Regional Technical and Sales

Trent Dicks - Eastern Area Technical Manager

Trent has over 20 years of experience in Landscape and Nursery sales and operations. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agri-Business Horticulture from Illinois State University and an Associate’s Degree in Applied Science and Horticulture. Trent is a graduate of Dale Carnegie training.

In 2018 Trent took on a new role as Eastern Area Technical Manager, providing a senior level of oversight to Arborjet’s Regional Technical Managers in the eastern United States. He still remains as the main resource and point of contact for the Mid-Atlantic territory.

For 14 years, he lived in the Midwest, managed a garden center, and ran small Nursery and Landscape company. Trent was the Landscape Designer and Operation Manager at Moon Landscaping for 6 years, where he managed large estates & plant health care. When Trent finds himself with free time he enjoys hunting, fishing, gardening and sports.

Joe Aiken - Great Lakes Regional Technical Manager

Joe’s 30-plus years in the tree care industry have provided a diverse and valuable experience which has permitted him to guide others in plant health care decisions. He has worked in all phases of tree care, and as a licensed applicator and an ISA certified arborist, he developed a strong interest in Plant Health Care and gained the experience and desire to continue his education.

Joe routinely conducts product seminars and presentations on various treatment methods which are attended by arborists, city foresters, plant health care technicians, master gardeners, university extension agents, grounds departments, and research personnel. He also supports Arborjet’s research department and co-operating universities, assisting with tree injections on research sites, and other aspects of research required to aide in development of equipment and formulations needed to control today’s invasive pests.

Joe is a proud founding member of the Arboriculture Society of Michigan Foundation and Curator of the Arboriculture Historical Society. In 2001 Joe joined the team at Arborjet, where he shares his strong belief in tree preservation with clients, and educates others on the benefit of more environmentally friendly solutions for our urban forest problems. he is the Co-Host of the Discovery Forestry podcast along with Rocky Mountains RTM Korey Lofy.

Rob Baughman - Midwest Regional Technical Manager

Rob has joined the Arborjet team as the new Midwest Regional Technical Manager. He will support both Arborjet and Ecologel products in the turf, ornamental, and golf markets; developing new business around the country and providing technical knowledge to lawn care operation, landscape and all other sectors of the green industry.

Before joining Arborjet Rob was a Senior Landscape Designer with a design/ build firm in Hawthorn Woods, IL. During his time there, he worked on multiple projects, four of which earned awards from the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association.  He specialized in large in properties with unique features, starting with the design of the property and working his way through to the installation process.  Once the project was at this stage, he would then coordinate with subcontractors and his team to finalize the install. Rob earned his Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from South Illinois University.

Rob found his passion for the green industry through his love of the outdoors.  While in college, Rob would frequent Shawnee National Forest just south of South IL University.  This is where he decided that he wanted to pursue a career pertaining to nature and the outdoors.  The beautiful trees and water ways felt like home to him.

Outside of work, you can find Rob enjoying quality time with his family.

Kevin Brewer- Northeast Regional Technical Manager

Kevin joined the Arborjet team in the summer of 2017 as the Northeast Regional Technical Manager, bringing with him years of industry experience and an extensive plant health care background. Prior to his role at Arborjet, Kevin served as the general manager of a tree preservation company, managing plant health care and the diagnosis and prescription of treatment for trees and shrubs. He is a Certified Arborist and ISA Qualified Tree Risk Assessor.

With a passion for saving trees, Kevin educates new and existing customers, keeping them ahead of the curve in their plant health care solutions.  He has served over 15 years as an Arborist, Board-Certified Master Arborist (NE 6964-B) with ISA, and Registered Consulting Arborist (#715) with ASCA. Outside of Arborjet, he enjoys gardening with his wife, woodworking, and hiking sections of the Appalachian trail.

Jay Goughnour - Upper Midwest Technical Manager

Jay is our newest addition to the Arborjet team, starting in the winter of 2020. Growing up on a farm in central Iowa, Jay spent a majority of his time outdoors. In that time, he found a passion for turf in the golf industry, which eventually led to him working at SiteOne Landscape supply. Through his work experiences, Jay was able to broaden his expertise to tree care, irrigation, and landscape lighting.

