History

Mr. Nels J. Johnson's love of Nature was cultivated in the land of his birth, Sweden. In 1904, he was born in Skane in southern Sweden where the rich farmland and forests of Oak, Beech, and other trees cover most of the fertile land. He would speak fondly of, as a boy, climbing around the 1,000 year old Oak tree at Bosjokloster Castle.

Upon graduating with honors from high school and University with a degree in Botany, Mr. Nels Johnson set sail for America to pursue The American Dream. Although it was during the Great Depression, he arrived on the North Shore of Chicago well prepared, having served three years as a horticultural apprentice at Kristina Castle, and being fluent in Swedish, German, and English as well as in Latin. The North Shore clients appreciated Nels Johnson’s knowledge, experience, and ability to identify almost every flower, bush and tree by its scientific Latin name.

Aside from founding Nels J. Johnson Tree Experts, Inc. in 1930, Mr. Johnson continued over the years to further his education. He received a degree from Lane Technological evening school, studied plant physiology and phytopathology at the University of Chicago. At Northwestern University, Mr. Johnson studied engineering and mathematics. Then, in 1948, he received a degree of bachelor of philosophy from Northwestern.

Mr. Johnson also became a member of the following organizations: American Public Works Association, the Chicago and North Shore Horticultural Societies, the American Institute of Park Executives, and the Midwest Association of Golf Course Superintendents, the International Society of Arboriculture, and the National Arborist Association.

Other significant accomplishments over the years include: Mr. Johnson patented a Plastic Tree Filling and a Tree Injection Gun, and he became a certified state teacher of conservation, forestry, and plant science. For four years he served as a judge at the Chicago World Flower Show, and in 1953, Mr. Johnson was invited to lecture at Uppsala University in Sweden and at the Royal Institute of Forestry in Stockholm where he was received by the King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden. At this time, he was also invited to survey the trees in the parks of Gothenburg, Sweden.

In 1957, Nels Johnson became the father of the Illinois Tree Expert License Law and was appointed chairman of the Illinois Tree Expert Examining Board. He also became founder and president of the Associated Arborists of Illinois. That same year he was awarded the Charles Hutchinson Medal by the Chicago Horticultural Society. Subsequently, Mr. Johnson was appointed to the Governor’s Advisory Council.

For the man who came from Sweden at a very young age to pursue the American Dream, it was a great honor on December 12, 1973, forty-three years after the founding of Nels J. Johnson Tree Experts, Inc., to be Knighted by King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, for distinguished achievement by an American of Swedish descent.

This proud tradition is flourishing with the leadership of the second and third generations.