Where did you grow up? Were there
formative childhood experiences
that foretold your future career?
Jamie King: I grew up in Mississippi, close with
nature. My sister and I have fond memories of chasing
each other around the buttress of a gigantic water
oak (Quercus nigra) in the front yard. I spent an inor-
dinate amount of time along the bank of a creek
nearby, testing the strength of grapevine attach-
ment in nearby trees. Every year we would collect
pecans from our neighbor's yards, showing up on
people's porches with bags and politely asking, "Can
we pick your pecans?" We'd sell the nuts to a busi-
ness in town; I remember taking those small sums of
money to a local mechanic's shop and buying sugary
treats, then going to a local park that has a duck
pond (formerly an alligator pond) and splashing and
keeping cool in the fountain that fed the filthy pond.
Can you tell us about your
educational trajectory?
I studied arts at the community college in my home-
town. I was a theatre kid; however, I found a flier
advertising jobs at Yellowstone National Park and
found myself working there one summer. I made a
great friend at the Park who showed me the trees,
other plants, and animals in that amazing place. I
returned the following summer and made the deci-
sion to apply to forestry schools, as I thought I may
like to be a park ranger. My father was living in
Virginia so I had the opportunity for in-state tuition
at Virginia Tech, where the forestry program is
one of the best. I was accepted and found myself
studying natural resources and meeting Dr. Eric
Wiseman. His class opened up the world of arbo-
riculture to me, and with his guidance, I decided
to keep my natural resources management major
and minor in urban forestry and forestry.
Board Member Profile
Jamie
King
16 CityTREES
SMA Board Member Jamie King is the Urban
Forest Manager and University Arborist
at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia.
Jamie King leading a campus urban forest tour for members
Tech Board of Visitors in summer, 2022. At this stop he discussed
historic Merry Tree, a 300-plus-year-old white oak (Quercus
