Introduction
Who looks after the grass in the middle of the traffic
roundabouts? Who prunes the hedges by the side of the road? Who
waters the hanging baskets in the town centre? It's all in a day's
work for the local authority gardener. And it's not just a
case of keeping things clean and tidy, but also about creating new
open spaces for the public's enjoyment - planting and nurturing new
plants and trees.
Some gardeners work directly for local councils; others work for
private contractors who provide service for local authorities.
Gardening duties are also undertaken by groundspersons (who tend to
keep sports grounds, playing fields and community areas maintained)
and horticultural operatives, whose prime responsibilities are
often parks and public gardens. In all there are over 20,000
gardeners and groundspersons working for environment, housing,
leisure and recreation departments.
Work Environment
Gardeners work outdoors for most of the time - in parks,
sports grounds, botanical gardens, on housing estates, and
landscaped areas around council buildings, leisure centres,
shopping centres, and pedestrianised areas in town and city
centres. They generally come into contact with members of the
public on a daily basis. Work wear is casual, but gardeners
generally also wear safety boots and gloves, and for some tasks,
face visor, ear defenders and protective jacket.
Daily Activities
Many gardeners and grounds maintenance staff work in small teams
and operate to a maintenance plan (e.g. on a 10-12 day cycle). For
instance, they might be working on a housing estate for three days,
then two days in a park, and then a week on the towns roadsides and
verges. However, they are also responsible to a certain extent for
managing their own workload. Starting at around 7.30am, they
usually sign in at a depot and collect their worksheets for the
day. Once they have loaded their equipment (heavy machinery such as
ride-on lawn mowers, hedge trimmers and leaf blowers, plus
strimmers, spades and pruning equipment, etc) into a van, they
drive to the first place of work. The work is varied and could
include any of the following:
- cutting grass and hedges
- edging lawns
- pruning roses and shrubs
- digging and laying mulch
- clearing flower beds and planting new plants and shrubs (they
may be responsible for buying in new plants)
- checking the health of plants and spraying them against mildew
and pests
- clearing leaves and litter
- recycling garden rubbish by making compost heaps or chipping
bark to use on paths
- daily maintenance of equipment
- gardeners often work alongside other staff, such as park
attendants, tree surgeons (whom they may help to plant young trees,
lay irrigation pipes and prune roots), arboricultural officers and
horticultural workers.
Not all the work is maintenance - they also help to create new
green spaces, for instance planting a garden on the remains of a
building site or helping garden designers to carry out their plans
- building hard landscapes and the structure of outdoor spaces.
This might involve creating walls and patios, painting walls and
putting up trellises. Groundspersons keep sports areas in top
condition, preparing them for events, laying new turf, marking up
green pitches and undertaking or overseeing grasscutting
operations.
Skills & Interests
As a gardener you would need to be
- interested in horticulture, plants, the landscape and the
environment;
- interested in improving the appearance of the local area;
- willing to work outdoors in most weathers;
- able to undertake hard physical work;
- unafraid to get your hands dirty;
- conscientious - taking a pride in your work and paying
attention to detail;
- able to work with minimal supervision and depending on level of
post - oversee the work of trainees;
- able to maintain good relationships with colleagues - and the
public, who will ask questions about your work or advice on
gardening.
Entry Requirements
Academic qualifications are not necessarily needed for entry at
assistant level, nor is gardening experience, as the council will
arrange training covering plants, gardening techniques, use of
machinery, using pesticides, health and safety, etc. As a trainee
you will be placed under supervision of an experienced
gardener.
However, at more senior level, councils usually ask for a
relevant qualification, such as a City and Guilds Certificate or
BTEC/SQA National Certificate/Diploma in Amenity Horticulture, a
Royal Horticultural Society qualification, or extensive knowledge/
experience of planting, pruning, and grasscutting operations and
standards. A full, valid driving licence is also usually
required. Councils may encourage or expect trainees to
undertake NVQs in Amenity Horticulture. There are training
schemes available, including Apprenticeships.
Future Prospects & Opportunities
The larger councils employ several teams of gardeners and there
are promotion possibilities to supervisory level, initially
overseeing the work of one or two people. A senior
gardener/chargehand might oversee the work of several teams of
gardeners, although they spend less time actually gardening and
more time completing job sheets, ensuring jobs are done correctly
and on time, and assessing the work of new entrants. There
are opportunities to move into more office-based work - as an
outdoor recreation officer or countryside officer, for example - or
to move into related areas such as rangering, forestry work or
landscaping.
Further Information & Services
Institute of Horticulture www.horticulture.org.uk
Lantra www.lantra.co.uk
Institute of Groundsmanship www.iog.org
Royal Horticultural Society www.rhs.org.uk
Apprenticeship information www.apprenticeships.org.uk
You may find further information about this area of work through
Careers Wales (www.careerswales.com/) or
in your local library, careers office or school careers
library.