M. G. (Maurice Grenville) Kains

Born in St. Thomas, Ontario, in 1868, Maurice Grenville Kains built his career around horticulture and practical agriculture. Sources consulted identify him as a horticultural consultant, and published biographical records also connect him with study at Michigan State College and Cornell, where he trained in agricultural science.

Kains wrote a wide range of practical guides for growers and home gardeners, including books on culinary herbs, fruit growing, pruning, plant propagation, poultry production, and making horticulture pay. He is especially remembered for Five Acres and Independence, a guide to small-farm living that helped make self-sufficient country life feel approachable and organized rather than romanticized.

He wrote in a straightforward, serviceable way that matched his subject matter: real plants, real work, and real results. That plainspoken usefulness is a big reason his books still attract readers today, especially anyone interested in classic home agriculture, kitchen gardens, and older traditions of self-reliance.