As a child, Andrew looked up to his father who owned a small tree service in Maryland and his mother who ran a small herb nursery, selling at farmers markets and landscaping. After college at Warren Wilson in Swannanoa, Andrew worked for the International Society of Arboriculture in the educational goods and services department. After a time in Illinois longing for the mountains, Andrew moved back to Black Mountain, started Wagner Tree Experts, Inc in 2008. Over the years, many challenging projects and experiences around Western North Carolina have shaped the experience and knowledge Andrew brings to every job. Whether its a consultation on new construction or planning renovation of a commercial site or homestead, Andrew has helped many clients make informed decisions about their trees.
John Andrew Wagner
ISA Board Certified Master Arborist
TRAQ Qualified Tree Risk Assessor
Tree and Landscape Appraisal Qualified
Ryan Wahl
Born and raised in Kansas, Ryan found his way to Western North Carolina after meeting his wife and living in the mountains of Colorado. Now settled in Nebo, Ryan has excelled in tree care since he started with us in October 2021. Ryan recently passed his ISA Certified Arborist exam, and we are glad to have him and his diverse skill set here at Catawba Tree. You may see him running our job sites, climbing high up in our most difficult projects, and making everyone on the crew smile.
ISA Certified Arborist
Fred Lashley
Office Manager Born and raised here in the Asheville area, Fred spent most of her as one of the region’s leading stone masons and trail builders. With her expertise in ropes and rigging as well as accounting and business ownership, Fred shares her time between Hammerhead Stoneworks and Catawba Tree Experts.
Johnny McCleod
Johnny brings almost 20 years of tree care industry experience to Catawba Tree Experts, and a passion for sustainability and caring for trees. An expert climber and Certified Arborist, Johnny got into tree care as a means to travel the world, but he has chosen Western North Carolina as his home. As one of Catawba Tree’s crew leaders, Johnny will likely be the first face you see as our crew arrives and happy to answer questions before they get to work!
ISA Certified Arborist
Micheal Nudelman
Micheal is a recent addition to Western North Carolina, and he learned the craft of arboriculture in the Denver Colorado area climbing cottonwoods and other trees in the west. He joins the Catawba Tree Experts team following a year of Helene recovery work, and we are glad to have him on the team adding his expertise!
Arborist Climber
Logan started with Catawba Tree right after the hurricane and after finishing his degree in business from McDowell Tech. Always training on new equipment and gaining new skills, you may find him doing just about anything, and you can guarantee he will always help with a smile on his face.
Groundman - Equipment OperatorLogan Fortune
Friendly, attentive, and always ready to help, our customers, Marco is the friendly face everyone wants to meet on a jobsite. Originially from the Netherlands, Marco bring his kind energy and artistic eye to all our job sites.
Groundman - Equipment OperatorMarco Rozenbroek
Arborist/ ClimberDaren Trombley
Daren brings with him experience in the Marines, ski lift operation, swift water rescue and all around creative energetic attention to detail! We don’t know what we’d do without him!
Cody is a great friend and frequent team member as he travels the Southern US and North Carolina. Involved in tree climbing competitions and educational events, Cody is always a welcome addition to our crew when we are lucky enough to have him.
We have a wonderful extended Catawba Tree Experts family, and we appreciate all our tree care brothers and sisters when they are with us!
Climber /Director of Wizardry
