The Nursery scholarship
The nursery was started by Christopher Lloyd in 1954, specialising in good garden-worthy plants. Operating in a traditional way, the nursery uses skills and techniques that are no longer seen in larger or more commercial operations.
The Nursery scholar will spend a year working in the nursery at Great Dixter learning from the team of friendly and knowledgeable staff.
They will learn to manage propagate and cultivate annuals, perennials, ferns, shrubs and trees from the garden here at Great Dixter, take part in regular plant idents and attend on site lectures. 85% of plants grown by us are produced on site. The nursery is unusual in growing in a loam based peat free potting medium which we make ourselves.
The aim of the scholarship is to ensure that these historic but effective methods are passed on to the next generation of nursery workers. Previous scholars have gone on to work at York Gate Leeds, Kew gardens London, the National Trust Plant Conservation Centre Devon, The RHS and open nurseries of their own.
The placement begins in September 2025 at the same time as our garden scholars. The nursery scholar is a paid position and there is the option of living in subsidised accommodation on site. Anyone joining without a RHS Level 2 in horticulture will receive time off and funding to gain an RHS qualification during their time with us.
Candidates must have the right to work in the UK
Applications for the 2025-6 scholarship have now closed. The next opportunity will be advertised in March 2026.
Lexie Wood-Weber (pictured above) is our 2025-6 Nursery scholar, and comes to us all the way from Australia. She has worked in various nurseries as a propagator back home, and most recently has been growing native wildflowers on a farm that produces cut flowers, so her flower arranging skills will be in good company in the Nursery.
She has heritage in England and Germany so sees developing a knowledge of European flora as an opportunity to fill in a missing puzzle piece in her own story. She’s also excited to build connections within the horticultural world and to share her knowledge of Australian native plants with the international community as well as learning Great Dixter’s traditional propagation methods.
Lexie is passionate about wild plants- particularly terrestrial orchids, and has a collection of native flora that she has been lovingly building up in her garden at home.
Lexie will be keeping a journal documenting her time with us.
You can read some of our previous scholar Isabel’s work below:
Other previous trainees were: Isabel Sanders, Sam Walker, Eleanor Machell, Shaun Blower (now part of the nursery team), and Ellie Pay.
For more information on the nursery scholarship please contact [email protected] or phone 01797 334042
