Each year the Botanic Garden takes on two horticultural trainees to work alongside the horticultural staff. Trainees alternate on a 3 monthly basis between the Gardens and Glasshouses teams. They will also spend three separate weeks working at Harcourt Arboretum. During the year there is a training schedule of plant identifications, taught practical sessions and discussion sessions. The trainees will also undertake a project – typically making a set of herbarium specimens of a key collection at the Botanic Garden. An example programme can be downloaded here.

Previous trainees have also undertaken horticultural work placement exchanges with gardens such as Great Dixter.

Former trainees have gone on to further study such as the Kew Diploma, but also to employment in organisations including Kew, English Heritage, Westonbirt, Oxford Botanic Garden, Harcourt Arboretum, Winterbourne House and Garden.

Applications for the 2013 intake are now closed. Please check back towards the end of 2013 for details of how to apply to be a 2014 trainee.