UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON ARCHIVES
ORAL HISTORY PROJECT
Interview #1303
TIBBITTS, THEODORE “TED”
TIBBITTS, Theodore “Ted” (1929 - )
Undergraduate & Graduate Student (Agronomy & Horticulture); Professor Emeritus of
Horticulture
At UW: [as student] 1946-1953; [as faculty] 1955-1995
Interviewed:
Interviewer:
Index by:
Length:
2013 (3 sessions)
Troy Reeves
Troy Reeves
2 hour, 30 minutes
Abstract: In his three 2013 (February & March) interviews with Troy Reeves, Ted Tibbitts
detailed his thoughts and memories as an undergraduate student, graduate student and
professor on the UW-Madison campus. Tibbits spoke of the time period between 1940s
and 1990s and on the following topics: UW-Madison Horticultural Department, Biotron,
U.S. Army, NASA, tobacco, lettuce, potatoes, international travel, and controlled
environment experimentation in raising vegetables. This interview was conducted for
inclusion into the UW-Madison Oral History Program.
Key Words: Madison, WI; UW-Madison Horticultural Department; Babcock House;
Kenneth Buchholtz; LeRoy G. “Whitey” Holm; tobacco, lettuce, and potato research;
travel; National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); North American
Aviation (NAA); U.S. Army; Biotron; teaching; graduate students; controlled
environments; light emitting diodes (LED); Wisconsin Center for Space Automation and
Robotics (WCSAR).
Interview Session (February 11, 2013): Digital File
Time
Keywords
00:00:00 Start of Interview/Interviewer’s Introduction.
00:00:37 Question: How did Ted Tibbitts (TT) end up at UW? Answer: TT felt that living on a
farm started his road to UW. He took Agriculture courses in high school, and his
mother, who grew up in Madison, knew of an Ag-focused co-operative house (on Lake
Street where Stephen Babcock had lived). TT eventually majored in agronomy and
through his connection with faculty, he went directly from undergraduate to graduate
work in horticulture (working under “Whitey” Holm). In 1953, TT graduated with a
Ph.D in Horticulture/Botany.
Ted Tibbitts (#1303)
00:04:02 Question: Did TT have family in Madison? Answer: Two aunts lived in Madison,
which meant TT had travelled to Madison quite a bit while growing up. When asked
about his thoughts about living in Madison, TT talked again about his housing
situation. He lived with about 30 other men, some of whom served in the military
during World War II. Because WWII vets did not pay for textbooks, TT never bought
one. TT lived all four years at Babcock House; he continued to eat there even during
graduate school when he moved down the street. The Babcock House was demolished
to make room for the Extension building.
00:07:01 Question: Did you attend athletic events? Answer: TT recalled watching all the
football and basketball home games. This thought led TT to remember showering at
the Armory, because the house had no shower. They used the Armory’s towels. TT
discussed his undergraduate work delivering the Daily Cardinal and monitoring
agronomy experiments. He spent summers both at home and in Madison. This led TT
to talk about his interest in weed control; it started while still in high school when his
father coaxed him and his brothers to work summers spraying weeds. The weed
sprayers were retro-fitted to an old Ford and Chevrolet.
00:10:33 Question: Friendships in college? Answer: TT said a group of friends from Babcock
House met every year during Homecoming. TT returned to his work in weed control,
which led to his graduate work, studying the effect of chemicals on beets. When asked,
TT explained that he started graduate school immediately after undergraduate, in part
to keep out of the draft and the Korean War. TT talked about how “Whitey” Holm
received funding which then led him to hire TT to work on one specific chemical and
beets. This work led to TT’s thesis and his doctorate. TT noted where in Wisconsin
farmers grew beets.
00:13:57 Question: More on graduate school, classes, professors, etc. Answer: TT did field
research (on beets) in the summer, but conducted research all year. When asked about
classes, TT listed them. He took classes primarily on the Ag campus. TT confirmed
that the thesis work earned him a doctorate, although he did take an MA thesis, too.
