A Life Among Trees - John Meserve
John’s Sonoma Journey - I Found & Stayed
This is the second of three stories about John’s relationship with Sonoma Valley.
🟩 We Knew This Was the Place – Chapter 1
A chance drive through Sonoma Valley convinces John and his wife that they have found the place where they belong.
🟥 A Life Among Trees – Chapter 2 - I Found & Stayed (You are reading this story.)
🟦 The Ideal Community - Chapter 3
Click the story title above to continue John’s journey as he gives back through public service and finds a new community on the pickleball court.
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John turned an early fascination with trees into a lifelong career as a consulting arborist and urban forester. For four decades, his work allowed him to care for trees and serve communities throughout Sonoma Valley and beyond.
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My training was in large-scale commercial greenhouse management. After college, I managed greenhouses in Ventura County. When my wife and I moved to Sonoma Valley, I found a job at Schuyler Nursery on the south side of Santa Rosa.
It was not a greenhouse operation. It was about 30 acres outdoors, specializing in drought-tolerant Mediterranean plants. I worked there for a couple of years. Then one of the nursery’s owners and I left to start a consulting business.
I would describe myself as a consulting arborist and urban forester. I have been doing that ever since.
The career seemed to unfold in front of me, and it turned out to be the perfect thing for me.
Years earlier, when I was living in Ventura County, I took a turfgrass class from a man named Paul Rogers. Turf was his primary work, but he also had a side business consulting about trees.
I remember being a young guy and thinking, “God, wouldn’t that be the perfect job? Going out and talking to people about their trees?”
Somehow, that idea manifested itself and became my career.
Over the years, I have worked with cities, parks departments, attorneys, insurance companies and homeowners. I maintained an office in Glen Ellen for about 40 years, until recently, when I began downsizing my practice.
My work with trees also gave me another way to participate in the community. I served for many years on the City of Sonoma’s Tree Committee, before it eventually became part of the Parks, Recreation and Open Space Commission.
I still work as a consultant to the City of Sonoma. I help the Public Works Department with public works projects, and I also work with the newly formed Parks and Recreation Department.
I am trying to retire now, although I am having some trouble winding down my practice. After doing this work for so many years, it is difficult to simply stop.
I was fortunate to imagine the perfect job when I was young and then somehow find my way into it. I got to spend my career going out, meeting people and talking with them about their trees.
I cannot imagine anything that would have suited me better.
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John’s career illustrates how an early interest can grow into meaningful lifelong work. By combining his knowledge of plants with community service, he found a profession that benefited both the people and trees of Sonoma Valley.
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This story was created from an interview with John Meserve conducted by Don Lundgren. John’s words have been edited for length and clarity while preserving his voice, experiences and meaning.
