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Landscaper

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Landscaper Career Details

Landscapers, or landscape gardeners, construct and maintain gardens, parks, sports grounds and other outdoor areas. They also work on interior landscaping projects, often in shopping centres or large office blocks.

The work involves preparing the ground (including earthworks and drainage), turfing and seeding lawns, planting and pruning trees and shrubs and putting in other plants. Some landscapers specialise in a particular skill such as laying paving, constructing rock or water gardens, or seeding lawns; others carry out a wide range of tasks.

Large-scale work may involve interpreting plans and drawings, and using mini-diggers and excavators, tractor-mounted equipment, and possibly dump trucks. On small-scale projects landscapers use hand-operated equipment such as garden mowers and rotavators, as well as spades, forks and other garden tools. Cement mixers and stone-cutting saws are used for paving; chainsaws and climbing equipment for treework.

The type of work undertaken is dictated by the time of year and the state of the ground. Landscapers liaise with clients on site, and there is usually some contact with suppliers.

Working Environment

The basic working week can be up to 40 hours, which is likely to include overtime at weekends. Early starts are common.

Landscapers work outdoors in all weathers conditions. The work is physically demanding and includes digging, pushing loaded wheelbarrows and laying paving slabs.

Travelling to a job may take up a lot of time, and some jobs involve temporary lodging away from home. A driving licence is useful.

Landscaper Related Skills

To be a landscaper you should:

be physically fit to cope with strenuous tasks
be creative, with the ability to interpret drawings
be interested in the environment and in plants and their effective use
be able to work quickly to meet deadlines
have organisational skills to co-ordinate work with other tradespeople
have practical skills to work with a variety of tools.

Landscaper Career Opportunities

Most landscapers are employed by landscape contractors and by local authority parks departments. A few openings exist with the National Trust, English Heritage and botanical gardens. Contractors usually employ a mix of permanent staff and sub-contractors, hired as the volume of work requires. To some extent the work is seasonal, with more opportunities in the summer.

In larger firms, progression to chargehand, foreman/woman or contracts manager may be possible. With experience, landscapers may become self-employed contractors.

Further Career Information

If you would like to know more about a career as an Landscaper related facts, statistics, articles and websites.

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