The Western North Carolina Development Association in May honored Dr. Randy Gardner (right), a North Carolina State University plant breeder, and Dr. David Burnette (below, left), retired director of the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service's western district, with induction into the association's Agricultural Hall of Fame.

Stationed at the Mountain Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Center in Fletcher, Gardner is responsible for one of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences' most successful plant-breeding programs. Gardner has been breeding tomatoes at the Fletcher site since 1976. During that time, he has released more than 20 tomato varieties or breeding lines.

The tomato varieties from his program have been embraced by commercial tomato growers across North Carolina. Gardner estimates that 85 to 90 percent of the tomatoes grown commercially in North Carolina are his varieties.

Burnette retired in early 1995, ending a 31-year career with the Extension Service. He spent most of his career in western North Carolina. He joined Extension in 1964 as an agricultural agent in Mitchell County. He also served as an agricultural agent in Burke County before a brief stint as a 4-H specialist in Raleigh.

Burnette then returned to the mountains in Buncombe County as what was then known as the county chairman (the title has since been changed to director). He was named director of the western district in 1980 and remained in that position until his retirement. He now lives in Asheville.

The Western North Carolina Development Association is made up of key leaders in western North Carolina interested in promoting agriculture and community development across the region.