Rubuta ci gaba ga wannan sakin layi - Pflanze ɗan Otto Paul Pflanze ne (1885-1944) da Katrine Mills Pflanze (1886-1959). Ya halarci Kwalejin Maryville da Jami'ar Yale kafin a katse karatunsa na digiri na biyu a Yale ta yakin duniya na biyu, inda ya yi aiki a cikin Pacific Theater a cikin Rundunar Sojan Sama a matsayin jami'in leken asiri da ke tattare da yakin basasa. Bayan karshen yakin, Pflanze ya yi aiki ga Ma'aikatar Harkokin Wajen kuma yana cikin Berlin Airlift
tare da isar da kayayyaki a 1948, kafin daga karshe ya ci gaba da karatun digiri a Yale. Ya sami digirinsa na PhD a 1950, kuma ya koyar a cibiyoyi masu zuwa (wanda aka jera a cikin tsari na lokaci): Jami'ar New York, Jami'ar Massachusetts a Amherst, Jami'ar Illinois, Jami'ar Minnesota, Jami'ar Indiana, da Bard College. Daga 1970 zuwa 1971, Pflanze ya kasance Masanin Masana'antu a Cibiyar Nazarin Ci gaba a Princeton, New Jersey. Daga 1976 zuwa 1985, Pflanze shi ne Edita na Tarihin Tarihin Amirka, wanda ke da hedkwatarsa a Bloomington, Indiana.