Arthur Lee Jacobson

A lifelong Seattle resident, Arthur Lee Jacobson began studying plants when he was 17. While earning a history degree at the University of Washington, he bicycled around the city learning about its trees. His first book was Trees of Seattle (1989) --updated in a 2006 second edition. Since 1990 he has published various books, articles and guides to trees and other plants, both wild and cultivated. His book North American Landscape Trees (1996) won the American Horticultural Society book of the year award.

He is a sole proprietor whose work includes publishing, writing, consulting, photography, hands-on gardening, and lecturing either via field tours or inside. Clients include individuals, businesses, organizations and government agencies. His plant expertise is rare in that it straddles the two realms of wild plants and garden plants.

He has served on various nonprofit boards, including presiding over Seattle Tilth in 1996, TREEmendous Seattle in 1998, and PlantAmnesty in 2004. To know him best is to read his writings. His whole life has been about learning and sharing what he has learned about wild plants, garden plants and trees. More than 300 of his articles and essays are on his website (http://www.ArthurLeeJ.com).