume species are noteworthy. At his “Waldhof” estate in Amstetten, the focus of his experimental work was on the field of plant breeding. Here he studied particularly intensively the problems of hereditary and non-hereditary variability and the interrelationships between the cold stimulus and shooting in grain. With new selection and crossing methods, he was also very successful as a practical plant breeder.

Fruwirth earned the greatest recognition in the professional world as the author and editor of several textbooks and manuals. His main scientific work is a handbook on plant breeding. For many years Fruwirth has collected, systematized and combined knowledge about this, at that time still young, subject area and combined it into a teaching building. The first book " Die Züchtung der Landwirtschaftlichen Cultivated ", published during his time in Hohenheim in 1901, was the prelude to a five-volume standard work, the repeated partial editions of which have been published since 1914 under the title " Handbook of Agricultural Plant Breeding ". This work, published by the Paul Parey publishing house in Berlin, has had a decisive influence on the development of plant breeding worldwide.

His book “ The Seed Recognition ” (1918) and the “ Introduction to Agricultural Plant Breeding ” (1921) , written together with Theodor Roemer , also attracted widespread attention . On Fruwirth's initiative in 1910 the "Austrian Society for Plant Breeding" was founded. In 1913, Fruwirth founded the “ Zeitschrift für Pflanzenzüchtung ”, which he was editorially responsible for until his death.

However, Fruwirth was not only a seed expert and plant breeder, he was also considered one of the most competent crop scientists of his time. For example, between 1910 and 1927 he revised and edited several editions of the arable and plant cultivation volumes of the “ Textbook of Agriculture on a Scientific and Practical Basis ” by his Viennese predecessor Guido Krafft , as well as published other technical books on plant cultivation. Fruwirth paid particular attention to the biology and control of arable weeds . Several articles on this have been published in the series “Work of the German Agricultural Society”. Numerous, often only a few pages long, pamphlets by Fruwirth were primarily intended for farmers.

honors and awards

In 1922 Fruwirth was awarded the title of Hofrat . In 1922 he received an honorary doctorate from the Hohenheim Agricultural University and in 1924 from the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna . Fruhwirth had been a member of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina since 1925 and a corresponding member of the Agricultural Academies in Florence and Stockholm. As a bearer of high orders , he owned the Knight's Cross of the Crown Order of the royal house of Württemberg. On the grounds of the University of Hohenheim, a street bears his name (Fruwirthstraße).

Fonts (selection)

  • Hop growing and treatment. Parey, Berlin 1888. 2nd edition 1908. 3rd edition 1928 = Thaer Library Volume 70.
  • Agricultural plant breeding and its sites in Austria. Deuticke, Vienna 1896.
  • Growing the legumes. Parey, Berlin 1898. 2nd edition 1914 = Thaer Library Volume 96. 3rd edition under the title Handbuch des Bülsenfruchterbaues. 1921.
  • The breeding of agricultural crops. Since 1914 under the title Handbook of Agricultural Plant Breeding . 5 volumes. Parey, Berlin. Volume 1: 1901 (7th edition 1930). Volume 2: 1904 (5th edition 1924). Volume 3: 1906 (5th edition 1924). Volume 4: 1907 (4th edition 1923). Volume 5: 1912 (2nd edition 1923).
  • The grain cultivation. Jänecke, Leipzig 1907 = Library for the whole of agriculture. Volume 14. - New edition Leipzig 1921 = manual for the whole of agriculture. Dept. 40 u. 41.
  • Guido Krafft: Textbook of agriculture on a scientific and practical basis. Revised by Carl Fruwirth. Parey, Berlin. Volume 1: The agriculture theory. 9th edition 1910 to 15th edition 1927. Volume 2: The plant cultivation theory. 8th edition 1908 to 14th edition 1927.
  • The crops of agriculture. Stuttgart 1913.
  • The seed recognition. Parey, Berlin 1918. 2nd edition 1922.
  • with Theodor Roemer: Introduction to agricultural plant breeding. Parey, Berlin 1921. 2nd edition 1923.

literature

  • Erich von Tschermak: For the 60th birthday party of Professor Dr. Carl Fruwirths. In: Journal of Plant Breeding. Volume 8, 1922, pp. 324-330.
  • Erwin Baur: On the death of Prof. Dr. Carl Fruwirth. In: Journal of Plant Breeding. Volume 15, 1930, p. 307.
  • Erich von Tschermak: Carl Fruwirth †. In: The Breeder. Vol. 2, 1930, pp. 259-261.
  • Ernst Klapp: Carl Fruwirth †. In: Crop production. Vol. 7, 1930/31, p. 33.
  • E. Dolezal: Councilor Prof. Dr. Dr. agr. hc Carl Fruwirth. A picture of life. In: Austrian Journal for Surveying. Volume 29, 1931, pp. 6-13.
  • Otto Heuser: Carl Fruwirth, farmer. In: New German Biography. Volume 5, 1961, p. 672.
  • Gustav Wunderlich: Carl Fruwirth (1862–1930). In: Günther Franz and Heinz Haushofer (eds.): Large farmers. DLG, Frankfurt am Main 1970, pp. 306-320.
  • FW Schnell: Carl Fruwirth's breeding system and its aftermath. In: Harald Winkel (Ed.): Contributions to the history of the natural, agricultural, economic and social history of Southwest Germany. Festschrift for Günter Franz on his 80th birthday. Sigmaringen 1982, pp. 155-169.
  • AM Steiner: On the history of Viennese plant breeding: Haberlandt, Fruwirth, Ruckenbauer . In: The soil culture. Volume 50, 1999, pp. 203-210.
  • Otto E. Heuser:  Fruwirth, Carl. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 5, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1961, ISBN 3-428-00186-9 , p. 672 ( digitized version ).
  • Fruwirth Carl. In: Austrian Biographical Lexicon 1815–1950 (ÖBL). Volume 1, Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna 1957, p. 376.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The state plant breeding institute still exists today as part of the University of Hohenheim, see the institute's homepage under archive link ( Memento of the original from January 31, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.uni-hohenheim.de

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Fruwirth, Carl
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian agricultural scientist
DATE OF BIRTH August 31, 1862
PLACE OF BIRTH Vienna
DATE OF DEATH July 21, 1930
Place of death Baden (Lower Austria)