Horticulturist

Job Description

Allen Centennial Garden is seeking a highly motivated individual with strong leadership, organizational, communication, and interpersonal skills to fill the position of Horticulturalist. The Horticulturalist will be part of a team responsible for developing and maintaining diverse garden spaces representing a wide variety of horticultural styles including care of trees, shrubs, herbaceous perennials, and seasonal displays. The Horticulturalist will also coordinate greenhouse plant production to support these endeavors, use and maintain garden equipment, and demonstrate effective leadership of volunteer and student staff, update seasonal interpretive displays, and provide support for special events. Our ideal candidate will have the ability to manage formal and informal communications with vendors, service providers, and the public.

About Us

Allen Centennial Garden is the artful living laboratory and public botanical garden of the Plant and Agroecosystem Science Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Our 2.5 acre garden features a wide variety of horticultural styles at the heart of a college campus, playing a dynamic role in life and learning for students, faculty, and staff. The Garden’s mission is to create experiences that deepen relationships among people and plants. We believe that every plant tells many stories, and we shape our gardens to share these stories with the public.

UW-Madison is an AA/EEO employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, age, status as a protected veteran, and status as a qualified individual with a disability.

Duties & Responsibilities

Manages garden collections and associated documentation and data to enhance teaching, research, and general interest. Implements garden preservation practices and collection policies and oversees collection documentation and reporting.
5% Oversees plant collections management database or retrieval system, develops standards, oversees data entry, and provides digital access to the collections. Often serves as database administrator, accessions and catalog collections
40% Oversees physical storage and access to the plant collection
5% Manages incoming and outgoing (international, domestic and in-house) plant loans and associated documentation
5% Organizes plant collections in and during installation of exhibitions, galleries, and laboratories
30% Provides operational guidance on day-to-day activities of student workers and volunteers
10% Serves as main point of contact and maintains relationships with donors, collectors, and colleagues
5% Serves as a horticultural expert and consultant to internal and external stakeholders. May assist with laboratory demonstrations when necessary

Education and Experience

Education:
Required: Bachelor’s Degree in horticulture or closely related field, or at least two years of full time horticulture experience in a public garden or public-facing greenhouse space

Experience:
Required:
– Work experience in BOTH outdoor public gardens and greenhouses with fluency in multiple styles of horticulture
– Experience leading employees, volunteers, or students in educational and/or horticultural settings

Preferred:
– Demonstrated experience in public speaking, giving tours, and/or leading educational programs
– Demonstrated experience developing relationships and programs with diverse communities

Additional Information

Full Time: 100%

It is anticipated this position requires work be performed in-person, onsite, at a designated campus work location.

Normal work hours: 7:30-4:00
Normal days of the week: M-F
Ave # hours per week: 40

The person hired needs to be willing and able to work at events in the Garden which happen occasionally on evenings and weekends.

The anticipated salary range for this position is $45,000 – $48,000. Actual salary will depend on experience and qualifications. Employees in this position can expect to receive benefits such as generous vacation, holidays, and paid time off; competitive insurances and savings accounts; retirement benefits. Additional information about benefits can be found at: https://www.wisconsin.edu/ohrwd/benefits/download/fasl.pdf.

-Working in inclement weather is likely
-This position works with powered tools for gardening and garden maintenance
-Some evening and weekend work will be needed
-Evaluation/Probationary Period may be required
-Applicants must become an approved driver through UW-Madison’s driver authorization process. This requires meeting established driver authorization criteria listed at https://businessservices.wisc.edu/managing-risk/driver-authorization-and-insurance/driver-authorization/
-The successful applicant will be responsible for ensuring eligibility for employment in the United States by the start of the appointment
-University sponsorship is not available for this position

Application Instructions

Qualified applicants should apply online at https://jobs.wisc.edu/jobs/horticulturist-madison-wisconsin-united-states