In Memoriam

Constantine Alberga Campbell

Dr. Constantine Alberga Campbell, affectionately known as Conny and Con, passed away on 27 Nov. 2022, in Ottawa, Canada. An internationally acclaimed soil scientist, his passion was science, but his love was his wonderful spouse of 61 years, Cecille, his daughter Constance Campbell-Reid, her husband Colin Reid, and his granddaughter Allegra Reid. Born 18 Jan. 1934, in Montego Bay, Jamaica, Con graduated from Cornwall College, Jamaica and then obtained his B.S.A. and M.S.A. in soil science from Ontario Agricultural College, University of Toronto, Guelph campus, ON. He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Saskatchewan where he demonstrated for the first time that carbon isotope dating could be used to trace soil carbon changes.

Con joined the Swift Current Research and Development Centre in 1965 where he creatively and industriously built a multi-disciplinary team to elucidate carbon and nitrogen cycling in cropping systems. He helped unlock the secrets of soil fertility and soil organic matter decline. Soil degradation, he found, could be reversed using continuous cropping, minimum tillage, and direct seeding. His curiosity and ingenuity extended to cropping economics, water conservation, boron toxicity, and optimizing fertilizer rates. These results made dryland farming more productive and sustainable across the Prairies. Con’s citations in “Plant Science and Agronomy” rank fifth in Canada and 207th in the world (https://research.com/, 2022).

In 1998, as ultimate recognition for his accomplishments, Con was awarded the Order of Canada and the Saskatchewan Order of Merit. His influence was widely recognized with numerous other prestigious awards, including the Saskatchewan Agricultural Hall of Fame, Agronomy Merit Award from Western Co-operative Fertilizers, Saskatchewan Institute of Agrologists' Distinguished Agrologist Award, Outstanding Research Award from the Canadian Society of Agronomy, and Fellow of the Canadian Society of Soil Science, the Agricultural Institute of Canada, SSSA, and ASA.

Con’s legacy flourishes through his insights now embedded in farmlands everywhere, the next generation of scientists, and publications as well as in the exemplary attributes of humility, passion, and kindness he taught us.

—Ron DePauw, Don Flaten, Henry Janzen, and Constance Campbell-Reid

Jerry Radke

Jerry Keith Radke, a 60-year member of SSSA and ASA, passed away on 1 Nov. 2022 in Ames, IA. He was born in Ripon, WI, on 11 Apr. 1938 and was raised on the family farm. In the summers in high school, he worked for Green Giant as a crop control surveyor, checking the crops and moisture testing to determine if they were ready for harvest.

Radke earned a B.S. degree in Soils from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, an M.S. degree in Soil Physics from Iowa State University (ISU), Ames; and a Ph.D. in Soil Physics from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. During his 35-year career as a soil physicist, Radke worked at the North Central Soil Conservation Research Lab, Morris, MN. He was also an Adjunct Assistant/Associate Professor, Soils, University of Minnesota, studying soil structure, soil temperature and automating instrumentation. He was also an Associate Professor, Soils, at Pennsylvania State University when he worked at the central weather station, conducted field studies, modeling, and electronic communications at the Rodale Research Center (Rodale Institute) in Kutztown, PA.

He retired from the USDA-ARS at the National Soil Tilth Lab, Ames, IA. At that time, he was also a Collaborative Associate Professor, Agronomy, at ISU, teaching meteorological instrumentation. He published research articles on freezing and thawing soils, including the effect of water and nutrient movement within soil profiles, which is needed to develop improved management strategies. Radke brought his family laughter, joy, love, and many travel memories. He had a great sense of humor and could be a bit mischievous. He served his church and community selflessly. He is survived by his wife of 28 years, Susan and their blended family; his brothers Michael (Linda), Rodney (Jeannie), and Brian (Pam) Radke; and many nieces, nephews, and extended family.