Horticultural worker

Horticultural workers plant and care for flowers, shrubs, vegetables, trees and lawns. They could be working on a public park, roadside verge, private house, or preparing plants for sale at a garden centre or plant nursery. Horticultural workers need to know about different types of plants. This includes knowing where a plant will grow well and how to look after it.

Also known as:

Gardener

Work activities

Horticultural workers prepare areas for planting by measuring and marking out. They might need to prepare the soil by adding compost or manure. Next, they plant flowers, shrubs and trees according to a design. Their general duties include:

Planting.
Watering.
Spraying plants with chemicals to protect them from pests.
Mowing grass.
Pruning plants and trimming hedges.
Keeping the area free of weeds and litter.

Some horticultural workers also put up fencing and lay pathways. They might also carry out concrete and brickwork. Some specialise in nursery and garden centre work which includes growing and looking after new plants and preparing them for sale. They must be able to deal confidently with the general public and help them with their questions and enquiries. They will need to check the plants for pests. The plants grown may then need to be harvested and picked by hand, or by using machinery, depending on the crop. For example, in a larger plant nursery or in outdoor vegetable production, workers often use machinery to help with tasks such as ploughing, planting and harvesting. After harvesting, workers pack the crop and store it, so it is ready to send to markets and retailers, for example, supermarket depots.

There are also some horticultural workers who design, care for and maintain plants and green areas inside buildings, in places like offices and shopping centres. This is known as interior landscaping. As well as using hand tools, horticultural workers might drive tractors and use other light machinery such as hedge trimmers, rotavators and mowers. They have to know how to store, handle and clean equipment. Maintaining the equipment can include doing minor repairs.

Personal qualities and skills

To be a horticultural worker, you’ll need to develop a good knowledge of plants. You’ll need to be able to identify different types of plants and know how best to care for each one, including where they will grow well and when to prune. You’ll also need:

To enjoy working outside in all types of weather.
Adaptability, to do lots of practical tasks.
The ability to do hard, physical work, like digging, lifting and carrying.
Teamwork skills.
The ability to follow plans and drawings from landscape designers and architects.
Number skills to measure accurately and to work out the quantities of materials you’ll need.
A responsible attitude and the ability to follow health and safety procedures, for working with equipment and chemicals.
To be able to deal with the public in a polite and helpful manner.

Pay and opportunities

The pay rates given are approximate. Horticultural workers earn in the range of £19,500 - £24,000 a year. People in senior positions, such as supervisors, can earn more.

Horticultural workers usually work a 40-45-hour week. However, working hours might include evening/weekend work and irregular hours, depending on the season and weather (for example, they work longer hours in summer when grass needs cutting).

Employers include:

Local and national authorities with responsibility for managing public parks, gardens and landscaped areas.
Horticultural contractors and landscape gardening companies.
Plant nurseries.
Garden centres.
Fruit farms.

Opportunities for horticultural workers occur in towns, cities and rural areas throughout the UK.

There are opportunities for horticultural workers to become self-employed, for example, in contract grass cutting or as gardeners for private gardens.

Where are vacancies advertised?

Vacancies are advertised in local newspapers, on the Government’s Find a Job service, and on general and horticultural job boards.

Entry routes and training

To become a horticultural worker, you don’t usually need any qualifications. A level 2 (intermediate) apprenticeship in the role of horticulture or landscape construction operative is a great way to start. If you want a more senior role, you could apply for a level 5 (higher) apprenticeship as a horticulture and landscaping technical manager. You can decide to go to college to take a full-time course in horticulture, before looking for a job.

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) offers its own nationally recognised qualifications. These include a level 2 horticultural operative apprenticeship and a level 2 arborist apprenticeship. On the RHS website, you can find out more, including a list of colleges that offer their qualifications, including through distance learning.

Students who already have some practical experience can apply for short-term voluntary role with the RHS. You’ll get the chance to work in an RHS garden while learning basic gardening skills and techniques. Please see the RHS website for more information.

It may also be possible to find work and study part-time. Some employers enable horticultural workers to go to college on a day-release basis.

You could be promoted to a team leader or supervisor post, responsible for a team of amenity horticultural workers. With a lot of experience and, usually, further qualifications (such as a foundation degree, HND or degree), you could work your way up to a management position.

Rehabilitation of Offenders Act: Some posts, for example, that involve working on school grounds or around social care buildings, are exceptions to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. This means that you must supply information to an employer about any spent or unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands or warnings, if they ask you to. This is different from other careers, where you only have to reveal information on unspent convictions if you are asked to.

Qualifications

You don’t usually need any qualifications to become a horticultural worker. However, it’s useful to have some GCSEs, especially in science subjects, or a relevant equivalent qualification. If you wish to enter this career through an intermediate apprenticeship, you will need GCSEs in English and maths, although you may be able to complete these alongside your programme. To do a higher apprenticeship, you’ll need two relevant A-levels.

Adult opportunities

Age limits: It is illegal for any organisation to set age limits for entry to employment, education or training, unless they can show there is a real need to have these limits.

Some entrants have gained relevant skills and knowledge from experience of gardening or other outdoor work, either paid or unpaid.

Colleges will usually consider applications from adults who don’t meet their usual entry requirements. You should check the admissions policy of individual colleges. The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) website includes a list of organisations that provide distance learning options leading to RHS qualifications. You can search for relevant courses on the website of Lantra, the sector skills council for the land-based and environmental sector.

Funding for further study may be available from the Studley College Trust and the Merlin Trust. Candidates should see the Trusts’ websites to check on eligibility.

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