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10 people are interested
Garden Guide
ORGANIZATION: Native Plant Trust
Please visit the new page to apply.
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10 people are interested
Our volunteer guides offer visitors a personal introduction to Garden in the Woods, Native Plant Trust, and the beauty and importance of native plants. Guides lead tours from mid-April to mid-October. Tours take about one hour and follow a mile-long trail through the woodland. Throughout the season, guides lead both informal drop-in tours at regular times (see schedule below) and scheduled tours for groups.
Drop-in Tour Schedule
- April, May, and June: Wednesdays at 11 AM & Saturdays at 2 PM
- July, August, September, and October: Saturdays at 2 PM
Who Should Apply?
If you like to work with people, enjoy plants, gardening, or the natural world and have time to volunteer, you might make a great guide. Guides learn about the Garden’s history, native plants, horticulture, and botany, while helping visitors make connections to the natural world. You do not need teaching experience-our guides have a variety of backgrounds and experience. Successful guides are open-minded, willing to learn, friendly, patient, reliable, and enthusiastic representatives of our organization.
Responsibilities
- Lead groups of approximately 10 people through the Garden.
- Responsible for arriving on time, checking in with the Public Programs Coordinator or Visitor Center staff, helping to greet groups, and notifying the Public Programs Department if they are unable to come as scheduled
- Must attend Garden guide training in the spring, become familiar with the guide training manual, and shadow experience guides before leading their first tour.
Time Commitment
We offer tours from mid-April to mid-October, and our busiest times are May and June. Guides may sign up for weekday tours, weekend tours, or both. Guides must attend the spring guide training program.
Benefits
In addition to discovering and sharing plants and nature with others, guides receive free admission to Garden in the Woods. Guides enjoy opportunities to learn, grow as individuals, and connect with others who have compatible interests. If you lead eight or more tours a year, you may take free classes with Native Plant Trust, space permitting.
More opportunities with Native Plant Trust
No additional volunteer opportunities at this time.
About Native Plant Trust
Location:
180 HEMENWAY RD, FRAMINGHAM, MA 01701, US
Mission Statement
The mission of Native Plant Trust is to conserve and promote New England's native plants to ensure healthy, biologically diverse landscapes.
Description
Founded in 1900 as the Society for the Protection of Native Plants, Native Plant Trust is the nation’s oldest plant conservation organization and a recognized leader in native plant conservation, horticulture, and education. Native Plant Trust’s headquarters, Garden in the Woods, is a renowned native plant botanic garden in Framingham, Massachusetts, that attracts visitors from all over the world. From this base, 25 staff and more than 700 volunteers work throughout New England to monitor and protect rare and endangered plants, collect and preserve seeds to ensure biological diversity, detect and control invasive species, conduct research, and offer a range of educational programs. Native Plant Trust also operates a native plant nursery at Nasami Farm in western Massachusetts and has seven sanctuaries in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont that are open to the public.
CAUSE AREAS
WHEN
WHERE
180 Hemenway RoadFramingham, MA 01701
DATE POSTED
January 19, 2024
SKILLS
- People Skills
- Environmental Education
- Gardening
- Botany
- Horticulture
GOOD FOR
N/A
REQUIREMENTS
- Background Check
- Must be at least 18
- Orientation or Training
- Two-hour spring training; tours offered mid-April to mid-October, and our busiest times are May and June.
- Successful guides are open-minded, willing to learn, friendly, patient, reliable, and enthusiastic.