Steyermark's Flora of Missouri, Volume 1
George Yatskievych was born in Germany and grew up at Army bases there and in various parts of the United States. His family eventually settled in southern Arizona, where he developed an interest in botany. He earned undergraduate and master's degrees from the University of Arizona before completing doctoral studies at Indiana University, where he met his wife and botanical partner, Kay. In 1987, he became director of the Flora of Missouri Project. A botanist with the Missouri Department of Conservation, he is also curator of Missouri plants at the Missouri Botanical Garden, where his project is headquartered. A specialist in North American floristics and fern taxonomy, he also edits the American Fern Society's American Fern Journal and co-edits the Missouri Native Plant Society's Missouriensis. He has published more than 50 scientific papers and contributed treatments to Flora of North America, Flora Mesoamericana, the Jepson Manual, and Vascular Plants of Arizona.! When not studying Missouri's flora, he continues research on fern taxonomy and enjoys hiking and photography.