Background
Rzedowski, Jerzy was born on December 27, 1926 in Lwów, Poland. Son of Arnold and Ernestyna (Rotter) Rzedowski. arrived in Mexico, 1946.
Rzedowski, Jerzy was born on December 27, 1926 in Lwów, Poland. Son of Arnold and Ernestyna (Rotter) Rzedowski. arrived in Mexico, 1946.
He remained in a concentration camp until World World War II finished and he was liberated by the Allies. He studied a bachelor"s degree in Biology at the Instituto Politecnico Nacional and a Doctor of Philosophy in Botany at Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.
While he was young he was made prisoner by the Germans. He then travelled to Mexico looking for a more peaceful country. His thesis on the Flora of the Pedregal de San Angel was quite important at this stage of his career.
He worked at different companies and institutions such as Syntex, Smith, Kline & French, Colegio de Postgraduados, Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí and Instituto Politecnico Nacional.
He did not just work in the herbarium. He explored a lot of places surveying the local plant life.
He collected more than 50000 specimens that can be found in many herbaria. At the time that he started to work on Mexican floristics very few studies were published in that field, so he became a pioneer in lieutenant
Afterwards, he became the most respected botanist in Mexico.
Rzedowski is the author of Vegetación de México (1971), co-editor and co-author of Flora Fanerogámica del Valle de México (1979. 2001, 2nd edition), and of Flora del Bajío y de Regiones Adyacentes (since 1991). In 1999 he was one of the botanists to whom it was conferred the Millennium Botany Award.
In 2005 he was awarded the José Cuatrecasas Medal for Excellence in Tropical Botany.
The herbaria of Instituto Politecnico Nacional and of Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro are named after Rzedowski. The botanical garden of Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro is named after him as well.
The following taxa have been named after him:
Agave rzedowskiana
Anthurium rzedowskii
Bernardia rzedowskii
Bouvardia rzedowskii
Bursera rzedowskii
Canthon rzedowskii
Cercocarpus rzedowskii
Commelina rzedowskii
Crotalaria rzedowskii
Croton rzedowskii
Dalea rzedowskii
Dioon rzedowskii
Eleocharis rzedowskii
Euphorbia rzedowskii
Dioon rzedowskii
Galium rzedowskii
Habenaria rzedowskii
Jatropha rzedowskii
Pachyphytum rzedowskii
Pinus rzedowskii
Psilocybe rzedowskii
Rondeletia rzedowskii
Rzedowskia tolantonguensis
Schoenocaulon rzedowskii
Sedum jerzedowskii.
Member Botanical Society Mexico (diploma al mérito botánico 1972), International Association Plant Taxonomy (member council since 1981), American Society Plant Taxonomists (correspondent, Asa Gray award 1995), Botanical Society of America (correspondent).
Married Graciela Calderón, July 14, 1954. Children: Martha, Ernestina, Ana.