Aberglasney welcomes new batch of horticulture students to learn and work at the gardens

Advertisement

Aberglasney is delighted to welcome two new students to the gardening team as part of the 2024 Student Bursary Scheme.

The new students are Francesca Miles and Freddy Fuller who have recently started the 12-month, funded, training opportunity at Aberglasney Gardens in Carmarthenshire.

Francesca moved to Carmarthenshire seven years ago to continue her career in architecture, and quickly enrolled on an evening course in horticulture as a way to meet people who shared her love of gardening. She chose to turn her enthusiasm for gardening into a career when she enrolled on the traineeship at Aberglasney Gardens. She had admired the gardens since moving to Wales but never anticipated being afforded the opportunity to train here. She cannot imagine returning to a desk full-time and hopes to pursue a career as a garden designer or head gardener.

Francesca said, “I have been fortunate to have been working at Aberglasney for a few months now. I jumped at the chance when offered a place on the Aberglasney Bursary scheme. I have never been without a garden – even while renting in London! I belong to a family of enthusiastic gardeners, my great grandfather was an award-winning Coleus grower, and I was fortunate to go to a school that fostered my love of plants at a young age.”

Aberglasney’s Director of Operations Jim Stribling said, “Our new students have just fitted right in with the gardening team already. Since our gardens are ever evolving, we are often able to provide students with unique and valuable opportunities to participate in significant landscape projects. I’m sure this year’s students will enjoy playing a part in making Aberglasney’s gardens special for our visitors to enjoy.”   

Freddy, originally from Lancashire, has come to study at Aberglasney after recently completing his HBGTP qualification at the National Botanic Garden of Wales. He worked in an independent houseplant shop in Bristol for four years which affirmed his love of plants. Whilst working he volunteered at Bristol Botanics in the glasshouses and gained his RHS Level 2 practical qualification.

Like many others, Freddy is training in horticulture as his second career. His original training was in visual arts, specifically illustration and graphic design, which he finds helpful when deciding how to make a garden look beautiful.

Freddy said, “Because my background is mostly in tropical plants, I’m really looking forward to working in Abeglasney’s Ninfarium. It’s such an amazing and unique space. The small amount of work I have done in there since I recently started has got me very excited for what is to come. I have dozens of houseplants and I am constantly rescuing and propagating more.”

The Bursary at Aberglasney is a 12-month funded training opportunity to work and learn about the historic and diverse gardens. Students gain hands-on experience with the professional gardening team and will be trained in all common UK garden tasks as well as more specialist subjects including specialist bulb planting and a variety of propagation methods.

There is still one more place to fill for this year. More details are available on the website if anyone is interested in applying: www.aberglasney.org