Robert John Bauske, 84, of Okoboji and formerly of Ames, died at home Sunday, February 26. He was a retired Professor Emeritus of Horticulture at Iowa State University. Family services will be held at a later date. The body has been donated to the University of Iowa Department of Anatomy.

The son of Herman and Beatrice Bauske, he was born in Chicago, Illinois on July 16, 1921. He was a graduate of Maine Township High School in Des Plaines, Illinois, and he received his BA degree in Botany at Carleton College in 1943. In 1966 he received his Ph.D. in Plant Pathology at Iowa State University.

Bauske served as a Lieutenant in the United States Navy from 1943 to 1946 in the South Atlantic and South Pacific theaters. He was in Tokyo Bay in September 1945 when the Japanese surrendered. In January 1944 he married Grace Redmond of Spencer. They were married for 62 years.

He taught Horticulture at Iowa State from 1966 until his retirement in 1986. He received the national L.M. Ware Distinguished Teaching Award in 1978 from the American Society of Horticultural Science. In 1982 the University presented him with an Outstanding Teacher Award. Among his publications was his 1976 textbook Home Horticulture.

He is survived by his wife Grace; three sons, David (Carol) of Pueblo, Colorado, Mark (Nancy) of Oklahoma City, Clay (Lennie) of Weston, Missouri; and one daughter Lynn (Ken) Hogan of Boulder, Colorado. Also surviving are four grandchildren; Matthew, Rachel, and Catherine Bauske of Oklahoma City, and Jake Hogan of Boulder, Colorado; and one great granddaughter Cecilia Bauske.

A scholarship for undergraduate students in the Department of Horticulture will be established in the name of Dr. Bauske. Contributions may be addressed to 106 Horticulture, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011.