- Author: Daniel H Putnam
Each day it's important to value the folks around you.
This week, Dr. Larry Teuber passed away after a long courageous battle with cancer. Larry started as an Assistant Professor in at UC Davis on December 7, 1977 and his appointment continued until his last day. He had his boots on. He was the alfalfa breeder and geneticist for alfalfa at UC Davis, and director of the California Crop Improvement Association.
Larry was instrumental in contributing to the plant breeding of alfalfa, having released numerous key non-dormant alfalfa germplasm sources which have been used by private companies, and, more recently, several widely-grown alfalfa varieties: UC Impalo WF and UC Highline. He was active in the National Variety Review Board, North American Alfalfa Improvement Conference, and other groups. He was the key player in determining measurements and biology of fall dormancy and other descriptors for alfalfa, as well as the physiology of alfalfa growth as influenced by daylength and temperature. His planting date work in the 1980s-90s was instrumental in establishing the value of early fall planting, enabling growers to gain often 20% on their forage yields. He was quite interested in the biology of bee and pollination behavior, and the biochemistry of Lygus damage in alfalfa and other crops. In more recent years, he contributed to the understanding of gene flow in alfalfa, particularly as it relates to the importance of genetic integrity of biotech and non-biotech containing varieties in seed production.
He taught genetics, statistics and forages at UC Davis. In addition to his academic contribution in teaching and his research in alfalfa breeding, for many years Larry was the director for the departmental Foundation Seed Program, taught at the UC Plant Breeding Academy since its inception, and for the past nearly 10 years was the Executive Director of the California Crop Improvement Association.
Larry was a very thoughtful and methodical colleague, and will truly be missed by all of us, as a faculty member, director, colleague and friend. The alfalfa community regrets the loss of a geneticist and breeder who contributed greatly to this crop, and championed the crop both in California and nationally.
If you wish to send your condolences, please send it to Kathryn Soden, of the California Crop Improvement Association, One Shields Avenue, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, (krsoden@ucdavis.edu) and she will pass it on to the family.
Message for the day: Notice and value those around you - they might not be there tomorrow.
With Deep Sorrow,
CA Alfalfa Workgroup members
A Celebration of Life Service for Larry Teuber will be held on June 19th at 4 pm. At the University Covenant Church in Davis (315 Mace Blvd., Davis, CA 95618).
In lieu of flowers, Larry asked that donations be made to the “Larry Teuber Seed Research Program” (checks payable to the California Wild Rice Advisory Board, 4125 Temescal St., Ste F, Fair Oaks, CA 95628) or to a memorial set up at Youth With a Mission’s University of the Nations (Check payable to University of the Nations - Kona Foundation [UNKF], with a separate memo indicating it is for the “Larry Teuber Memorial Fund”, 75-5851 Kuakini Hwy #256, Kailua-Kona, HI 96740).
Larry’s wife, Suzanne and two surviving children, Stephanie and Melissa would REALLY enjoy hearing about your comments /condolences and anecdotes about Larry’s work activities, his projects, etc. Photos, especially would be very helpful. So if you have anecdotes, photos, or comments to share, these can be collected and saved for his family as a memorium, especially for his children who are now 17 and 19 years of age. Awful young to loose their dad.
Please add your comments to this blog so that they can be collected for the family. Email your photos to me (Dan Putnam) so we can forward to the family.
Sincerely,
Dan Putnam
Larry will truly be missed; in my case he was an outstanding mentor and a true friend; providing early guidance that led me into a fulfilling career.
I am happy to say I was a witness to part of his life.
Regards
I had the pleasure of guest lecturing some of his classes and recall planning and practicing my presentation days ahead of time for content but especially accuracy. You could always bet he would challenge any statements which he felt was without adequate scientific basis, and most of the time he was right. I began on the crop improvement association board when Larry took over as director. He was faced with personnel issues; politics and challenges that not many of us felt were doable. With little collateral damage he revamped operations and instituted many new positive programs that remain in operation today.
Larry was a real credit to the UC system and plant science department, a significant contributor to the alfalfa industry in California and worldwide. He was a leader, a scientist, an extension colleague, a friend and will be greatly missed but his legacy of accomplishments I’m sure will live on.
Mick Canevari