As our Upper Midwest Regional Technical Manager, Jay’s responsibility is to expand sales, provide technical support and share plant health care solutions with customers. With over 20 years in the green industry, Jay has held positions such as golf course superintendent, green industry sales management, and even owned a golf course. In 2008, Jay purchased his hometown golf course and operated it for four years. After the floods of 2008, he represented the National Golf Course Owners Association on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. to explain to lawmakers how golf’s exclusion from disaster-related tax relief was unfairly burdensome to golf course operators. Jay has also previously held the seat of President for the Iowa Golf Course Superintendents Association and is currently serving on the Iowa Turfgrass Institute board of directors representing the Iowa Professional Lawn Care Association. When not spending time his wife and children, you can find Jay anywhere outdoors enjoying hunting, fishing, golfing, and cheering on the Iowa State Cyclones.

Zachary Peterson - Midwest Regional Sales Manager
Golf, Sport Turf, and Nursery Markets

Zachary Peterson comes with a wealth of experience in the green industry. In the role of Midwest Regional Sales Manager, he will be supporting the commercial turf markets across 13 states in this region. He most recently served as the Grounds Manager for the Milwaukee Brewers for almost five years. Prior to his time in Milwaukee, Zak worked at Mariani Landscape in Lake Bluff, IL. as Turfgrass Director. He interned for the Texas Rangers and Indianapolis Indians baseball teams while studying at Purdue University, where he holds a Bachelors Degree in Turfgrass Management.

Zak has a passion for the game of golf and golf course architecture. He resides with his growing family and two Great Danes in Milwaukee, where he enjoys golfing, boating and relaxing with friends and family.

Rebecca Knapp - Western Regional Sales Manager
Golf, Sport Turf, and Nursery Markets

Rebecca joins Arborjet, bringing 8 years of experience in Sports Turf management. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Turfgrass from Penn State University, and an ISA Certified Arborist. Before Arborjet, Rebecca worked for Major League Baseball and as an Assistant Turf and Grounds Manager for Major League Soccer. Prior to her time in professional sports turf, Rebecca spent 9 years managing award-winning landscapes in roles as Contract Administrator and Account Manager. 

Rebecca enjoys expanding her industry knowledge and sharing innovative solutions to further the profession. She will support Arborist’s in Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico while providing technical knowledge on turf management across the west. Outside the office, you can catch Rebecca enjoying a game of baseball, or spending time relaxing on a tropical beach.  

Korey Lofy - High Plains Regional Technical Manager

Korey Lofy has taken on the role of Regional Technical Manager for the Rocky Mountain and Great Plain States, including: Montana, Utah, Wyoming, Idaho, Colorado, Nebraska and Arizona.

Korey is an ISA Certified Arborist with a Pesticide Applicator’s license in four states who has been involved in the green industry for 20 years. He began his career working in a greenhouse at the age of 13 and went on to start his own landscaping company to help pay for university. He successfully graduated from The University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point with a triple major in Urban Forestry, Forest Recreation, and Interpersonal Communications. He was slected as the ISA’s Rocky Mountain Chapter’s 2021 Arborist of the Year.
Korey has always loved science and learning about trees. One semester in college, Korey’s course load included Organic Chemistry, Soil Science, Tree Physiology, and Entomology – and that’s when the puzzle started to come together. Ever since, he’s been helping folks build businesses and save trees. When Korey is not saving trees or in the office, you can catch Korey enjoying a good book, on his mountain bike or downhill skiing. he is currently the Co-Host and Producer of the Discovering Forestry Podcast along with Great Lakes RTM Joe Aiken.

Emmett Muennink - South Central Regional Technical Manager

Emmett holds a B.S. in Agronomy and a M.S. in Crop Science from Texas Tech University. After completing his master’s degree, he moved to the Dallas metroplex and began his career in Arboriculture. Starting out as a PHC technician for a Dallas area tree company, Emmett quickly climbed the ranks and managed the entire PHC division. He has performed nearly every job in the tree industry from diagnosis and PHC applications, to ground work, climbing, and stump grinding. Emmett’s formal education combined with his technical background provide him with an excellent understanding of plant and soil science, as well as practical knowledge of PHC and the tree industry. He enjoys staying on the cutting edge of PHC technologies and sharing his knowledge with other tree care professionals. On weekends and holidays you’ll find Emmett spending time with his family and friends, as well as hunting, fishing, BBQing, and rooting for his Red Raiders!

