Tubbs Lecture – 4/24/22

The 6th Annual Tubbs Lecture at Willowwood Arboretum was held this past Sunday, April 24, 2022, in memory of Henry and Robert Tubbs. Guest speaker, Jack Alexander, held the position of Plant Propagator for 40 years at Harvard University’s Arnold Arboretum. He shared his expertise in growing Lilacs and gave a guided walk through the Lilac collection at Willowwood. Each guest received a FREE Lilac.

Bio. –  John (Jack) H. Alexander III

Jack Alexander recently retired from his position as the Plant Propagator of the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, a position he held for 40 years. He is a third generation nurseryman. Jack has had a long interest in the propagation of woody plants and has a special interest in lilacs. He has published numerous articles on both subjects, including some here.

 In 1995 he was named a Fellow of the Eastern Region of the International Plant Propagator’s Society and in 2004 he was awarded their prestigious Award of Merit and he was twice the recipient of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society’s Jackson Dawson Medal.

 Jack is New England Region Vice President of the International Lilac Society, has received several awards from ILS and has served numerous terms on their Board of Directors. He is also the principal author of the booklet Lilacs Plants of History – Plants for Tomorrow. Syringa × chinensis ‘Lilac Sunday’, Syringa ‘Purple Haze’and Syringa ‘Foxey Lady’ are cultivars that he introduced. 

• Info on Lilac Sunday:  ‘Lilac Sunday’ Lilac – Arnold Arboretum | Arnold Arboretum (harvard.edu)

See: https://www.arboretum.harvard.edu/people/john-herbert-alexander/ and also an article about Jack at: http://www.arboretum.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/Spring-2016-Silva_Gift-for-Growing.pdf

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