Dale E. Kester is Professor of Pomology emeritus at the University of California, Davis. During his 40 years at the University of California he taught courses in plant propagation and pomology. He has been a member of the American Society of Horticultural Science, becoming a Fellow in 1977. He received jointly the Stark Award in 1980. He has published over 100 research and popular publications in plant propagation and pomology. He has had a lifelong collaboration with Dr. Hudson T. Hartmann which resulted in the publication of the first edition of Plant Propagation: Principles and Practices in 1959, followed by other editions in 1968, 1975, 1983, and 1990. One of the founders of the Western Region of the International Plant Propagators' Society (1960), he has served the society in various capacities including Vice-President, program chair (1996) and President (1997). He received the Curtis J. Alley Achievement Award in 1999.   Fred T. Davies, Jr., Professor of Horticultural Sciences, and Molecular and Environmental Plant Sciences, Texas A&M University, has taught courses in plant propagation and nursery production and management since 1979. He has co-authored over 100 research and technical publications. He was a Fulbright Senior Fellow to Mexico (1993) and Peru (1999), and a J.S. Guggenheim Fellow (1999). He received the Distinguished Achievement Award for Nursery Crops from the American Society of Horticultural Sciences (1989), L.M. Ware Distinguished Research Award-ASHS-SR (1995), and S.B. Meadows Award of Merit-International Plant Propagator's Society-SR (1994). He is a recipient of the Association of Former Students Distinguished Achievement Award for Teaching-TAMU (1997), Chancellor of Agriculture's Award in Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching-TAMU (1998), L.M. Ware Distinguished Teaching Award, ASHS-SR (1998), and L.C. Chadwick Educator's Award, American Nursery and Landscape Association (1999). He is the International Division Vice-President-ASHS. He was President, and is currently Editor, of the IPPS-SR.   Robert L. Geneve is a Professor in the Department of Horticulture at the University of Kentucky. He teaches courses in plant propagation and seed biology. He has co-authored over 70 scientific and technical articles in seed biology, cutting propagation, and tissue culture. He is also the co-editor of the book Biotechnology of Ornamental Plants and author of A Book of Blue Flowers. He has served as a board member for the International Plant Propagators' Society-Eastern Region and serves on the Editor for the international horticulture journal, Scientia Horticulturae.