Horticultural worker apprenticeships - where to start
You can get into this job through
a college coursean apprenticeshipapplying directlytraining with a professional body
College
You could take a course at college. Relevant courses include:
- Level 1 Award in Horticultural Skills
- Level 2 Certificate in Gardening
- Level 2 Diploma in Horticulture
You'll usually need 2 or fewer GCSEs at grades 3 to 1 (D to G), or equivalent, for a Level 1 course. You'll need 2 or more GCSEs at grades 9 to 3 (A* to D), or equivalent, for a Level 2 course.
Apprenticeship
You may be able to get into this job by doing a horticulture and landscape operative Level 2 apprenticeship.
You can also do a packhouse line leader Level 3 apprenticeship, if you're working on a horticultural production line, for example picking and packing plants and flowers to order.
You could move onto a horticulture supervisor advanced apprenticeship as you get more experience.
You'll usually need some GCSEs, usually including English and maths, or equivalent, for a Level 2 apprenticeship. You'll need 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths, for a Level 3 apprenticeship.
Direct Application
You can apply directly if you have experience of working with plants. You could get trained up on the job or develop your skills through a part-time course. Employers may ask for GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) in maths, English and science.
Other Routes
You could do a training course through a professional body like The Royal Horticultural Society. Their courses can be done at a training centre, with some available by distance learning. Getting experience and skills from working in related jobs like gardening, forestry or farming could be useful.
Customer service experience would also be helpful if you want to work in a garden centre.
Horticultural worker apprenticeships - what it takes
Skills and knowledge
You'll need:
- to be thorough and pay attention to detail
- the ability to work well with others
- the ability to work on your own
- to be flexible and open to change
- persistence and determination
- physical skills like movement, coordination and dexterity
- the ability to work well with your hands
- physical fitness and endurance
- to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device
Horticultural worker apprenticeships - what you'll do
Day-to-day tasks
On a typical day you could:
- sow seeds, plant bulbs and ornamental plants
- grow plants from cuttings and by grafting
- water, weed, prune, feed and spray plants
- mow grass, cut dead growth and branches, and generally tidy up
lay paths and look after ornamental features
- research new strains of seed and plants in the lab for crop production
- pick, sort and package produce to be sent to retailers
- sell plants and other products
- advise customers in a garden centre
Working environment
You could work on a country estate, in a park, in a garden or at a garden centre.
Your working environment may be outdoors in all weathers.
Career path and progression - Horticultural worker apprenticeships
With experience you could progress to a supervisor or manager role, or set up your own nursery or garden maintenance business.
You could move into a research job for a university, or with a food and agricultural development company.