Both degrees stemmed from his work on weed control on beets. The field research led
TT to get to know the farmers, and they seemed appreciative of his efforts. Along with
fieldwork off campus, they raised beets on campus, just west of Picnic Point.
00:17:53 Question: What was TT’s future after graduate work? Answer: TT was not sure; he
thought about working in the chemical industry, but he was drafted into the service in
September 1953 after earning his degree in June. He explained why he chose not to go
into officers’ training. A UW colleague told TT of work at Camp Dietrich in MD
focusing on chemical warfare, so the Army arranged for him to work there. When that
fell through (TT explained why), he trained in artillery and was sent to Germany.
When he ended up in Germany, he was transferred to an intelligence unit in
Heidelberg. He offered an overview of his work and the reasons it interested him.
00:21:13 [No question.] After 16 months in the service, TT got an early release to take a
professorship in Horticulture at UW. He noted the advantages of getting out of the
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military over any disadvantages in taking a job in the same department he did graduate
work. When asked a bit more about his time in Germany, TT talked about seeing little
of the physical or psychological effects of WWII in Germany or on Germans. TT said
he wanted to get out of the military as soon as possible.
00:23:42 Question: How did TT find out about the UW job? Answer: TT had kept in contact
with Holm and others at UW, so they knew of his work and wanted him to come back
to do research. TT knew of no competition for the job, which centered on research in
tobacco. They told TT that the job would move from tobacco to vegetables, which TT
wanted. So, TT started work in July 1955 as an assistant professor. When asked about
changes in Madison or campus, he noted little change in Madison. Professionally,
however, he had found himself disadvantaged by not being able to keep up with the
literature.
00:26:15 Question: Differences in graduate student versus faculty? Answer: TT first made
arrangements with a friend staying near Breese Terrace, but when that fell through he
stayed with his brother on Langdon Street, He eventually met his first wife there while
temporarily subbing for his brother waiting tables. When the interviewer asked TT if
he wanted to say anything else pre-1955 he wanted to add, he spoke of his high school
experience. Specifically, he wanted to talk about a teacher (Joe Beadle) who
broadened TT’s experience in agriculture, including raising animals and showing
animals at the state fair. Also, in high school TT won the state FFA speaking contest.
That led him to participate in a regional competition at Purdue University. This
competition led to one of TT’s first trips outside of Wisconsin.
00:31:49 [No question.] TT wanted to furnish more memories of his childhood. Specifically, he
attended a one-room schoolhouse about ¼ mile away from Kindergarten through 8th
grade. He felt that experience gave him extra education that prepared him better for
high school. He and his brothers all attended the Wilson Creek school. Going to
Galesville HS, 14 miles from their house, required a long trip each day there and back.
00:34:07 Question: No teaching in TT’s first appointment? Answer: Yes. TT explained his work
with tobacco, which led him to try direct seeding for tobacco—this never came to
fruition. TT moved as quickly as he could (about 4 years) into working with
vegetables, particularly head lettuce. There was nearly 5k acres of head lettuce, but
Wisconsin’s climate negatively affected the crop. TT briefly noted where both tobacco
and lettuce were grown in WI in the 1950s and 1960s. With tobacco TT also kept the
list of certified tobacco seeds and used his interest in weed control to try to help
tobacco farmers impede the “suckers” that grow as part of the plant. TT published a
paper that stated that the chemical used to inhibit the “suckers” did not affect the
tobacco’s quality.
00:38:35 Question: The move from tobacco to vegetables? Answer: TT took the job with the
understanding that within a few years he would migrate to research in vegetables.
When asked, TT said he enjoyed research of any kind and felt regret when he left
tobacco research, because he made good contacts, both with farmers and other
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researchers. TT started working with lettuce, specifically tip burn—he explained
this—which led to his interest in creating controlled environments. He offered an
overview of those first, controlled environment experiments in tip burn.
00:42:12 Question: More on controlled environments? Answer: When TT started working in
lettuce, he saw the need for getting controlled environments. He noted briefly that
Biotron was not built for the first decade or so of his professorial time at UW. He
talked about issues with his early work in controlled environments, including how
people working around the environment would change it by adding their carbon
dioxide. He told about the first company who sold him controlled environments; they
never worked as well as TT needed (or as the company claimed). Only with the
Biotron was TT able to work in a truly controlled environment, due to the chambers
and the equipment included with them.
