John Clayton Gifford (February 8, 1870 – June 25, 1949)[ citation needed] was a naturalist and forester who was the first American to hold a PhD in forestry. [1]
Born in 1870 in the Mays Landing, New Jersey, he received a BSc in 1890 from Swarthmore College and later studied forestry in Germany.[ citation needed] He worked as an associate professor at Cornell University. [1]
In 1902, he moved to the Coconut Grove neighborhood in Miami, where he became an entrepreneur and land developer. He was an ardent supporter of draining the Everglades and started experimenting by planting Cajeput trees. [1]
He wrote articles for the Miami Herald's Tropic magazine. He wrote The Everglades and other essays relating to southern Florida (1911). [1]
He introduced Melaleuca trees to Florida [1] in the 1900s. Melaleuca quinquenervia subsequently invaded large areas of South Florida, displacing native wetland and upland vegetation. [2]
He later was employed at the University of Miami as a Professor of tropical forestry. [1]
The John C. Gifford Arboretum at the University of Miami was named for him in 1949. [3] It was established in 1947 and currently has collection of over 500 plants. [4]