"Horticultural Specialist"

Horticultural Specialist

Company:
North Carolina State University

Job Location:

Category:
Grounds and Landscaping

Type:
Full-Time

Join the Pack! A community with nearly 8,000 faculty and staff, and 30,000 students. NC State is one of the largest employers in North Carolina, offering a large range of career opportunities. Visit us at https://jobs.hr.ncsu.edu/.

Department: 445060 - Landscape Maintenance & Operations

Location: Raleigh, NC

Essential Job Duties:

Join NC State University's Landscape Maintenance and Operations (LM&O) team as a Horticultural Specialist and help shape the beauty, sustainability, and long-term health of our award-winning campus landscapes. This position is ideal for someone who loves hands-on work, appreciates the natural environment, and takes pride in creating vibrant, well-maintained outdoor spaces. As a key plant-care expert for assigned campus zones, you will apply your horticultural knowledge, problem-solving skills, and creativity to support the university's landscape standards, sustainability goals, and student engagement initiatives.

You will also serve as a trusted resource to LM&O staff, helping mentor team members in best practices for plant care, seasonal maintenance, and thoughtful landscape design. If you're passionate about working outdoors, making a visible impact, and being part of a collaborative and mission-driven team, this role offers meaningful, year-round work in a supportive environment.

Key responsibilities and duties include but not limited to:

• Perform hands-on landscape tasks including pruning, weeding, mulching, planting, watering, blowing, and debris removal.
• Apply horticultural best practices and integrated pest management procedures across assigned campus zones.
• Monitor plant health and diagnose issues such as diseases, pests, nutrient deficiencies, or environmental stress; recommend and implement corrective actions.
• Ensure compliance with plant maintenance service agreements, including fertilization, soil testing, pruning schedules, and routine care standards.
• Evaluate plant conditions and provide clear reports and recommendations to the supervisor.
• Serve as a horticultural resource and mentor to LM&O staff by offering training, demonstrations, and guidance on effective plant care techniques.
• Troubleshoot landscape maintenance concerns and communicate findings promptly to the supervisor.
• Maintain and care for green roof landscapes, ensuring proper plant selection, watering needs, and adherence to rooftop safety procedures.
• Monitor indoor plant installations and ensure proper watering, lighting conditions, and timely plant replacement.
• Support student-led projects by consulting on plant selection, providing instructional guidance, and ensuring alignment with campus landscape standards.
• Support student workdays and internships by preparing tools, offering hands-on training, and ensuring safe field practices.
• Collaborate with Landscape Field Leads and Zone Managers on planting design, seasonal planning, and landscape project implementation.
• Advise LM&O staff on sustainable landscape practices, seasonal plant selection, biodiversity, and strategies that enhance long-term campus aesthetic and ecological health.
• Lift and transport materials weighing up to 60 pounds, with or without reasonable accommodations, and perform a wide range of physically demanding tasks in varied outdoor environments while maintaining safe handling procedures and consistent productivity.
• Understand verbal and written instructions regarding work assignments and other matter.

If you're energized by outdoor work, passionate about horticulture, and looking for a role where your contributions will be seen and valued every day, we invite you to apply and join our LM&O team at NC State University. Your expertise can help shape a campus environment that inspires students, staff, and visitors year-round.

Other Work/Responsibilities:

• Position serves in a critical role requiring the employee to potentially work during adverse weather conditions even if the University is closed to normal operations
• Aid in snow, debris removal and/or storm damage as directed by supervisors
• Other tasks and responsibilities may be assigned based on the needs of the organization and evolving priorities.

Minimum Experience/Education:

High school or General Educational Development (GED) diploma and possession of the competencies necessary to perform the work; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Necessary Special Qualifications: North Carolina Pesticide License may be required and can be obtained within six months of employment; North Carolina Commercial Driver's License may be required.

Required Qualifications:

• Must be able to effectively communicate verbally with supervisors and the general public
• Position should be able to understand verbal and written instructions regarding work assignments and other matter
• Horticultural/Grounds maintenance experience
• Ability to lift and carry materials weighing up to 60 pounds, as well as perform physically demanding tasks in various outdoor conditions

Preferred Qualifications:

• Knowledge of regional plant varieties and the ability to diagnose common plant health issues in a campus landscape setting.
• Experience using Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices in large, varied outdoor environments.
• Familiarity with sustainable landscaping approaches, especially those suited for public or university grounds.
• Ability to interpret basic landscape plans and support design or seasonal installation projects.
• Strong communication and teamwork skills, with the ability to support staff and student workers in a collaborative university setting.

Required license or certification:

• Valid driver's license required
• North Carolina driver's license required within 60 days of hire and must be maintained

Position Number: 00061172