Assistant Gardener

At The Oxfordshire Gardener, our philosophy is one of providing excellent and attentive garden care, with an approachable and friendly service, 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 assistant gardener, who’s ready to develop their career working for a prestigious company. You'll be caring for some of the most exceptionally beautiful estates, manor houses and residential gardens in Oxfordshire, providing nurturing horticulture and garden development to our portfolio of 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 relevant experience. You'll be part of a small team, helping to provide 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 with demonstrable plant knowledge and an understanding of year-round garden management.

As an assistant gardener with us, you'll play a key role in all the gardens you help care for, developing excellent working relationships with clients, in order that their requirements are met and the gardens developed to the client’s satisfaction.

**Key Responsibilities**:

- Providing excellence 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
- Providing information to the senior team and contributing to appraisals of the garden and advice to clients
- Have proven practical gardening/horticulture experience, as well as a good 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
- 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 1 year + prior experience in providing garden maintenance or RHS level 2 or Horticulture Diploma
- Full, clean manual 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 m