Is it time to drop the term 'Gardener' from your marketing

The title of 'gardener' is a pretty broad brush and it is to some extent, a title that drums up a preconception that anyone who carries out gardening as a career is still pretty much a labourer and second class. I am sure we have all experienced a certain type of social stereotipcal pigeon holing. Maybe at a social gathering or filling in a form. Your introduced alongside doctors or bank workers and the others puff up their feathers, appear interested bit invariably end up talking between themselves. Gardening has long been associated with the service profession and in Victorian and Georgian times, young lads would end up in service at the big house as a gardener or labourer. Maybe, after years of practical experience , the bright ones would end up in a position of authority but, nevertheless, still be under the employ of a master. Should we remain proud of the 'gardener' title or should we consider giving our areas of expertise a separate handle? A couple of possibilities come to mind: Gardener - Amenity garden management or Family space administration. What about you; do you feel comfortable being a gardener or does it retain that feeling of subservience?

Philip,
Your right gardener is synonomous to most people with labourer, skivvy, the bloke leaning on a gate sucking on a piece of wheat straw. I met this also as a farm worker, when there was no real understanding of how complex the job had become, along with an often arrogant assumption as to your level of intelligence ( a large four wheel drive tractor plus hydraulically linked pneumatic seed drill needed a PhD to operate it!).
If people ask what I do, I tell them I make things grow (not a bad thing to do), if pushed further I tell them I am an environmental facilitator, pushed further still I am a human/environment harmonic co-ordinator. If this has not deterred them I say I am a Landscape Gardener along with a look they dare not challenge.
However joking aside, its either change how we designate ourselves professionally or educate people to accept the differing levels and qualities covered by the term Gardener. Maybe along the lines of the IoG that I was once a member of. We have a number of respected organisations, but these are respected within the industry, its about time clients/potential clients were as aware of these and their standards as they are when it come to their building or travel firms standards.

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Comments

John Honeyman May 16, 2009 at 7:16pm

Philip,
Your right gardener is synonomous to most people with labourer, skivvy, the bloke leaning on a gate sucking on a piece of wheat straw. I met this also as a farm worker, when there was no real understanding of how complex the job had become, along with an often arrogant assumption as to your level of intelligence ( a large four wheel drive tractor plus hydraulically linked pneumatic seed drill needed a PhD to operate it!).
If people ask what I do, I tell them I make things grow (not a bad thing to do), if pushed further I tell them I am an environmental facilitator, pushed further still I am a human/environment harmonic co-ordinator. If this has not deterred them I say I am a Landscape Gardener along with a look they dare not challenge.
However joking aside, its either change how we designate ourselves professionally or educate people to accept the differing levels and qualities covered by the term Gardener. Maybe along the lines of the IoG that I was once a member of. We have a number of respected organisations, but these are respected within the industry, its about time clients/potential clients were as aware of these and their standards as they are when it come to their building or travel firms standards.
John Honeyman May 17, 2009 at 2:51pm

Philip,
I came across this definition - [OE. gardin, OF. gardin, jardin, F. jardin, of German origin; cf. OHG. garto, G. garten; akin to AS. geard. See Yard an inclosure.]. Maybe we ought to be called Environmental Enhancers
Classic Gardens May 17, 2009 at 5:03pm

What about horticulteral landscaping engineer.

I know what you mean about the term gardener. When i was just 16 i started my apprenticeship at our local nursery, they also had a small garden maintainance team running so i would do one day on site one day out doing gardens.
One day a couple of weeks into the job one of my dads friends asked me what i was doing now so i told him "gardener". 18 years on people with whom i havnt seen for a long time ask the same question and i give the same reply , the only differance being i have 18 years experiance a very large folder full of qualifications and my own very succesfull business.
Everyone who asks me what i do always seem to say "i would love to have done that" but it always comes from office workers in the summer lol.
I love the term gardener and wouldnt change it yet the lads who work for me when asked the same question call themselves landscape gardeners even though we dont do landscaping!
Andrew Garner May 17, 2009 at 5:50pm

The problem with both the terms 'gardener' or 'landscaper' is the lack of formality to the terms. If you are payed to it and have the qualifications to match then you are a professional gardener. It is always fun to retort to someone who states that they or someone they know is a gardener to simply ask where did they train.
But unfortunately no matter what it is now in the psyche of the british public that the term gardener can also be associated with anyone who has pulled a weed out of the ground without mistaking it for a rose bush.
I am proud to call myself a gardener
PRO

Phil Voice May 17, 2009 at 7:12pm

Hi Martin / Andrew

I too am proud to call myself a gardener although I have to admit that I also succumbed and referred to myself as a landscaper when I first started out.

I had a put down from my own future mother-in-law before I got married. I was introduced to her neighbour in her presence and when asked by the neighbour what I did for a job I said 'I am a landscaper' my mother-in-law quickly said 'he's a gardener' and it was definitely meant as a derogatory reference .

Things must have improved because I let her have my tree peony when I moved to France:-0)
Classic Gardens May 17, 2009 at 8:39pm

lol
Graeme @ BGS May 17, 2009 at 9:57pm

I do think that we are gaining more respect as a profession - end of the day it is all down to how you present yourself. Honestly if they pay me a very good wage I'm happy to called whatever they like :-)

I do have a few clients who like to introduce us to their friends if they happen to be visiting as "don't mind our gardeners, I'll just ask them to work on the lower lawn area" in a rather grand way! Normally the clients that you always address by their title rather than Christian name and most don't have a lower lawn!! Who said snobbery was dead!
Cat Fereday May 17, 2009 at 10:53pm

No NO NO - I am soooooooooooooo proud that Fereday is a gardener. Whenever I tell anyone they tend to look off into the middle distance and imagine a gentler, sweeter life... being a gardener is wonderful, you're all practical artists - do not be ashamed - have a tee-shirt printed....
Andrew Fereday May 18, 2009 at 8:46am

I tend to market myself as a 'Bespoke Gardener'. It brings to mind the idea that it is a skilled service, not just garden labourer. The social reactions vary from 'Oh, I'd love to do that' to complete disinterest. Occasionally they're just downright patronising but you have to just ignore those ones. They invariably come from people who I wouldn't want as clients anyway...
Lawncare-4u.co.uk August 29, 2009 at 10:32am

garden and landscape management :
all my clients are solicitors, doctors, surgeons,accountants etc etc
most of my friends are the above too ! i guess im a self employed professional too and charge £150/day , so im not a dogsbody !!!!!!