JB Toorish - Southeast Regional Technical Manager

JB started his career in the green industry in 1980 working for a landscaping company in the Cleveland, Ohio area. JB started as a lawn technician and eventually managed the lawn care and tree/ornamental care departments while developing Integrated Pest Management programs. In 1995, JB began working for the Davey Tree Expert Company as a sales and service technician. He graduated from The Davey Institute of Horticultural Sciences and The Davey Institute of Tree Sciences in 1997.

In July of 1997, JB started with LESCO/JDL as Manager of Technical Services. There, JB’s duties included daily agronomic and pest control support to internal and external customers. He held pesticide dealer/applicator licenses in over 30 states and routinely performed educational training presentations for CEU credits.

JB joined the Arborjet team in April of 2009. He is currently living in Orlando, Florida and providing sales and technical support for the southeast region of the United States.

JB has created and facilitated chemical applicator re-certification training presentations for many states throughout the US. JB has also written technical information for various industry text books, internal newsletters, websites and a monthly technical column for Lawn and Landscape Magazine.

Wister Dorta - California Regional Technical Manager

Wister Dorta is the California Regional Technical Manager. He started his career in New York City, where he wrote protocols such as the “Build It Back” program, which set planting and maintenance protocols for developers after Superstorm Sandy and was chairman of the NYC Parks Tree Protection task force. He moved to Santa Monica to work on pressing tree planting, tree preservation and drought issues. He updated and executed the city’s five year plan to restore urban forestry best practices, and acted as the city’s consulting arborist. Wister has a diversified arboriculture background, is well known throughout the West Coast ISA and has spoken at multiple conferences. In addition to a degree in Environmental and Forest Biology, he holds a Master’s Degree in Environmental Management. Wister is a Certified Arborist, Qualified Tree Risk Assessor, and is fluent in Spanish. He enjoys discovering new ways to contribute to continued greening.

Ryan Mason - Mid-Atlantic Regional Technical Manager

Ryan Mason, from Easton, Pennsylvania has been appointed as Regional Technical Manager for the Mid-Atlantic. He has 20 plus years of experience in turf and ornamental management, as well as sales, and business development. “I’m excited to bring my knowledge and skills to the Arborjet | Ecologel team, specifically to further the company’s growth in the field of turf management.”

Mason is a licensed pesticide applicator, certified to spray turf, ornamental, and right of way areas. He is also a NALP certified turf technician, a member of the NJ Turfgrass Association, and a LCAP Board Member.

Matt Campbell - Southeast Regional Technical Manager

Matt Campbell has taken on the role of Southeast Regional Technical Manager. His territory will include North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana and Arkansas. His role will be to help agronomically grow the Ecologel product profile with plant growth solutions throughout his region via customer interactions, company sponsored events, distributor and end-user relationships, and product promotions.

Matt has spent his professional career producing products and designing agronomic programs for companies within the green industry supplying services in turf, landscape, erosion control, athletic field, and green roof technologies in markets throughout the United States.

Matt previously owned and operated a sod farm and national erosion company in Kansas where he later joined SiteOne Landscape Supply Company managing branches in the St. Louis, MO and Atlanta, GA areas.  Matt went on to Join BWI Companies where the past 4 years he has helped build the Turf, LCO, Golf and Pest markets in the North Georgia Area. Matt is a current member of Georgia GCSAA local chapter.  Matt has previously taken part and/or served on committees for organizations such as the Sports Turf Managers Association, Turfgrass Producers International, and International Erosion Control Association with a publication in new product and development for a “Natural Solution to Hard and Soft Armors for Slope and Channel Protection.”

Matt graduated from Kansas State University with a BS in Agriculture and a specialty in Turfgrass Science. Outside of the office, Matt’s hobbies include gardening, spending time with his wife and kids, and outdoor adventures.