Edmund Winchester Merritt (1840 - 1931)

Edmund Winchester Merritt was an author, nurseryman, forester, and the pioneer researcher of fruit culture in Aroostook County, Maine. He was born in Massachusetts, but moved with his family to Maine as a teenager. He performed fruit trials, including the USDA's Russian Fruit Trials, and eventually had a nursery named Aroostook Nursery that was affiliated with Francis Peabody Sharp. His nursery specialized in hardy and Russian apples, pears, plums, and cherries, as well as Mooer's Arctic Plum. He wrote an annual “Guide to Fruit Culture,” from 1876 to 1892, which specifically addressed the challenges of Aroostook County, wrote articles on the subject, and gave talks to share his knowledge.