00:45:47 [No question.] TT offered a workshop at a national meeting about controlled
environments and their issues. This led to the creation of an active national group that
aimed at improving controlled environment work. TT and the interviewer chatted
about TT’s interest in improving controlled environment, both before and during the
Biotron.
00:47:39 Question: Marriage? Answer: TT married in 1956, and they moved to University
housing. After one year they moved to the Westmorland neighborhood in West
Madison. In the first years after marriage, TT’s wife gave birth to two children. TT felt
he balanced work and home life, even though he travelled quite a bit; they often
travelled together, building upon TT’s work-related travel. TT travelled domestically
during his first decade or so as a professor; he travelled internationally later.
00:50:20 Question: Other non-controlled environment research? Answer: TT work with weed
control on organic farms in WI, continuing to work with Holm. TT started teaching in
1965, because he felt it would benefit his research work. The interviewer concluded
with a question about tenure; it took TT nine years. The department/committee took
into consideration TT’s difficulty in publishing.
00:54:57 End of First Interview Session
Interview Session (February 18, 2013): Digital File
Time
Keywords
00:00:00 Start of Interview/Interviewer’s Introduction.
00:00:48 Question: Ted Tibbitts’ work with NASA? Answer: Ted Tibbitts (TT) began with
some context, i.e. why he wanted to work with NASA. It started with his work with
lettuce and controlled environments. TT heard that NASA wanted to grow lettuce on
the moon, so TT surmised that NASA could help fund his controlled environment
research. In 1965 TT could take a six-month leave, which he wanted to use to find out
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more about working with NASA. After two false starts, he found studies ongoing at
North American Aviation (NAA) in California; the researcher invited TT to join him.
TT saw this as a way to find out who to contact at NASA. TT then explained the
research at NAA, focusing on leaf movement on small pepper plants. Eventually,
NASA made a space flight with pepper plants.
00:05:05 Question: More on TT’s work with NAA? Answer: TT worked a 9-5 day, 5 days a
week at NAA. He talked of other work while in CA, including seeing the affect of CA
air pollution on NAA’s experiments. This led TT to teach a class on air quality &
pollution when he returned to UW. The work at NAA did lead TT to start working
with NASA. TT noted, however, that when NASA decided not to try to grow food on
the moon, his work with them reduced greatly. NASA did fund him over the years,
particularly focusing on his work in lettuce.
00:08:25 Question: More on TT’s work with NASA? Answer: TT talked about assisting with
two biosatellite flights; he explained the aftermath of each mission. He attended the
take-off of each satellite and recalled how close they all were from the ignition site.
When asked about presentations related to his work with NASA, he organized
programs and gave talks related to his NASA/controlled environment work. This led to
more consulting with NASA, re: plants in space. In 1979 & 1980, NASA returned to
looking at figuring out how to grow plants on environments such as the moon. He led
2 major workshops developed to recommend what plants would grow best and the
amount of research involved in making it happen. They arrived at 5 plants and
determined how much space needed for crop growth. NASA then granted TT (and
others) money to research potatoes in controlled environment; TT noted he continued
to work in lettuce too.
00:14:32 Question: Research in potatoes? Answer: Potato research served as a significant shift
for TT’s research. He noted that his research ended up having benefits for the potato
industry. And by that time, all of TT’s research in potatoes occurred in the Biotron.
00:17:32 Question: TT’s working relationship with NASA? Answer: TT primarily maintained
contact with NASA’s Washington DC office, but his workshops and panels came with
the imprimatur of the NASA office, which included travel to CA, FL, and TX. Asked
about his work for NASA in the 1980s, he said his funding did not change much. He
also helped in robotics, trying to use them to use automation to help plants growth.
