Perennial welcomes first York Gate trainee

Perennial has launched a new training fund, taking on the first Perennial-supported trainee at the charity's York Gate garden. The scheme is run in conjunction with the Professional Gardeners' Guild and offers a practical one-year placement for a student to undertake training in the historic and conservation gardening sector. Part of the traineeship will take place at nearby Harewood House.

The trainee, Jack Ogg, is developing his horticultural skills under the guidance of Head Gardener David Beardall: "Up until now I've only had the help of unpaid volunteers, so it has been great having extra help here full-time. Jack has been working in all areas of the garden, which has included honing his pruning skills on York Gate's famous topiary. He has also taken on a major project of replanting two challenging areas of damp shade and dry shade - from preparing the ground right through to selecting and placing the plants. After his 3-month placement at Harewood House, Jack will come back to York Gate in the spring and enjoy the satisfaction of seeing the results of his hard work as the areas come into growth."

York Gate garden is will be reopening for visitors in April. Details of the garden can be found on the York Gate pages of the website