A groundsman is a person responsible for maintaining landscapes, gardens or sports venues, either for appearance or for the functionality of the area. In some schools and institutions, they are referred to as “horticulturists”.

A groundsman will be required to carry on certain types of responsibilities to improve appearance and maximise the utility of the area.

 

These tasks may include:

• Planting and/or watering trees and shrubs
• Cut away dead or excess branches from trees or shrubs (pruning/trimming)
• mowing and cutting lawns
• Responsible for the cleanliness and maintenance of sidewalks, driveways, parking lots, buildings and other public areas
• Installation of water and/or light systems
• Construction and maintenance of fences, terraces, pools, fountains, planters, burial sites and other ground features
• Applying pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers or other chemicals to the soil, weeds, plants, trees and shrubs or any other surface that requires it
• Planting seeds, bulbs, grass, foliage, flowers, trees, shrubs and plants as well as up keeping them by applying mulch, aerating, weeding, grubbing, removing thatch, trimming and picking, including the decoration of the gardens and landscape facilities.

 

Groundsmen not only follow a site plan created by a landscape architect, but they may also find the possibility of creating their own design and present it as an alternative option, as well as offering service solutions and confidence to companies of all types and sizes to make sure their grounds and it’s appearance will be kept up to the uppermost standards.

 

Opportunities

Because of the type of work groundsmen are exposed to, they often find themselves spending the majority of their time in outside areas. The kind of work might be part time, full time, contract work, as well as just a temporary seasonal job.

 

The most common areas include:

• Sports facilities such as golf courses, tennis courts, soccer/football fields, cricket fields, bowling grounds, athletic racks and swimming pools.
• Commercial and private sectors such as universities/schools, government buildings, parks and reserves, apartment complexes, farms, cemeteries, malls, private properties/homes or other commercial grounds
• National parks, gardens and landscaping areas.

 

Risks and Challenges

Because groundsmen normally work on outdoor environments, they are generally exposed to variations in weather conditions, as well as noise, pollution or risks that may happen on-site. The job can be physically intensive and a groundsman should be able to enjoy working on this type of environment. Ideally, a groundsman should like the type of sport for the field his work is based on.

 

A good groundsman, therefore, will be capable of achieving a wide variety of physical work as well as a great resistance to prolonged hours of duty. They should be fit and capable of physical acquires such as prolonged standing, sitting and crouching; ability to push, pull and position tools, machinery and construction material; capability to lift heavy loads; they must be able to work on ladders exposed to heights; they should be capable of working on a variety of different surfaces and must be resistant to environmental disparities.

 

How to become a Groundsman

Many institutions are trying to shift away from pollution and the use of chemicals and are getting more and more inclined towards integrated pest management. A good groundsman will have the qualification, knowledge and experience to carry on these tasks in the most cost effective and efficient manner. For this, among other reasons, it is of great importance for a groundsman to manage certain skills and have a good horticulture understanding, as well as a profound knowledge on pest control, and weed mitigation when working with certain chemicals such as herbicides, pesticides and/or insecticides.

 

Because of a growing demand for good groundsmen, it is important that they become familiar with machineries and technologies related to the maintenance of grounds in order to carry out projects and to ensure high standards of quality work.

 

Some of the tools and machinery involved in tasks groundsmen might have to relate to include: axes, lawnmowers, leaf blowers, saws, hammers, hoes, spades, edgers, hoses, sprinklers, shovels, rakes, rotary brushes, hedge clippers, shovels, pruners, shears, and other garden tools, as well as vehicles and empowered equipment such as tractors, snow blowers, twin-axle vehicles, chain saws, electric clippers, sod cutters, edgers and pruning saws.

 

Therefore, a top groundsman will know how to identify the correct type of tools and/or size acceptability of the machinery to be used in order to complete both large and small scale jobs.

 

You will need to take care to choose the right college for you. Every college offers something different.

• They all have different tutors, with varying qualifications and experiences.
• Some have higher course fees; but that could be because they offer more extensive support; while others may charge less but provide less services. Some may offer different payment plans to others.
• The style of teaching and learning; as well as the emphasis upon assessment and the way work is assessed can vary from one college to the next.