Dr. Lorne J. Duczek, plant pathologist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Saskatoon Research Centre retired March 1998. Lorne's early career began with a return to his native province as the Plant Pathology Specialist in Saskatchewan after graduating with his Ph.D. from the University of Toronto. After a few years, he joined Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada to conduct research on the management of cereal diseases, specifically common root rot and foliar diseases of wheat and barley. Lorne's patient observations and attention to scientific details have contributed to more than 30 scientific manuscripts on the biology, epidemiology, soil ecology, cultivar resistance, biological control, and the use of agronomic practices and fungicides in the control of these diseases.

Always one to keep busy, Lorne was an active participant and leader of national committees on grain diseases, the Canadian Phytopathological Society , and the Canadian Journal of Plant Pathology. Now Lorne has taken up new challenges such as climbing the mountains of the west, hiking the prairie grasslands, and honing his artistic side through sketching and photography. And of course, not to forget his past, some time is spent preparing and sipping some homemade barley brews.