Lambertus C. Bobbink

It was on this day in 1939 that The Asbury Park Press reported that Lambertus C. Bobbink, one of the country's best-known florists, was honored at the New York Botanical Gardens.
The author, Pearl Buck, was there to dedicate a rose garden and unveil a plaque to Bobbink that read, "To honor Lambertus C. Bobbink, a great rosarian whose counsel and generosity helped to make this garden possible for the enjoyment of all."
Bobbink immigrated to the United States from Holland in 1896. He purchased a few acres of land in Rutherford, New Jersey, and in 1898 Frederick L. Atkins, an English nurseryman, became his partner in the business, forming Bobbink and Atkins, one of the worlds largest horticultural organizations at the time. They both made their homes on Herrick Street, around the corner from their business on Paterson Avenue.
In 1911, Bobbink & Atkins successfully grew the first crop of budded Hybrid Tea Roses in the United States and the hybrid tea roses to this country. In 1935, Bobbink introduced the Azalea Rutherfordiana in 1935, which memorialized Rutherford, his hometown.