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Robinson, Edward George (Ed)
'Robinson, Edward George (Ed)'  photo
Photo courtesy of Margit Schowalter
Rose breeder   Listing last updated on 28 Mar 2024.
Canada
October 6, 1902 to January 16,1992. Died at age 89.

Edward George (Ed) Robinson's family emigrated from Leicester, England to Nova Scotia in 1885.

Robinson was born in Truro, Nova Scotia. His family moved to Manitoba in the spring of 1905.

He bought 6 acres of land and a brick house in Wawanesa, Manitoba, Canada from an insurance company executive, and started Gaybird Nursery there, operating it from 1944* to 1990. Like many Canadian Prairie nursery owners, he bred apples and small fruits and some ornamentals, including roses, peonies, and lilies. He was internationally recognized for his Asiatic and Martagon lilies, and he concentrated his efforts on lilies in his later years. He was given the 1990 E. H. Wilson Award by the North American Lily Society.

He had many other interests. He kept bees, studied and became an expert on birds, especially the eastern bluebird, and collected Indian artifacts such as hammers and arrowheads.

Robinson's wife Ivy (née Durham) was born in La Rivière, Manitoba. She was educated to be a teacher. She was teaching in East Bay, Manitoba when she met Ed. She worked with Ed at the nursery for the rest of her life. Ivy died in 1980 and was buried in the cemetery at La Rivière. Ed joined her there in 1992.



*personal communication from daughter
 
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