Ray Franklin Evert

Professor Evert's early research was on the vascular cambium and seasonal development of the secondary xylem and phloem in woody dicotyledons. With the advent of electron microscopy, he began ultrastructural studies on the phloem of wood and herbaceous dicotyledons. This was followed by extensive studies on the comparative ultrastructure of seedless vascular plants, ranging from Psilotum to a broad array of ferns. In 1978, Professor Evert's research shifted to studies on the development and structure of leaves of selected C3 and C4 plants, utilizing bright-field and electron microscopy and a variety of experimental procedures to gain a greater understanding of structure-function relationship in leaves. Among the plants studied are several economically important crop plants: barley, maize, sugercane, sugar beet, and potato. Subsequently, Professor Evert's group concentrated on developmental and structural changes accompanying the transition of maize and barley leaves from importers to exporters of photoassimilates, a process commonly referred to as sink-to-source transition.