00:20:36 Question: TT’s initial interest in the Biotron? Answer: TT became interested in the
Biotron as early as its idea phase. When it opened in 1967, he became the the first
plant researcher to “pay to play,” renting space in it. His first experiment in the
Biotron was with lettuce. TT discussed this experiment in terms of the benefits of
doing it in the Biotron and explained the dimensions of the Biotron’s rooms. Biotron
stood as a unique facility, with so many rooms where controlled environments.
00:24:23 Question: Did TT know of the other research in the Biotron? Answer: He did,
specifically how one experiment (or one room) might affect other experiments. He
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cited an example of ethylene glycol from one experiment contaminating others. TT
researched that and helped to minimize it in the future. When asked who helped him
on these experiments, he said graduate students, almost exclusively with outside
funding, assisted him on all Biotron experiments.
00:27:19 Question: More on graduate students? Answer: TT explained how the graduate
students found him (or how he found them) and how TT tried to evaluate them before
asking them to join his research.
00:29:59 Question: Mentoring graduate students? Answer: TT tried to shepherd his students
through the academic and research part of their UW-Madison career. He explained the
difference in his students’ getting their master’s and doctorate and a similarity, they all
worked on TT’s research, using an aspect of it for their thesis. Students would also get
at least one publication, which TT would serve as co- or lead author, depending on the
situation. When asked, TT could not recall any of his students returning to UWMadison; TT encouraged them to move onto other institutions to network better.
00:34:43 Question: Any difference in working in the Biotron on lettuce or potatoes? Answer:
There was difference in what types of research and the size of the environment. When
asked, TT explained both why his potato research occurred in one of the larger rooms
in the Biotron and the lettuce research could be done in the smaller chamber.
00:36:37 Question: Typical day of research? Answer: TT would set up the experiment initially,
which could take a couple of days. Once the experiment commenced, TT and the
students would monitor the environment, both the Biotron and their tools. Also, a
typical day, from the mid-1960s forward, TT taught usually one course a semester. He
used a research assistant to help him, if necessary. He had told his RAs that assisting
him teach would be part of their graduate school package.
00:40:04 Question: Any specific Biotron experiments? Answer: He returned to finding the
ethylene glycol as unique and memorable. He also spoke of one experiment with a
high-power lamp, where he grew plants around and underneath it. When asked, TT
explained the importance of doing experiments more than one.
00:42:51 Question: How did TT and his student analyze data in the 1960s & 1970s? Answer:
They always used calculators and tables/graphs (on paper). TT became an early
proponent of using computers to analyze data; he then explained how he or his
students would take the punch cards to the data center then get the findings.
00:45:22 Question: TT’s (or his students’) involvement in student protests in 1960s and 1970s?
Answer: He knew some of his students were involved, but he did not participate nor
cancel class for it. He did not defend the student protests and felt neutral on the
Vietnam Conflict.
00:47:37 Question: Teaching in the 1960s and 1970s? Answer: He reminded the interviewer
why he wanted to teach. He then talked about the courses he taught early on, including
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Horticulture 370 & 320. TT developed 320 himself, focusing specifically on plant
environment. It eventually became co-taught and served as the class he taught the
longest. For a while this class included a lab; TT furnished an overview of the lab
work and why it ended. When asked, TT talked briefly about Horticulture 420, a
course on the effect of pollution on plants. This course became popular for all plant
students in CALS and in Botany.
00:52:21 Question: Teaching load? Answer: He would teach one class in fall and one in spring;
he never taught an official class in summer. In summer, he taught his graduate students
through his and their research. When asked for final thoughts, TT offered none.
00:53:40 End of Second Interview Session
Interview Session (March 18, 2013): Digital File
Time
Keywords
00:00:00 Start of Interview/Interviewer’s Introduction.
00:00:32 Question: International travel, starting in the 1970s? Answer: Ted Tibbitts (TT)
explained how his research allowed him to take academic leave to travel to the
Netherlands in the early 1970s in order to continue his research on lettuce. This
research equated to a 9 to 5 job and involved little other travel, except for one trip to
France for a presentation.
