Senior Grounds & Nursery Services Specialist

US DEPT. OF VETERANS AFFAIRS; Orting (WA); On-site; USD 42,000 - 64,000; Full time

Job summary

Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs is seeking a Grounds and Nursery Services Specialist 4 for the Washington Soldiers Home in Orting. You will perform experienced gardening and landscaping tasks across grounds, nurseries, and greenhouse areas to create a safe, welcoming outdoor environment.

The role supports maintenance of floral beds, turf, hedges, and irrigation, with an eye for disease, pests, and proper plant care.

Qualifications

• Two (2) years' experience in gardening, plant care, landscape construction and grounds maintenance.
• A college degree involving major study in agronomy, botany, horticulture, soils or closely allied field may be substituted for gardening experience.
• A combination of education and experience may be considered on a year-for-year basis. Experience must be relevant to the position.
• Must be able to read, write, speak and understand English to facilitate effective performance of job duties.

Responsibilities

• Performs and leads others in preparing and maintaining outdoor floral beds, display areas for planting, soil improvements, and additional amendments, implementing/planting floral displays as designed, maintaining and monitoring floral displays for disease and pest control utilizing chemical, biological and other control measures as appropriate.
• Cultivate, water, fertilize floral displays; prune and mulch as needed.
• Remove annual floral displays after frost and clean up beds, trim back and mulch perennials.
• Prepares beds for all planting of spring bulbs.
• Maintain turf grass areas; fertilize, pest management, irrigation and mowing. Maintain extensive hedge material; shearing, shaping, and cultural requirement.
• Mow lawns; trim grass near fences, signposts, building perimeters, road culverts, bridges. Leaf removal using a tractor and a front mounted 72‑inch vacuum power blower.
• Rake, pick up debris, and keep campus lawns looking attractive. Irrigation of lawns, trees, and shrubs using lawn sprinklers, hoses, and water breakers.
• Apply fertilizers to lawns. Calibrate sprayer per pesticide label recommendation, also fertilizer spreaders.
• Restore or renovate bare spots in lawns by reseeding, reseodinq, and dethatching.
• Operate lawn aerator and fertilizer spreader powered by tractor. Service and maintain power equipment.

Skills

Gardening

Plant care

Landscape construction

Grounds maintenance

Education

College degree in agronomy, botany, horticulture, soils or closely allied field

Job description

Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs is seeking a Grounds and Nursery Services Specialist 4 for the Washington Soldiers Home in Orting. You will perform experienced gardening and landscaping tasks across grounds, nurseries, and greenhouse areas to create a safe, welcoming outdoor environment.

The role supports maintenance of floral beds, turf, hedges, and irrigation, with an eye for disease, pests, and proper plant care.