Lorenz Hiltner

Lorenz Hiltner

Lorenz Hiltner (* 30th November 1862 in Neumarkt in the Upper Palatinate ; † 6. June 1923 in Munich ) was a German agronomist with the research priorities Bodenbakteriologie , seed research and crop protection . From 1902 he was director of the Royal Bavarian Agricultural Botanical Institute in Munich.

Live and act

Lorenz Hiltner, son of a vinegar boiler and innkeeper, attended the trade school in Neumarkt and the industrial school in Nuremberg . From 1880 he studied at the University of Erlangen (where he was also a member of the Corps Bavaria ) natural sciences with a focus on zoology and botany . Because of his outstanding achievements, he received a six-month scholarship in 1882 at the then famous Zoological Institute in Naples . In 1885, after completing his university studies, he took on a scientific assistant position at the "Plant Physiological Test and Seed Control Station" in Tharandt . Here he turned to the young field of soil bacteriology . Together with Friedrich Nobbe , the head of this station, he succeeded in "vaccinating" legume seeds with pure cultures of nodule bacteria . The vaccine "Nitragin" developed by them was patented in 1896.

Through his research work in Tharandt, Hiltner, who was awarded a Phytopathological dissertation at the University of Erlangen in 1891 as a Dr. phil. had earned a doctorate, earned a high reputation in professional circles. In 1899 he followed a call to Berlin and, as a member of the government, took over the management of the bacteriological laboratory of the biological department of the Imperial Health Department . Up until 1902, several studies were carried out here on the root nodules of legumes and the bacterial flora in the arable soil. His most important publication from this time is a book on the germination conditions of legume seeds and their influence through the action of organisms.

In 1902, Hiltner took over as director of the newly founded Royal Bavarian Agricultural Botanical Institute in Munich (renamed the Bavarian State Institute for Plant Production and Plant Protection in 1917 ). Within a few years he expanded this institute into an exemplary organized, effectively working institution. From then on, the problems of agricultural practice determined Hiltner's diverse research activities. He was able to decisively improve the vaccination process for legume seeds developed in Tharandt within a short period of time. Until 1904, his institute was the only place in the world that gave "vaccine bacteria" to farmers. At the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis (Michigan / USA) Hiltner and his Agrikulturbotanische institution were a gold medal awarded.

Of Hiltner's publications in the field of soil bacteriology, his lecture published in 1904 in the "Work of the German Agricultural Society" " On recent experiences and problems in the field of soil bacteriology with special consideration of green manure and fallow land" should be emphasized . In this article he coined the term " rhizosphere " as a new technical term for describing the area of ​​influence of the living roots in the soil.

Hiltner carried out extensive research in the field of seed control. To assess the health of grain seeds, he developed a " driving force method ", which he first reported on in 1911 in the "Bavarian Agricultural Yearbook". Under the designation "Hiltner's brick gravel method", this test procedure has been used in official seed control for many decades. To combat fungal diseases in grain , Hiltner introduced pickling agents containing mercury and thus accelerated the development of a plant protection product industry in Germany. He organized a plant protection service in Bavaria with great success . One of the classics of the plant protection literature is his extensive book " Plant protection sorted by months " (1909, 2nd edition 1926).

Hiltner also did research in the fields of weed control , plant phenology and fertilizer theory and encouraged both scientists and farmers to conduct further experiments. A particular concern for him was the improvement of forage production in Bavaria. In 1912 he set up a feed construction site at his institute . In two books (1917 and 1918) he showed a variety of ways to optimize the production and utilization of feed for native wild and cultivated plants. During the First World War he also dealt with the cultivation of alternative food crops.

Hiltner has always found ways to use the results of its research in agricultural practice. The most important publication organ for this purpose was the magazine "Practical Leaves for Plant Cultivation and Plant Protection" which he published from 1902 to 1918 (new series since 1923 under the title "Practical Leaves of the Bavarian State Institute for Plant Production and Plant Protection"). From 1908 Hiltner held lectures on agricultural bacteriology at the Technical University of Munich as an honorary professor . From 1906 until his death he was chairman of the committee for seed testing in the Association of Agricultural Experimental Stations in the German Reich .

Lorenz Hiltner opened up new fields of work with many of his ideas for science. He is one of the most outstanding figures in the history of agriculture. After his death, his eldest son Erhard Hiltner (1893–1934) successfully carried on his father's research work at his Munich workplace.

Main publications

• Some diseases of horticultural and agricultural crops produced by Botrytis cinerea and their control . Diss. Phil. Univ. Erlangen 1891.
• The germination ratios of legume seeds and their influence through the action of organisms . Paul Parey and Julius Springer, Berlin 1902 = work from the Biological Department for Agriculture and Forestry at the Imperial Health Office, Vol. 3, H. 1.
• About recent experiences and problems in the field of soil bacteriology with special consideration of green manure and fallow land . In: Work of the German Agricultural Society H. 98, 1904, pp. 59–78 (definition of the term rhizosphere on p. 69).
• Plant protection sorted by months. A guide for farmers, gardeners, fruit tree growers, etc. Verlag Eugen Ulmer 1909; 2nd edition re-edited by Eduard Hiltner, reworked together with K. Flachs and A. Pustet. Ibid. 1926.
• About the poor emergence and the wintering of the grain as a result of the seed being infected by Fusarium . In: Landwirtschaftliches Jahrbuch für Bayern Jg. 1, 1911, pp. 20–60 and 315–362 (first description of the driving force germ test with brick flour).
• Increased feed production from the local flora . Part 1: The extraction of fodder on the farmland . Part 2: Forest, heather and moss as a source of food. The utilization of aquatic and marsh plants. Forage production from vegetable, fruit, wine and hop gardens . Verlag Eugen Ulmer Stuttgart 1917 and 1918.

literature

• F. Lang: Lorenz Hiltner, Munich † : In: Deutsche Landwirtschaftliche Presse vol. 50, 1923, p. 222 (with picture).
• E. Hiltner: Dr. Lorenz Hiltner, his life and work . In: The nutrition of the plant, vol. 19, 1923, pp. 137-140.
• Georg Christmann: Prof. Dr. phil. Lorenz Hiltner, President of the Bavarian State Institute for Crop Production and Plant Protection . In: Deutsches Biographisches Jahrbuch Vol. 5, 1930, pp. 176–181 u. 430.
• Karl Boshart: Lorenz Hiltner . Journal of Plant Cultivation and Plant Protection Vol. 3, 1952, special issue 4, pp. 1-40 (with picture and list of publications).
• Heinz Haushofer: On the history of the Bavarian State Institute for Natural Resources and Life Sciences . In: Bayerisches Landwirtschaftliches Jahrbuch vol. 52, 1975, special issue 2, pp. 17–77.
• Anton Hartmann: Lorenz Hiltner, pioneer of soil bacteriology and rhizosphere research . In: BIOspektrum Vol. 11, 2005, pp. 191–192 (with picture).
• Karl Böning:  Hiltner, Lorenz. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 9, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1972, ISBN 3-428-00190-7 , p. 165 f. ( Digitized version ).

Web links

• Literature by and about Lorenz Hiltner in the catalog of the German National Library