00:03:01 Question: Travel to Japan/Australia/New Zealand? Answer: The 1978 travel did not
involve extended research but presentations on those three locales. It did lead to
another academic leave to New Zealand in 1981. This lead to follow-up questions
about the use of lighting to assist in plant growth and about the controlled environment
(CE) group that TT brought together in 1968 and expanded in 1976. TT offered an
overview of the CE group, including a symposium held in Madison in 1976, which
help expanded the group.
00:08:39 [No question.] He talked about the international travel that related to his consulting
with NASA. A lot of it meant travelling to Europe, plus one trip to Russia in 1990. He
furnished a brief overview of his trip to Russia.
00:11:38 [No question.] TT reminded the interviewer that he had received funding from NASA
in the 1960s to enhance his work on growing vegetables in a CE. After a lull in the
early/mid 1970s, NASA returned to an interest in CE, so TT received another injection
of NASA funding. NASA then funded some of TT’s presentations/workshops. When
asked more about presentations, TT discussed an international conference in 1994,
which received backing from the NSF and led to TT’s interest in LEDs as a way to
better CE plant growth.
00:15:24 [No question.] TT discussed more about LEDs, including how he and others hold a
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patent on LEDs & plant growth. He said it started with a meeting at UW-Madison with
the engineering dean. While attending a meeting, TT met someone from Dodgeville
who had built LEDs that emit red light. This person gave TT some of them to use in
his experiments. Over the course of the last 25 years, LEDs have become prominent in
CE plant growth.
00:19:14 Question: Final thoughts on LEDs and CE? Answer: TT noted here that red light
LEDs, while important and more flexible, have been found to be as efficient as other
types of light but not more. This led TT to discuss how LEDs were used on a couple of
shuttle flights, specifically if a vegetable (potato leaves) could be grown on the shuttle.
It worked. Also, TT talked about working with the College of Engineering and their
robotics program (WCSAR).
00:22:33 Question: Director of Biotron? Answer: TT reminded the interviewer that he used the
Biotron early in its existence and had served on its advisory board. In 1987 the Dean
of the Graduate School asked him to direct it. He offered an overview of his time as
director, including how the Biotron changed to accommodate more animal research
and how he saw more of the building’s complexity when he oversaw it.
00:25:28 Question: Staff at Biotron? Answer: TT listed the type of staff (all classified) who
worked for Biotron while TT directed it. Some staff turnover happened while TT led
the Biotron. When asked about his own experiments, TT said that his graduate
students primarily led them during that time, including interacting with the staff. TT
also thought the Biotron’s issue with ethylene glycol happened during his leadership;
they found out it adversely affected cucumbers.
00:28:47 Question: End of leading Biotron? Answer: Change in graduate school dean which led
the dean to ask TT to step down. His other interests led him to relish the opportunity to
move on. He continued to work with NASA, including traveling around the U.S. This
led TT to talk about his early work with NASA, particularly advising the group
devised to study the soil brought back from the moon. TT never got to see the soil; he
just helped set up the procedures to test it.
00:32:38 Question: Retire the end of 1995? Answer: His wife’s health issues helped lead TT to
retire, plus 40 years at one place was probably enough. He stayed involved through
some WCSAR funds; he had prepared for retiring by reducing then eliminating his
graduate students. He also continued his work within the NCR 101 (CE Group),
meeting with them once a year, although it has become more of a chance to reconnect
with old friends than to contribute to the science.
00:34:53 Question: Work within Horticulture Department? Answer: TT listed a few of the ways
he contributed, but he never took the offers to lead the department. When asked by the
interviewer, he said he received offers from other universities/colleges but never
pursued them.
00:36:59 Question: Library committees? Answer: He was asked to served on the Steenbock
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Library and University Library committees; he eventually ended up as chair as both.
He noted that when he served on library committee, he tried to use his position to get
libraries to embrace computers as a search tool.
00:38:51 Question: Final comments? Answer: TT concluded by noting the double-edged sword
of coming back to work at the university he earned his graduate degrees. While it
slowed his early research it offered him flexibility in teaching and research. When
asked about his legacy, he said working in controlled environments to standardize
research, getting useful and repeatable data.
00:41:42 End of Third Interview Session
End of Oral History #1303
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