Nikolay Ivanovich Vasilyevsky was born in Yaroslavl, Russia, on 3 January (16 January old calendar) 1884 in the family of a minor official, the registrar of the state chamber. He received his secondary education in Yaroslavl, and then studied in the Physics & Mathematics Faculty of the Natural Sciences Department of St Petersburg University. In 1913 he graduated from the University.
Since 1915, N.I. Vasilyevsky started his scientific work as an assistant-manager of the Entomo-Phytopathological Division of the Department of Agriculture. Since 1919 he began to work at Petrograd Botanical Garden, at first in the Department of Phytopathology, and then (after amalgamation of this department with Department of Cryptogam Plants) at the Department of Cryptogam Plants. Later on the Department of Cryptogam Plants was reorganized in Komarov Botanical Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences, where N.I. Vasilyevsky worked till the end of his life.
Still working at the Department of Agriculture, N.I. Vasilyevsky showed interest in applied mycology. In 1919-1924 N. I. Vasilyevsky was a consultant plant pathologist at the State Agricultural Museum in Leningrad. Henceforth N.I. Vasilyevsky devoted himself mainly to scientific research work on imperfect parasitic fungi. From 20 scientific works of N.I. Vasilyevsky - 16 dealt with morphology, biology and systematics of imperfect fungi and 7 are experimental.
Simultaneously with work at the Botanical Institute of the USSR Academy of Sciences N.I. Vasilyevsky carried on educational work. In 1918-1921 he was a teacher of natural sciences in the school of the second grade, in 1921-1925 - headed naturalistic circle attached to Political Administration of the Baltic Fleet, in 1926-1929 - lectured on plant pathology at Leningrad Agricultural Polytechnicum.
Parasitic fungi collected by N.I. Vasilyevsky on the territory of Leningrad region (1919-1924, 1935), Yaroslavl region (1925-1926), Tambov region (1928-1929) and the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus (1935) are stored at BIN of Russia Acad. Sci.
In 1935 N.I. Vasilyevsky conferred the degree of the Candidate of Biological Sciences without defence of dissertation. In 1942, during hard time of blockade, he defended the Doctor's thesis "Critical-monographic review of some genera of Melanconiales parasitic fungi, as applied to the USSR flora". Then BIN of the USSR Acad. Sci was evacuated in Kazan, where N.I. Vasilyevsky continued his scientific activity.
During the last years of life N.I. Vasilyevsky continued the work on compilation of the third part of the book devoted to imperfect parasitic fungi (Sphaeropsidales), which was started in collaboration with V.N. Bondartseva-Monteverde (genera Ascochyta and Diplodina). Moreover, he prepared manuscript "Diagnistics of fungal diseases of insects ".
N.I. Vasilyevsky died in Leningrad in 1950.
This page ia a short synopsis of the article: "Russian botanists (botanists of Russia - USSR). Biographic-Bibliographic Dictionary. Moscow: Moscow Society of Naturalists, 19....., p. 62.
Lists. Taxa. Kirk & Ansell form of name: Vassiljevsky.