Professional Work Placement (PWP) in Propagation and Plant Trials

Location: RHS Garden Wisley

Salary: £23,810 per annum. The RHS ensure we pay all staff at or above the National Minimum Wage, which is reviewed annually by government.

Reports to: School of Horticulture Manager and Placement Team Leaders

Start Date: September 2026. One year (fixed term)

Hours of work: Full time (37.5 hours a week on a rota). The working pattern is 5 days in 7 so your full-time hours will include some weekend working.

About the Placement

Are you enthusiastic about horticulture? Do you want to develop experience and knowledge while working across a whole year in two specialist teams at RHS Garden Wisley? Are you interested in specialising and completing a Level 3 Award to further your career?

Our Professional Work Placement programme is a one-year paid work experience placement for horticulturists who wish to specialise. Applicants should have already completed (or be studying for) a Level 2 horticultural theory qualification or apprenticeship standard and have 3 months (minimum) full time practical experience in the industry at the time of application.

This placement at Wisley provides the opportunity to spend a full year in a joint placement immersed across the two teams below, whilst completing a Level 3 Award:

• Nursery and Propagation Team, working in the Nursery and Plant Reception Facility.
• Plant Trials Team, working in the Trials Garden and Edible Trialling area.

You will gain knowledge, skills, training and experience in your specialism, in a work‑based context, to prepare you for professional life in the industry.

Speciality focus

In the Plant Trials Team you will develop and maintain specialist plant trials in the garden, while in the Nursery and Propagation Team you will learn skills to propagate, grow on, identify and monitor pests and disease and maintain the wide range of plants that we produce for the gardens here at Wisley. You will work in each of these teams at different times of year.

Who you will be working with

• Nursery and Propagation Team
• Plant Trials Team

Nursery and Propagation

Working in our state‑of‑the‑art nursery facilities (built in 2019), propagating, growing on, monitoring pests and disease and maintaining the wide range of plants that we produce for the gardens here at Wisley. You will be given the opportunity to understand how the Propagation team grows plants for all teams across RHS Garden Wisley, whilst gaining a wide range of expert propagation skills including: seed sowing, cuttings, grafting, edible growing, irrigation and maintenance of protected environments. You will also develop knowledge of pest management through best industry practice and biocontrols. Each year there will be a protected cropping trial in the Propagation unit (previous years have included peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers), which you will have a chance to be involved with.

There will also be opportunity to see how the plants are processed through our reception unit and the procedures we use at the RHS to manage phytosanitary controls. You will learn best practice for biosecurity in a large public garden setting.

Plant Trials

The Plant Trials Team work with a wide range of ornamental and edible plant trials, where plants and cultivars are assessed to identify the most robust, resilient, and beautiful plants, and provide gardeners with reliable recommendations through the RHS Award of Garden Merit (AGM). You can learn more about our current Trials on our website.

The team works across two areas: our ornamental Trials Garden and our Edible Trials area. We do extensive work ahead of each trial which involves soil analysis, bed preparation and the selection and application of appropriate mulches and feeds. There are always new trials being planted each year, so planting opportunities will arise, as well as the harvesting of edible crops on trial, ranging from soft fruit and root vegetables grown both outdoors and under protection in containerised glasshouse‑based trials.

The tasks you will complete include planting out trials, maintenance of trial plantings to high standards, implementing plant specific care programmes, tying in plants to support them, tackling pest and disease issues, mulching, feeding and edging the beds. The team also work closely with Trials and expert groups, providing feedback on the performance of plants.

You will be given the opportunity to have your own area of care and help manage a trial crop for the following season, building your experience in organising crop schedules, ordering equipment for the task and seeing the plants go successfully to the field for assessment by the plant committees.

We have an extensive ornamental remit. We grow exciting annual displays to inspire visitors and the trials garden itself features pot displays, an 80 metre mixed species hedging demonstration, the Award of Garden Merit showcase border, and the ornamental borders around Gardiner’s House. We also manage a collection of rare apple and pear cultivars that are unique to Wisley around the edible trials area, have large Edimental display beds and manage a collection of Aeoniums in the Trials Garden. Work across all these areas can also be expected on the placement.

About the RHS Level 3 Award

During the placement you will complete horticultural research culminating in a project write up and submission for the RHS Level 3 Award in Horticultural Investigation which will be funded by the RHS. Candidates completing the Level 3 qualification will be allocated a Project Supervisor who will support and advise you on the project write up. In order to achieve the qualification you will be required to attend several online sessions (either live or recordings) over a period of 9 months, submit a project write‑up and complete a professional discussion.

Safeguarding and Inclusion

The RHS is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk and expects all personnel to share in this commitment. We are an inclusive employer and welcome applicants from all backgrounds.

Benefits of Working for the RHS

To work for the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) is to join a thriving charity, whose mission is to be there for everyone on their lifelong adventure with gardening. Everything we do is built on the transformational power of gardening – and the benefits it brings to people, places and our planet.

And we couldn’t do this without our people. We’re proud of the knowledge, enthusiasm and ideas that each one of our team members brings. From working across our social media channels, to volunteering in the RHS Gardens, from serving customers in our garden centres to running national marketing campaigns, we believe that every member of the RHS team should have the opportunity to make a difference.

Our careers portal provides a comprehensive overview of what we offer, the teams that work at the RHS and our great benefits.

You can also learn about the range of careers in horticulture here, www.horticulture.org.uk or www.lantra.co.uk.

Further Information

To apply for any work‑based training position with the RHS School of Horticulture you must have the right to work in the UK for the duration of the placement, the RHS are unable to sponsor visa applications for these positions. As part of the Professional Work Placement programme successful applicants will study for the new RHS Level 3 Award in Horticultural Investigation qualification. To be eligible applicants must not hold or be studying for a Level 3 Diploma (or equivalent) in Horticulture or above. Accommodation will be available at RHS Garden Wisley (for a deduction in your gross salary).

We may review applications as soon as we receive them so if interested please apply as soon as possible as the vacancy may close as soon as we received sufficient applications. Applications close 2nd April. Interviews to be held between 5th to 8th May.

For further information, or if you require any additional support with making your application please contact schoolofhorticulture@rhs.org.uk including details of the position you are applying for.