First Gardener

Organisation: The National Trust for Scotland

JOB PURPOSE

Under the leadership of the Head Gardener, this role manages the delivery of Inverewe Gardens’ shelterbelt management plan – a subset of the property’s overall Garden Heritage Plan. It is a hands‑on role, delivering practical arboriculture and horticulture within woodland settings across the property, whilst leading a small team of gardeners.

CONTEXT

Inverewe is a garden of international importance. Created by Osgood Mackenzie in the late 19th century, and in NTS ownership since 1952, exotic plants flourish in a challenging northern landscape of spectacular mountain and coast. Inverewe’s planting has always been developed to ‘push the boundaries’. It is renowned for its variety of designed elements and an extensive plant collection of national significance, including notable collections of rhododendrons and southern hemisphere plants. The “shelterbelt” of mixed coniferous and broadleaf trees rings the more formal “planted” garden and the tree canopy provides the stable, humid, and sheltered microclimate that allows the plant collection to thrive, as well as influencing the character of the garden as a backdrop and gateway to the landscape beyond. While the importance of the shelterbelt and tree collection has long been recognised, with their loss representing an existential threat to the garden itself, it has been difficult to consistently implement management plans to ensure the resilience of these features for the future. The Head Gardener, First Gardener (Woodland), and First Gardener (Ornamental) form Inverewe’s Garden Management Team, collectively ensuring the development and delivery of the property’s Garden Heritage Plan, whilst integrating seamlessly with the wider estate (2,500 hectares of forestry, shore, and moorland), visitor services (100,000 visitors annually), and the context of the local community.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES AND ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Understand, develop, and deliver Inverewe’s shelterbelt management plan, including (but not limited to):

• General care of trees and their understory, such as trimming/lopping, felling, planting, invasive non‑native species removal, pest and disease control;
• Undertaking tree inspections and remedial actions to promote tree health and maintain a safe woodland garden environment;
• General care, maintenance, and development of planted borders and clearings within the woodland garden;
• Managing soil health – including appropriate composting;
• Managing and developing the property’s bio‑char approach, for both internal use, and as a commercial product;
• Liaising with Inverewe’s Propagator to ensure an appropriate nursery of replacement trees, and implementing agreed planting/re‑planting plans, or opportunist planting;
• Liaising with Inverewe’s Ranger over the recording, monitoring, and maintenance of the shelterbelt as an important habitat;
• Outreach and education in the form of guided tours, talks/lectures, community engagement events.

• Undertaking and recording general and specific risk assessments for areas of the woodland garden and shelterbelt activities to mitigate hazards and risks;
• Undertaking and recording routine and ad hoc tree inspections, and any remedial works;
• Servicing of tools and equipment (including PPE) according to manufacturer’s recommendations, and logging their use;
• Appropriate storage, issuing, and COSHH assessment of chemical agents used in the woodland setting;
• Advising – and if necessary, taking decisions on – the closure of parts of the garden or the garden as a whole in situations such as high winds/storms to ensure the safety of colleagues and visitors.

The current duties of this job do not require a criminal records (Disclosure Scotland) check to be carried out.