What it's like to be a gardener at Dudmaston Hall: Working life is a bed of roses

“I love deadheading because it’s out with the old and in with the new. It’s all about encouraging new blooms, which is what you want in a garden,” explains the assistant gardener who works at Dudmaston Hall, near Bridgnorth.

He has been working at the 17th century family home, which was gifted to the National Trust almost 40 years ago, since April.

“It really is a dream come true for me and I count my blessings every day,” says Simon, who lives on the estate with his partner Juliet and seven-year-old son Harry.

But the 50-year-old is fairly new to the gardening world having decided on a change of career around five years ago.

“I was working as a stock buyer for the Evans Halshaw Ford dealership in Wolverhampton. It wasn’t that I was unhappy because I was part of a good team but 12 years ago we bought a house in Bridgnorth and while the house itself was fine, the garden was a mess.

“I started renovating the garden. I cleared out what was there and then I started planting. I enjoyed watching it grow and I just fell in love with gardening.

“So about five years ago I decided I was going to go for it. I went to college and I’ve never looked back. I don’t regret doing the job I was doing before because I’m lucky to be doing what I love now.

“It may be that if I had been doing this from school, I wouldn’t feel the same way about it now. It’s all worked out for the best,” explains Simon, who completed a 12-month Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) course in practical horticulture at The Cedars college in Wolverhampton.

After leaving college he began working as a gardener and groundsman at the Astbury golf course, near Chelmarsh, and then couldn’t believe his luck when he saw the job advertised with the National Trust at Dudmaston.

“I applied and now I’m here. I’ve worked in offices for years so to be working in a stunning place like this and in a really beautiful setting is lovely.

“The visitors are really friendly and the rest of the staff have gone out of their way to make us feel welcome. Nothing is too much trouble,” says Simon.

Daily to-do lists will be drawn up depending on the season and what is considered a priority at the time.

“I might be cutting grass until we open to the public and then I stop because they have come here for peace and quiet, they don’t need to hear lawn mowers. Then I might be edging, pruning roses or cutting back the wisteria.

“I could be down in the bog garden by the lake or weeding the American Garden. There is always something that needs attention. We often notice something that needs doing as we walk around.

“We have routine maintenance as well as jobs that need doing at a certain time like the wisteria which needs cutting back after it has flowered.

“I like deadheading and I also like edging because I like my lines but really there is no part of this job that I don’t enjoy. It doesn’t seem like work at all,” he says. Even our unique British weather doesn’t faze him. “I don’t mind what the weather is doing. I’m quite happy to work in the rain,” adds Simon.

His duties include supporting the head gardener Guy Lory, which might include allocating jobs for the team of around 30 garden volunteers.

“We are the full-time gardeners and then we have our volunteers. Around 25 help out with the garden maintenance and the others will give tours of the gardens.

“They are a great bunch. They are here because they love it here and they are always so willing to help with whatever needs doing,” explains Simon.

His favourite spot in the 3,000-acre estate is the American Garden, which he says is always awash with colour in spring.

“When all of the spring bulbs are out like the daffodils and the bluebells, it’s stunning. You can always find a quiet corner to truly relax in the American Garden,” Simon tells us.

He is about to embark on a major project to restore Lady Labouchere’s rose garden, which she had longed to do but sadly wasn’t able to achieve before she died in 1996.

It was Lady Labouchere who gifted Dudmaston to the National Trust and after her death it became the family home of her Hamilton-Russell cousins who still live there today.

“The rose garden is sadly looking a bit tired and some of the roses have died. David Austin Roses in Albrighton have been helping us to design the new garden and hopefully it will look something like Lady Labouchere had envisaged when it’s completed.

“It’s going to be a massive project – we’ve got 100 tonnes of top soil coming and 160-plus roses. There are all pinks, reds and whites because Lady Labouchere apparently didn’t like yellow roses,” explains Simon

“I’m looking forward to starting. I love all of the routine garden maintenance jobs but it’s great to have a big project to get stuck into. I can’t wait to see the results.”