The Egg-straordinary Survival of a 79-Year-Old Botanist in Alaska
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast:
July 10, 1949
Oh, my dear garden enthusiasts, what a tale of botanical adventure I have for you today!
In this year of 1949, a most remarkable rescue has occurred that would make even the hardiest of plant hunters raise an eyebrow in astonishment. A 79-year-old botanist, Dr. Melville Thurston Cook, along with his wife and their unfortunate pilot, have been plucked from the clutches of the Alaskan wilderness by an Air Force helicopter after enduring a full week stranded among the untamed flora of the Brooks Mountain range.
One might imagine such a predicament would leave our esteemed botanist in dire straits, but providence, it seems, has a sense of humor.
Their aircraft was carrying cargo of the most peculiar yet fortuitous nature: 90 dozen eggs!
Yes, my dears, 1,080 oval saviors.
Dr. Cook, displaying the creativity one would expect from a man who has spent his life classifying the intricate variations of plant life, reported that they "had not lacked for variety" in their egg preparations. Fried, boiled, poached, scrambled, shirred, and omelet – their culinary repertoire was, shall we say, consistently oval-themed.
And what, pray tell, does a botanist do when not consuming his thousandth egg of the week?
Collect specimens, naturally!
One can almost picture our intrepid Dr. Cook scrambling over rocks, specimen box in hand, while his wife tends to yet another egg concoction over their makeshift fire.
Dr. Cook, who shall celebrate his 80th year come September, expressed with remarkable sangfroid that he "never doubted the party would be saved."
How very reassuring for his companions, I'm sure!
Nevertheless, the ordeal has prompted the Cooks to reconsider their living arrangements. They have wisely decided to relocate closer to their children – one of whom, Dr. Harold T. Cook, has followed in his father's footsteps to become a plant pathologist.
The botanical legacy continues!
Prior to his egg-scapade in Alaska, our protagonist was winding down his illustrious career as a visiting part-time professor of plant pathology at Louisiana State University. But let us not forget the heights of his botanical fame – for Dr. Cook once botanized with the legendary Nathaniel Lord Britton and Elizabeth Gertrude Britton in the lush paradise of Puerto Rico. He also collaborated with Henry Allan Gleason at the esteemed New York Botanical Garden.
One wonders what fascinating specimens he managed to tuck into his pockets during those seven days in Alaska.
Perhaps we shall soon see a monograph on "Flora of the Emergency Landing: A Comprehensive Study of Plants Observed While Consuming 1,080 Eggs."
I dare say, for gardeners of advancing years who worry their plant hunting days might be behind them, Dr. Cook stands as a testament that botanical passion knows no age limit – though perhaps next time, one might pack a more varied picnic.
