Luther Burbank laid the foundation for modern applied botanical genetics. He was the first and early master of cross-breeding, hybridization, and grafting, in order to develop hundreds of new plants and vegetables of much greater vigor and yield. He "invented" the Shasta daisy, breeds of cacti, grains and grasses that improved cattle production, and he made available new fruits and vegetables of great value to American agriculture, such as corn, tomatoes, apples, almonds, plums, peaches, berries of all kinds, roses and poppies. In 1909, he grew his 136th variety of lily, and in 1911, he produced a thornless raspberry and the Burbank cherry. In 1915, he completed a 12-volume work, "Luther Burbank: His Methods and Their Practical Application." And he followed that up in 1921 with the 8-volume "How Plants Are Trained to Work for Man." Burbank had indefatigable energy and was a tenacious free spirit uninterested in personal profit from his work, a romantic who strongly opposed religious fundamentalism. He was also a childlike eccentric, and a man who so hated discipline that he failed to keep good scientific records of his many thousands of experiments, much to the despair of the scientific world. Burbank was born in Lancaster, Massachusetts, on March 7, 1849, and died, much honored for his in Santa Rosa, California, where he lived most of his adult life, on April 11, 1926.

Model: Burbank's enthusiasm. He loved what he was doing, and, therefore, "never worked a day in his life."

A dreamer. If you were born on March 7, you are a complex person living in an abstract world. If you can find a way to express your thoughts in a concrete form that involves others, you can be a quite a success. But no matter how down-to-earth your work, you seem to exist on a different plane. Ruled by the number 7 and the planet Neptune, you can be dreamy and imaginative.

Wedging into your world. Your lonely personal world is not easy to penetrate. Your friends and loved ones must be patient and understanding, never demanding. You tend to shrink when too much direct pressure is applied. When attacked or criticized, you hardly defend yourself before ducking into your shell. You learn very quickly who can be understanding and accepting of your idiosyncrasies. With these people you can be very giving.

Truth, justice and the American Way. You are very sympathetic to the needs of others, so justice and equality can be of great concern to you. Your societal interests, however, don't make you terribly social. You may be more than satisfied with one or two friends. Secretive, you are not very up front about what you expect from others.

Adrift in a sea of uncertainty. Lack of energy, fears, instabilities, and an uncertainty with what you are to do with your life may keep you from living to the fullest. Once you are able to focus and commit to a meaningful endeavor, you can go quite far.

Some advice: Try find a way to express your abstract thoughts, through your work, art, words, or music. Bring others into your world. Don't be so self-critical.

Also born on this day: Luther Burbank (experimental horticulturist) Piet Mondrian (Dutch-American modern painter) Maurice Ravel (French impressionist composer) Kobe Abe (Japanese playwright, novelist) Ivan Lendl (Czech tennis champ) Joseph Niepce (produced first photograph) Janet Guthrie (first woman in Indy 500) Franco Harris (Pittsburgh Steelers running back) Lynn Swann (Steelers wide receiver) Anna Magnani (Italian actress) Ben Ames Williams (short-story, novel writer) Mary Norton (US congresswoman, New Jersey) Roger Revelle (oceanographer)