Professional Work Placement (PWP) in Propagation and Plant Trials
| Dyddiad hysbysebu: | 24 Chwefror 2026 |
|---|---|
| Cyflog: | £23,810 bob blwyddyn |
| Oriau: | Llawn Amser |
| Dyddiad cau: | 26 Mawrth 2026 |
| Lleoliad: | GU23 6QB |
| Gweithio o bell: | Ar y safle yn unig |
| Cwmni: | Royal Horticultural Society |
| Math o swydd: | Cytundeb |
| Cyfeirnod swydd: |
Crynodeb
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 and 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 https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/trials-awards/ongoing-plant-trials
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.
Further Information:
Accommodation will be available at RHS Garden Wisley (for a deduction in your gross salary).
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 and 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 https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/trials-awards/ongoing-plant-trials
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.
Further Information:
Accommodation will be available at RHS Garden Wisley (for a deduction in your gross salary).