Gardener

At The Oxfordshire Gardener, our philosophy is one of providing excellent and attentive garden care, with an approachable and friendly service.

We’re growing and we’re ready to welcome a new member to our team, so if you’re keen to deliver first-class garden maintenance, have great communication skills and are organised with a positive approach, we’d love to hear from you.

This role requires a talented and experienced gardener ready to develop their career working for a prestigious company. You’ll be caring for some of the most exceptionally beautiful residential and estate gardens in Oxfordshire, providing nurturing care and development to our portfolio of beautiful town and country gardens, including gardens of particular historic note.

Reporting to the Head Gardener, you’ll have the opportunity to demonstrate your passion for horticulture and plants, so you’ll need to have an RHS level qualification or similar. You’ll be ability leading a small team, helping to ensure excellent customer service and brilliant horticultural care. You should be someone who enjoys the outdoor life, nurturing the gardens and who gets a great sense of achievement from presenting the gardens to the highest standards. Specific skills required for the role are good professional gardening experience, excellent plant knowledge and an in-depth understanding of year-round garden management.

As a gardener with us, you’ll effectively manage all gardens under your responsibility, developing excellent working relationships with clients so that their requirements are met and the gardens developed to the client’s satisfaction.

Key Responsibilities:

• Providing excellent horticultural and garden maintenance care to a variety of garden styles across our portfolio.
• Assist with soft landscaping projects, such as planting schemes, helping to deliver them on time and with attention to detail.
• Providing daily activity reports, detailing work completed and development advice provided in each garden visited.
• Suggesting to your clients additional work and services available, as well as plans for the garden over forthcoming months.
• Sharing your knowledge with other team members and supporting others in the team, utilising your areas of strength and expertise.
• Contributing to team meetings with updates on your portfolio of gardens.
• Liaising with the HQ team to ensure you have any specific items required for work within your portfolio in good time and ahead of visits.
• Ensuring that any company vehicle used is kept well-feeling, clean, tidy, organised and presentable to the highest standards.
• Ensuring all tools and equipment are kept in good condition and reporting any issues to the Senior Gardener.

Skills & Qualifications:

• A recognised horticultural qualification to RHS Level 2 standard or equivalent experience
• Ability to work both in a team and on your own, when required
• Confidence to provide appraisals of the garden and advise clients
• Have proven practical gardening/horticulture experience, as well as a strong knowledge of plants
• Competence with machinery/equipment used as required for Health and Safety compliance.
• Motivation & pride in maintaining a consistently high standard of work
• Excellent communication skills

Benefits:

• External courses including RHS, David Austin roses, LANTRA, planting design, lawn care and garden photography
• In-house training
• Development plans tailored to your specific areas of specialism, interest and career development programme.
• Cross-training initiatives
• 30 days holiday (includes bank holidays), rising by 1 day each year after 3 years service to a maximum of 33 days.
• Pension
• Company uniform plus annual allowance
• PPE
• Use of company vehicle
• Team events including private tours with published Head Gardeners, visits to RHS flower shows
• Social events
• Discretionary bonus

The company is continuing to develop their portfolio and now would be a very exciting time for our expanding team of intrepid gardeners and landscapers, managing some of the most exceptional gardens in the area.

Person Specification – What We Look For in People:

If you’re buzzing with energy and the drive to get things done, have an eye for detail, strive for excellence and efficiency in horticulture and garden care, love working in the serenity of nature, but have career goals, are brilliant at communicating with people on all levels and have a gift for excellent customer service, then you’re just who we’re looking for.

Essential:

• At least 2 years+ prior experience in providing garden maintenance
• RHS level 2 or Horticulture Diploma
• Full, clean drivers licence
• Experienced in use of power tools
• Hedge trimming experience
• Good plant knowledge
• Ability to work autonomously
• Strong teamwork skills
• Fit, strong, and healthy, capable of lifting equipment/plants to health and safety standards
• Excellent time management, with strong attention to detail and high standards
• Excellent interpersonal skills and a positive flexible attitude

Beneficial:

• Experience managing kitchen gardens and cutting gardens or similar productive gardens including selection of varieties, crop rotation, extension and maximisation of fresh produce availability or long lasting blooms.
• Experience in implementing soft landscaping projects, such as installing new planting schemes or planning sympathetic additions to existing planted areas.
• Comfortable with use of mobile technology for field-based reporting and general communication apps
• Experience leading small teams

Desirable:

• C1+E Drivers Licence
• PA1 & PA6 Spraying Licences