Gene Bickerstaff BS, MS

Director of Operations, US.

Location: US

Gene Bickerstaff oversees ArborGen’s U.S. nursery and orchard operations, ensuring teams have the resources, equipment, training, and support needed to consistently deliver high-quality seedlings to customers. He also leads efforts to standardize operational practices and leverage performance metrics that drive continuous improvement across ArborGen’s production network.

Raised in an agricultural family, Gene’s career has always centered around helping plants reach their full potential. Prior to joining ArborGen, he served as Associate Director of a regional soil, plant, feed, and water testing laboratory, supporting university research programs and agricultural producers throughout East Texas.

Gene is especially passionate about seedling quality and landowner education. He believes every successful forest begins with healthy, vigorous planting stock and that helping customers understand the factors that influence seedling performance is critical to long-term success.

He holds both a Bachelor of Science in Agronomy and a Master of Science in Soil Fertility from Stephen F. Austin State University and has been growing seedlings since 1996. Outside of work, Gene enjoys snorkeling and has explored reefs throughout the Caribbean. He also comes from a family with more than a century of watermelon farming history in East Texas. His personal philosophy is simple: treat others the way you want to be treated.