With recent debate in the press over the difference between a gardener and a horticulturist, and whether there is one, we asked Lewis Barrett, botanical horticulturist at Kew, to explain.
Many horticulturists are gardeners, and the term people use to describe themselves is a matter of personal preference. However, not all gardeners are horticulturists, with the latter requiring specialist training and expertise to work in spaces such as botanic gardens, which are home to valuable, and often vulnerable, collections.
Not all gardeners are horticulturists, with the latter requiring specialist training and expertise.
For many, Kew is a garden to visit for a nice stroll and a picnic, but the plants people photograph and the lawns they sit on to enjoy a sandwich are a living laboratory to horticulturists and scientists, and much of the work we do goes unseen. Botanical gardens offer significant historical value and an outstanding educational resource, and how these gardens are perceived is dependent on the level of interest from the individual engaging with them.
As a horticulturist at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, my responsibilities and duties vary beyond what members of the public might perceive as gardening. One day we may be curating critically endangered plant collections, whilst on another we may be considering how to navigate the complexities of growing ornamentals in the face of a changing climate. Our findings will likely be used by gardeners in the future, but horticulturists are at the forefront of this work, driving change in the world of plants.
As a horticulturist at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, my responsibilities and duties vary beyond what members of the public might perceive as gardening.
On a day-to-day basis, I maintain a landscape which is educational, therapeutic, inspiring and artistic. On Monday I’ll be weeding the herbaceous borders, Tuesday I’ll be teaching students the morphological adaptations of flowers and their associated pollinators, Wednesday I’ll be designing new planting schemes, taking into account plant provenance in order to ensure resistance to climate change while also supporting biodiversity. On Thursday I’ll give a tour to a group of visitors, explaining the complex symbiotic relationships between plant roots and fungi within the soil biome, before spending Friday reviewing the conservation value of Kew’s plant collections, highlighting plants which are most vulnerable.
I pride myself on the fact that I am a horticulturist, but take no offence when I meet somebody who does not entirely understand my job.
I pride myself on the fact that I am a horticulturist, but take no offence when I meet somebody who does not entirely understand my job. The term gardener is a good starting point, and acts as a springboard to describe my work before expanding into the fact that my role as a horticulturist consists of so much more. As a graduate from the Kew Diploma and several RHS courses, I’ve spent many years building the foundations of what it is to be a fully trained and qualified horticulturist. Horticulturists are gardeners, but they are also ecologists, conservationists, botanists, historians, biologists, entomologists, designers, propagators, arboriculturists, pathologists, soil scientists… the list goes on. Of course, I am no expert in all of these occupations, but there are specialist horticulturists who are (look no further than Kew’s Tree Gang for arboriculturists who have spent years learning about the science of trees). The term ‘horticulturist’ therefore encapsulates so much more than gardening, and the profession encompasses many roles which do not fit the description of a gardener at all.
We are in desperate need of more horticulturists, as their knowledge of the natural world plays a central role in protecting the planet.
We are in desperate need of more horticulturists, as their knowledge of the natural world plays a central role in protecting the planet. It is crucial that people know how diverse and rewarding this career can be, and that we celebrate horticulturists’ unique abilities and passion for the possibilities of plants. Without them, the world would be a far less beautiful place.