Hursky, Valerian

Hursky, Valerian [Гурський, Валеріян; Hurs'kyj], b 29 September 1874 in Kharkiv, d 24 November 1934 in Kharkiv. Silviculturist. A graduate of Saint Petersburg Forestry Institute (1898), he supervised amelioration work in forests in the Kharkiv region and Poltava region (1903–19) where, under his direction, pine stands of about 20,000 ha were planted. From 1921 he headed the Department of Amelioration of the Kharkiv Institute of Agriculture and Forestry (now Kharkiv National Agrarian University). From 1931 he was an associate of the Ukrainian Scientific Research Institute of Forest Management and Agroforest Amelioration. He has written works on the reforestation of sandy regions and the creation of anti-erosion forestry shelterbelts.

[This article originally appeared in the Encyclopedia of Ukraine, vol. 2 (1988).]