Jobs

KEY PURPOSE

Arduaine Garden requires qualified/ experienced gardeners to work closely with the Head Gardener and Assistant Head Gardener to restore and redevelop the garden after a project to remove the entire Larch shelterbelt due to Phytophthora ramorum and a secondary project to clear up storm damage and remove wind vulnerable trees from the remaining woodland.

CONTEXT

Arduaine Garden was established in 1898 by Ethel and James Arthur Campbell and is renowned for its nationally important collection of Rhododendron species, many of which were collected at the beginning of the last century. Arduaine grows a broad range of plants from all around the world including many tender plants which thrive in the garden’s mild climate, influenced by warm Atlantic currents. The garden covers 20 acres, divided into two main areas, a semi formal garden of shrub beds, mixed borders, lawns and ponds and an informal woodland garden.
In 1971 the garden was acquired by nurserymen, Edmund and Harry Wright. The brothers greatly improved the infrastructure of the garden and added to the existing Rhododendron collection before donating the garden to the National Trust for Scotland in 1992.
The garden regularly attracts 15000 visitors a year and is about to reopen after a period of temporary closure in order to facilitate the completion of the Shelterbelt Restoration project and additional arboricultural work relating to the project.
The Shelterbelt Restoration Project felling stage is now complete and over 1000 mature Japanese Larch have been removed after an outbreak of Phytophthora ramorum. Strategic felling to remove wind vulnerable trees and clear up of storm damage sustained in early 2022 has been carried out and the project is now entering its restoration phase. The restoration phase will be particularly intense over the next 2 years and extra gardening staff are required to assist the core garden staff during this time.

Application Deadline: Sunday 17/09/2023