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038-066 Shortcuts_SU05 Carmel Magazine 4/22/13 3:01 PM Page 12 SHORTCUTS NEIGHBORS Pacific Grove Biologist Blossoms in Retirement hough he's been retired since 1992, Vern Yadon finds T himself busier than ever these days. After 35 years at the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History, he still serves as director and curator emeritus. He's helping to update a 1963 book cataloging Monterey County plants, and he's been a Carmel Art Association member for more than four decades. The former Pacific Grove City Council member is active in the California Native Plant Society (CNPS), and each day he enjoys walks with his Dalmatian. "As you get older, you get busier," laughs Yadon. The 83-year-old biologist is modest about his profession- al accomplishments, which have made a lasting mark on the scientific landscape. Yadon established the Pacific Grove museum's plant collection, befriending industry experts in the process. He and botanist Beatrice Howitt went on to cofound the Pacific Grove Wildflower Show in 1961.Yadon also helped Howitt and John Thomas Howell, then curator for the California Academy of Sciences, gather information for the original edition of the book now in revision, "Vascular Plants of Monterey County, California." And Yadon's Piperia, a rare orchid, is one of several plant species that have been named after him. Brian LeNeve, president of the Monterey Bay CNPS chapter, calls Yadon generous, gracious and knowledgable. "I can't overestimate his value to the chapter. He's really the go-to person for questions about botany, and for ques- tions about where something can grow in Monterey County. He's well thought of in the statewide botany community, too," says LeNeve. Today, Yadon continues documenting local plants and ani- mals in watercolor. The San Joaquin Valley native started painting as a teenager, and he feels lucky to find inspiration all around him. "I think the Monterey Peninsula is a grand place," he says. "If Photo: Kelli Uldall I want to see a sea otter, I can go down and look at one. I can Renaissance man Vern Yadon finds time to rewrite an extensive book on Monterey County plants, paint watercolors, and walk with his dog Farley. 58 C ARMEL MAGAZINE•SPRING/SUMMER 2013 walk around the beach or go out on the 17-Mile Drive. I can summit Cone Peak or Junipero Serra... It's a marvelous place." —Renee Brincks