Dr. Rongcai Yuan, 45, of Winchester, VA, died 14 Apr. in the Winchester Medical Center. Dr. Yuan was born 13 Dec. 1964 in Jiangxi Province, China, the son of Yueming Yuan and Jiafeng Huang. In 1984, he received a bachelor of science degree in horticulture from Jiangxi Agricultural University of China and, in 1987, a master of science degree in horticulture from South China Agricultural University. In 1998, he earned his PhD in plant and soil sciences from University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
Dr. Yuan was an assistant professor at Virginia Tech as a pomologist at the Alson H. Smith, Jr., Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Winchester.
An active ASHS member, Dr. Yuan published many papers in both HortScience and JASHS. In 2004, he was a co-winner of the Cross-Commodity Publication Award. He was a member of the Growth Regulators in Fruit and Nut Production Working Group. In addition to being a member of ASHS, he was a member of the International Society for Horticultural Science, American Pomological Society, and Virginia State Horticultural Society.
He was a member of Winchester Chinese Fellowship of Keystone Baptist Church.
Dr. Yuan married Ying Shen on 10 Oct. 1991 in China. Surviving with his wife are his parents of Jiangxi Province, China; two sons, William Shen Yuan and John Shen Yuan, both of Winchester, VA; and three sisters and three brothers.
Memorial contributions may be made to Keystone Baptist Church, Dr. Yuan Memorial Fund, 15 Keystone Lane, Berryville, VA 22611.
