°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ¿â

Editor's Note: A photograph is available by e-mail. Contact Patricia Bailey (see end).

Charles Rick, a plant geneticist and botanist recognized by many as the world's leading authority on the biology of the tomato, died Sunday, May 5, in Davis. A professor emeritus at the , he was 87.

His family is planning a June open house in his honor for friends and colleagues. In accordance with his wishes, no formal services will be held.

Something of a modern-day Charles Darwin and Indiana Jones combined, Professor Rick was equally at home in the classroom, greenhouse, laboratory and field. His research expeditions took him from the Galapagos Islands to high in the Andes, where he criss-crossed rugged terrain to collect hundreds of wild tomato species. These wild species contained a wide range of genetic variation that was missing from the modern domestic tomato.

During his career, he made landmark contributions in the areas of plant genetics, evolution, genome mapping and archiving the seeds of tomatoes and related plant species.

In 1967, he was elected to the , one of the highest honors for research scientists.

"Among his colleagues, Dr. Rick was considered the quintessential scientist," said °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ¿â Davis professor John Yoder, chair of the Department of Vegetable Crops. "His passion was learning and discovery, not fortune or fame. He had a contagious enthusiasm for biology that impacted and motivated all who knew him."

Born in 1915 in Reading, Pa., Charles Rick grew up working in orchards and participating in nature studies through the Boy Scouts.

He earned a bachelor's degree in horticulture in 1937 from Pennsylvania State University, where he met and married Martha Overholts. The couple then moved to Cambridge, Mass., where he earned a doctoral degree in genetics from Harvard University in 1940.

He came to °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ¿â Davis in 1940 as a faculty member in the vegetable crops department, launching a career that would span more than 60 years.

A colleague soon suggested that Rick investigate what was wrong with "bull" tomato plants, vines that seemed to pour all of their energy into vegetative growth without producing any fruit.

At first, the proposed project struck Rick as "a damn fool thing to think about," he admitted in later years. But he became convinced that the problem merited investigation and went on to discover a host of genetic conditions in the sterile tomato plants. He was able to identify the genetic causes for flower infertility and define several single-gene mutants that are now used to provide commercial hybrid tomato seed.

His studies led him to construct a genetic "linkage map" that pinpointed the locations of many mutant or variable genes on each of the tomato's 12 chromosomes. It was the beginning of his pioneering effort to map the tomato's entire collection of genes, now known as its genome.

Professor Rick's early work laid the foundation for molecular maps that today make the tomato genome one of the best-mapped plant genomes. His efforts to identify the genetic basis of resistance to the nematode -- a tiny worm pest -- made it possible to develop nematode-resistant tomato varieties. Because the tomato has been so well characterized genetically, it now serves as a research model for plant scientists and can be more readily modified for commercial use.

In addition to his contributions to building a better understanding of the tomato as a crop, Professor Rick also made important contributions to the field of plant evolution. His research helped advance the understanding of the relationship between the geographic distribution of plant species and their ability to crossbreed with each other. His work also helped clarify the impact of flower structure on a plant's ability to crossbreed with other species. And his research on structure, crossability, native habitat and geographic distribution helped explain the evolutionary relationships among various tomato species.

In 1949, Professor Rick co-founded the to encourage tomato researchers to communicate their findings and exchange information. He took sole responsibility for publishing the cooperative's report from its beginning in 1951 until 1981.

Perhaps one of his greatest contributions was in establishing and serving as curator for the Tomato Genetics Resource Center at °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ¿â Davis. The center is the largest known collection of tomato seeds in the world. Professor Rick devoted countless hours to collecting, cataloging, maintaining and distributing seeds from wild species and genetic stock. Many primitive varieties and wild species that were collected and maintained at the center are now extinct in their native habitats. Furthermore, many of the unique mutant tomato stocks developed by researchers throughout the world would have been lost without Rick's efforts to archive them.

His tireless efforts were recognized in 1990, when the center was renamed the .

Professor Rick's legacy can also be found in several generations of plant geneticists whom he mentored. His students went on to lead major research institutes, serve as ministers of agriculture and work as faculty members at universities on every continent.

Over the years he received a host of prestigious awards. They included the Alexander von Humboldt Award in 1993, the in Agriculture in 1997 and induction to the American Society of Horticultural Sciences Hall of Fame in 1998.

Although officially retired from °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ¿â Davis in 1985, Professor Rick remained active in the field of plant genetics until the age of 85, when health difficulties interfered with his greenhouse and laboratory work. Usually sporting the trademark cloth fishing hat that he wore in both formal and informal settings, he was known as a modest person, full of amusing anecdotes. He had a passion for traveling, the arts, meeting new people and enjoying foreign cultures.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Martha, and is survived by his daughter, Susan Rick Baldi, and son, John Rick, who are academics at Santa Rosa Junior College and Stanford University. He also leaves three grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

A scholarship fund is being established in Professor Rick's memory that will help support South American students and scholars interested in promoting biodiversity in the Andes. Contributions should be made payable to the Charles Rick Scholarship Fund and sent in care of Professor John Yoder, Department of Vegetable Crops, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, Ca. 95616-8687.