Seasonal Gardener

Thomas Jefferson Foundation; Charlottesville (VA); On-site; USD 22,000 - 29,000; Full time

Job summary

The Thomas Jefferson Foundation is seeking a Seasonal Gardener to help maintain Monticello’s gardens and landscape features, ensuring a professional horticultural presentation and preservation of historic plant collections.

Compensation is $18.50 per hour. The role involves planting, weeding, pruning, harvesting seeds and produce, and supporting gardens, grounds and public programming with reliability and a set schedule.

Qualifications

• Horticulture and grounds maintenance knowledge including soils, fertilizers, weed control and pruning.
• Manual dexterity for seed sowing, planting, pruning, transplanting and spraying.
• Ability to safely operate vehicles, hand tools and power equipment.
• Strong communication to assist visitors and collaborate with staff.
• Flexibility to adapt to changing conditions and schedules.
• Active learning and problem solving in field settings.
• Reliability and commitment to a regular schedule.

Responsibilities

• Assist maintenance of flower, vegetable, and fruit gardens; care for historic plantings.
• Perform grounds upkeep: mowing, mulching, edgings, trimming and cleanup.
• Support research projects and public programming activities.
• Contribute to Gardens and Grounds projects and other duties as assigned.

Skills

Horticulture basics

Plant propagation

Equipment operation

Communication skills

Safety awareness

Tools

Garden tools

Power equipment

Job description

The Thomas Jefferson Foundation was incorporated in 1923 to preserve Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Today, the Foundation seeks to bring history forward into national and global dialogues by engaging audiences with Jefferson’s world and ideas, and sharing the history of everyone, enslaved and free, who lived and labored at Monticello. Monticello is recognized as a National Historic Landmark, a United Nations World Heritage Site and a Site of Conscience. As a private, nonprofit organization, the Foundation’s regular operating budget does not receive ongoing government support to fund its twofold mission of preservation and education. For information, visit Monticello.org .

Seasonal Gardener

Job Purpose:

The purpose of this position is to assist in the maintenance of Monticello’s gardens and landscape features, to ensure a professional horticultural presentation, and to preserve a historic plant collection.

Compensation

$18.50 per hour

Essential Functions

• Assists in the maintenance of the flower, vegetable, and fruit garden: planting, watering, weeding, staking, edging, pruning, fertilizing, harvesting seeds, harvesting produce, sowing seeds, cleaning and packaging seeds, amending soil, planting bulbs, moving potted specimen plants, labeling, mulching, etc.
• Performs occasional grounds maintenance activities, such as blowing and raking leaves, collecting branches, mowing turf grass, string-trimming, spreading mulch, removing trees, clearing out woodlands, maintaining shrubberies, shoveling snow, and operating power equipment such as lawn mowers, tillers, tractors, etc.
• Assists with research projects and public programming.
• Assists with general maintenance, landscaping, Gardens and Grounds projects, and other projects as assigned.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Basic understanding of horticulture and grounds maintenance including knowledge of garden plants, soils and fertilizers, weed control, watering techniques, pruning techniques, plant propagation, use of common garden tools, etc.
• Manual dexterity to safely and efficiently perform horticultural tasks, such as seed sowing, seed collection, pruning and training plants, transplanting, watering, fertilizing, and spraying.
• Ability to safely operate vehicles, hand tools and power equipment.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to provide information to visitors and engage positively with colleagues.
• Flexibility in adapting to changing or adverse circumstances.
• Active learning capabilities, including asking questions, offering suggestions, seeking clarification, problem solving, etc.
• Position requires reliability and commitment to a set schedule.

Physical Demands

• Position requires working for long periods in very sunny, hot, humid, windy, and rainy conditions performing manual tasks that require kneeling, bending, reaching, stretching, and lifting up to 50lbs.
• Position requires a driver’s license and reliable transportation to and from work.