Angie’s Story: We Need More Women in Horticulture
As the Green team supervisor of the Green Team (on the day if interview, Angie was planting in Poplar), Angie introduces people to horticulture. The Green Team support a variety of unique individuals who haven’t tried gardening or working in green space before, and who are seeking to move closer to full-time employment.
As the supervisor for the Westminster team, Angie supports them in developing their gardening and grounds maintenance skills, helping them grow their knowledge of gardening and plants. Some people love gardening and this is a great opportunity for them to see if they want to do it as a career.
The work is sometimes complicated and very weather-dependant, but the scope of work provides a great foundation into horticulture. The Green Team is a vital stepping stone for people looking to explore the sector if they don’t know what to do. Some people are encouraged to do it by job centres which can be a frightening prospect if you haven’t done anything like it before. Angie explains that the green team are gentle and encouraging with their participants, and they create a space where you can make mistakes and learn. By taking things at a slow pace the team can guide them. 90% of people who learn with the Green Team feel comfortable and confident!
What are the benefits of working in the Green Space Sector?
For me, it’s all about working outside in nature – I could never work indoors, spending my whole time gazing out of the window. I like being in nature and making a difference to people, to communities, and green space is important to people.
It’s quite selfish because I love gardening and i love plants, but by working in green space you see firsthand the impact it has on environment and communities. At Groundwork London we’re part of a wide variety of green space projects, and you see how that impacts communities and beyond! Green space is important for connection in community, for wildlife, for insects and bees; they are the lungs of London.
No day is the same; you could be working on plant beds today and a cafe area tomorrow. Some beds we make are to help pollination, other beds are to support insect life, and are designed to tie in with what’s already there and repeat the cycles that surround them.
What are the pitfalls?
Time is a challenge! Some projects need to be completed in a certain time, and you have to account time for training a new team of trainees. Training people who have never done gardening before takes longer too!
The weather changes mean that you can never work to plan for next week with certainty; torrential rain can mess up a schedule, so you have to be adaptable and extremely flexible.
I see a great challenge for men in particular; as a woman in green space you have to work harder to win them over and gain their trust. I think it’s pride and they’re not used to having a woman teaching them to use machinery – especially how to use it correctly and safely. They will sooner look to a male supervisor who is a carpenter instead of a gardener to use gardening machinery. It’s because women in horticulture are not taken seriously. After 39 years working in the sector, I am one of many women who have similar stories. I have female friends who have been gardeners and they have the same complaints.