Fine Gardens Team Leader

Hanleyri; Portsmouth (RI); On-site; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Life insurance

Vision insurance

401(k)

Paid holidays

Paid time off

Paid sick leave

Overtime and advancement opportunities

Training and professional development

Employee referral and tuition reimbur-

Job summary

Hanley Landscape Design is a Portsmouth, Rhode Island-based design-build firm that creates and maintains high-end residential estates. This leadership role focuses on advanced horticulture, planting, and estate care across coastal Rhode Island properties.

You will guide a skilled crew, oversee daily operations, and ensure top-quality garden care while coordinating planting projects and client communications within our expanding portfolio of Newport and Aquidneck Island estates.

Qualifications

• Advanced horticultural knowledge and plant identification skills.
• Proven experience leading crews and maintaining high quality standards.
• Minimum of five years in fine gardening, horticulture, or estate gardening.
• Working knowledge of IPM and plant health issues.
• Ability to identify and troubleshoot plant health, pests, and irrigation problems.
• Strong communication with clients and team members.
• Ability to train and motivate team members in the field.
• Able to read landscape plans or willing to learn.
• Comfortable using landscape equipment outdoors in varying weather.
• Strong organizational and time-management skills.
• Valid driver’s license with clean record.
• Ability to perform physical horticultural tasks.

Responsibilities

• Leading and mentoring Fine Gardens Team members in the field.
• Coordinating daily work activities and maintaining productivity across properties.
• Performing advanced fine gardening tasks: pruning, deadheading, weeding, mulching.
• Monitoring plant health and issues related to pests, disease, nutrition, irrigation, stress.
• Implementing basic IPM strategies.
• Planning and executing seasonal horticultural work.
• Installing trees, shrubs, perennials, and edible gardens.
• Communicating professionally with clients and leadership.
• Training team on horticultural best practices.
• Maintaining organized tools, vehicles, and job sites.
• Identifying opportunities for garden improvements.

Skills

Plant identification

IPM knowledge

Leadership experience

Communication

Mentoring

Reading landscape plans

Education

Degree in Plant Science / Horticulture

Job description

• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Vision insurance
• 401(k)
• Paid holidays
• Paid time off
• Paid sick leave
• Overtime and advancement opportunities
• Training and professional development
• Employee referral and tuition reimbursement programs

Hanley Landscape Design is a high end landscape design-build firm based in Portsmouth, Rhode Island. We design, build, and maintain some of the most detailed and expansive residential estates in coastal Rhode Island, including waterfront estates, historic properties, and large private gardens throughout Newport and Aquidneck Island.

Unlike many other firms, our work extends far beyond fine gardening. Our team handles everything from master planning, landscape architecture to construction, fine gardening, estate care, arboriculture, and long‑term property stewardship. We are a company built around quality, craftsmanship, and a genuine passion for plants.

Your Day & Team Looks Like

Your day begins at 6:40 AM at our Portsmouth office, leading your team's meeting before loading vehicles and heading to one of our estate properties.

This is a working leadership role. You'll spend much of your day performing advanced horticultural work alongside your team while also directing daily operations, training staff, maintaining quality standards, communicating with clients, and helping identify long‑term horticultural needs throughout the properties under your care.

At Hanley, we already have a full construction, enhancement, and maintenance team. Your primary focus is horticulture. You'll spend your time caring for ornamental gardens, specialty plant collections, mature landscapes, edible gardens, and seasonal displays throughout some of Rhode Island's most significant residential properties.

During the growing season, you will perform detailed horticultural work including pruning, deadheading, plant health monitoring, garden editing, perennial care, seasonal color changes, irrigation observation, and general garden stewardship. Many of our properties contain extensive edible gardens, allowing team members to work with vegetables, herbs, berries, cut flowers, and specialty crops in addition to ornamental landscapes.

As part of a design‑build company, you will also have the opportunity to assist with planting projects and major landscape installations. Our Fine Gardens Team is often responsible for the final layer of a project, helping install and establish the trees, shrubs, and perennials that bring a landscape to life.

While your primary focus will remain fine gardening, being part of a larger company provides opportunities for growth and exposure to other areas of the industry. Employees who develop new interests often have opportunities to explore design, arboriculture, project management, estate care, or landscape construction throughout their careers.

If you're the type of person who genuinely enjoys learning plant names, discussing cultivars, visiting gardens, or experimenting in your own landscape, you'll likely fit right in.

Advanced horticultural knowledge and strong plant identification skills

Proven experience leading crews and maintaining high standards of quality

Minimum of five years of experience in fine gardening, horticulture, estate gardening, nursery operations, or a related field

Working knowledge of Integrated Pest Management (IPM), plant healthcare, and common ornamental plant issues

Ability to identify and troubleshoot plant health, pest, disease, irrigation, and environmental problems

Strong communication and interpersonal skills with both clients and team members

Ability to train, mentor, and motivate team members in the field

Ability to read landscape plans or willingness to learn

Comfortable using landscape equipment and working outdoors in varying weather conditions

Strong organizational and time management skills

Valid driver's license with a clean driving record

Ability to lift and perform the physical demands associated with horticultural work

Responsibilities Include

Leading and mentoring Fine Gardens Team members in the field

Coordinating daily work activities and maintaining productivity across assigned properties

Performing advanced fine gardening tasks including pruning, deadheading, garden editing, weeding, and mulching

Monitoring plant health and identifying issues related to pests, disease, nutrient deficiencies, irrigation, and environmental stress

Implementing basic Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies

Assisting in the planning and execution of seasonal horticultural work

Installing and establishing trees, shrubs, perennials, annuals, and edible gardens

Communicating professionally with clients and company leadership

Training team members on horticultural best practices and proper garden care techniques

Maintaining organized tools, vehicles, and job sites

Identifying opportunities for garden improvements, replacements, and enhancements

Bonus Points If You Have

A degree in Plant Science, Horticulture, Landscape Architecture, Environmental Science, or a related field

ISA Certification

A custom cover letter (yes, we read them)

A genuine passion for plants, trees, and horticulture

Why Work With Us?

Our Fine Gardens Team works on properties that most horticulturists only see in magazines. From historic Newport estates to large waterfront landscapes, the variety and quality of work are difficult to find elsewhere in the industry.

More importantly, you will work alongside a team that genuinely values horticultural knowledge and craftsmanship. Many of our team members hold degrees in horticulture, landscape architecture, environmental science, and related fields. We enjoy talking about plants, learning new things, and continually improving our craft.

Because we are a design‑build firm you will also have long‑term involvement with the landscapes you care for. Rather than simply maintaining someone else's work, you will help steward landscapes from installation through maturity, watching gardens evolve and improve over time.

If you're looking for a position where plants come first, where quality matters, and where you will be surrounded by people who care about horticulture as much as you do, we would love to hear from you.