Senior Gardener

Are you a gardener with an artist’s eye? Belcombe Court is looking for a senior gardener with real creative flair to join our small, close-knit team.

Winner of the Historic Houses Garden of the Year Judges’ Prize
2024, and the inspiration behind the book A Garden Love Story (Pavilion/Harper Collins), our garden is a special place, and we’re looking for someone to help shape its next chapter.

You’ll be responsible for improving our borders, bringing fresh ideas forplanting combinations, colour, texture and year-round interest, and thenrolling up your sleeves to bring them to life. Your responsibilities will also include our pot and container displays, the kitchen garden and cuttinggarden, the glasshouse, and propagation, including raising our vegetables from seed.

We garden organically and as sustainably as we can, so you’ll manageweeds and pests by organic methods, look after our composting andmulching, and coppice on site to produce our own plant supports and materials. Alongside this, you’ll help maintain the wider garden to thehigh standard it’s known for, working closely with the rest of the teamand contributing to lawn mowing and hedge cutting.

The garden andscope of work are physically demanding, so a good level of fitness is essential.

You’ll hold an RHS Level 3 qualification or equivalent, with three to fiveyears’ post-qualification experience in a garden of similar standing. You’ll combine excellent plant identification skills with significant practical experience, particularly of herbaceous perennials and mixed borders,productive growing, glasshouse management and propagation, and you’ll have a real flair for pot planting. You’ll share our commitment to organic, sustainable gardening, andbring a sound understanding of health and safety legislation and good practice, with experience of putting it into action.

A good communicator with a positive, can-do attitude, you’ll enjoy working as part of a teamand have the confidence to share ideas and take ownership of projects. Afull driving licence is required.

A full-time position, five days a week, 8am–5pm, with a salary of £34,000to £40,000 depending on experience, standard holiday allowance and apension contribution. Please note, no accommodation is available withthis role. Above all, the chance to work in an award-winning garden with genuine freedom to experiment and see your ideas take root.