Senior Gardener
From English Country Gardeners
Working For: English Country Gardeners
Senior Gardener required
An excellent opportunity has arisen on a beautiful private estate near Hungerford, for an experienced gardener to join the team and assist in the maintenance and development of the spectacular grounds and gardens. This role will suit an all-rounded horticulturist with drive to utilise their horticultural knowledge and experience on a full time and permanent basis.
The quintessentially English country house and grounds of roughly 30-acres, comprise a beautiful main house with a coach house and lodge, surrounded by woodland, rolling landscape, two lakes and managed gardens. The formal aspects include a greenhouse, specimen trees, expansive areas of lawn, a productive kitchen garden (with chickens), mixed and herbaceous beds and borders, cutting flowers, a swimming pool and tennis court, gravel driveways, terraces with pot plants and climbers all set within picturesque grassland and woodland, that allows privacy on all sides.
The owners have been with the estate for the past 4 years and have heavily invested in the development of the properties on site as well as bringing the gardens forward. Recent installations include a new Italian courtyard garden as well as a fernery, waterfall and curved arch structures added within the garden. The owners are passionate about their garden and are looking to collaborate with the successful applicant on future projects to accentuate the gardens potential.
Our client seeks an experienced gardener to help maintain the gardens on a year-round basis following the annual calendar. The Senior Gardener will oversee and work alongside a live in Groundsperson to care for the garden with great attention to detail. Applicants will ideally possess an academic horticultural qualification, such as an RHS level 2 or equivalent, combined with extensive experience working in a similar role within a private estate setting. The focus of this role is fine horticulture, so excellent plant identification skills are essential in addition to a thorough understanding of the seasons. Duties include rotate crops, cultivate, harvest and prune fruit and vegetables within the kitchen garden and greenhouse, general garden maintenance such as lawncare, hedge cutting, leaf collecting, weeding, moss control, manage fruit trees including species specific pruning and general health, pest and disease control, tending to herbaceous borders and further developing the composting system. A self-motivated, organised individual with a self-start attitude and proven track record of managing a large mature English country garden, with a strong work ethic and willingness to work to consistently high standards are qualities which are essential for this role. Applicants for this role must be physically fit, hands-on, and happy to work outside in all weathers.
Experience in the use and basic maintenance of a wide variety of garden machinery is a must, which include ride on mowers, strimmers, pedestrian mowers, hedge trimmers and more. Additional ad hoc tasks may occur and will include but are not limited to basic maintenance both inside and outside the main property and other buildings on the estate. Other tasks may include gutter clearing, cleaning internal windows valeting estate cars, chauffeuring and other such tasks.
The client is happy to offer the successful application a large and refurbished 2-bedroom Coach House which is located on site, with utilities and council tax to be covered by the Senior Gardener. The owners are happy to welcome partners, preferably no pets although they would consider a dog; unfortunately, the property is not suitable for dependants.
As this role is based within a private estate setting, applicants must be loyal and be trustworthy, with discretion being of the utmost importance. Please note, the successful candidate with be offered subject to extensive reference checks as well as a DBS check.
SALARY: Up to £35,000 depending on experience + Accommodation
LOCATION: Hungerford, West Berkshire
JOB No: EC63712
If this Senior Gardener vacancy is of interest, please apply or contact Sophie Sharpe on 01233 733510 or info@englishcountrygardeners.co.uk.
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Thank you for the interest you have shown in this Senior Gardener vacancy. Unfortunately, due to the high volume of applications that we receive, it is not possible to respond to every one. Therefore, unless you hear from us within the next 14 days, your application for this Senior Gardener vacancy will have been unsuccessful.