In memory of Yuri Karpun

It is hard to lose a teacher, who used to direct you. It is sad and bitter to lose a colleague, who you used to work with for many years. It is unbearably painful to lose a friend, with whom you have gone through so much together. Doctor of biology, Professor, director and creator of the Kuban Subtropical Botanical Garden, chairman of Dendrology Commission under the Botanical Gardens of Russia Council, chairman of the Regional Council of Botanical Gardens of Southern Russia, Yuri Karpun passed away. The great introductor, who created Russia’s richest dendrocollection, inspirer and chief editor of the “Catalogue of Cultivated Wood Plants of Russia”, member of our journal’s editorial board passed away. Yuri Karpun’s deeds and projects were numerous and varied. He was interested in many things and he gave all of his endless enthusiasm and great talent to everything. He was engaged in saving the sacred trees of Palestine and developing information technologies for botanical gardens, preparing new generations of great botanists and in organizational work in the Botanical Gardens of Russia Council. He had a special understanding of our world and expertise in haute cuisine. It just so happened, that last March at the "Strategy of Creating Sustainable Dendrological Collections" national conference we founded a “Bauhinia Acuminata” order – friends and colleagues, who gathered together to praise the 40th anniversary of the great masterpiece - Kuban Subtropical Botanical Garden. Dear Yuri, we all remember about our promises and prospects. Certainly, all of them will be fulfilled and your work will be continued. I suppose, you are now going to have a lot of work in the first botanical garden ever. Good luck!!!