Meet the team: Mike
Meet Mike, the Propagator Specialist who works in our Weymouth Nursery.
“I’ve worked for the local council for over 30 years now, having started when I was around 16 or 17. I trained and qualified on the Youth Training Scheme (YTS) and just found I really enjoyed doing the role and learning from colleagues.”
Mike is responsible for growing the plants and flowers for the beautiful beds we all enjoy in our award-winning parks, gardens and open spaces. The nursery allows Mike to nurture plants before they reach our public spaces, which is why our displays look tidy and attractive through the seasons.
Twice a year flower beds are ‘turned over’. Plants or clippings are returned to the nursery, until they’re ready to display the following year. Mike said:
“In the past we used to really focus on our summer beds, using plants like traditional marigolds, but now there’s much more of a focus on selecting plants for the beds which we can bring back, re-pot and reuse.”
Mike also generates income for the council, by growing plants for resale to other organisations, such as Dorchester Town Council and local businesses who offer gardening or landscaping services.
Not all the plants Mike grows in the nursery are seasonal displays, with salvias and alstroemeria being more suitable for the permanent bedding on the seafront.
The Tumbledown project will aim to provide a new home for Weymouth’s nursery and a potential extension of Mike’s role. Ambitions for the project include an adult learning facility, which could involve Mike passing on his wisdom to students learning about propagation.
Mike enjoys how his work changes with the seasons and spending time working to realise bespoke displays for special events and celebrations, such as the Royal Jubilee.
For his home garden, Mike prefers to keep things simple:
“I have a small garden which I do keep tidy, however after working in the nursery all week, I prefer to keep it so it’s easy to maintain!”