Landscape designer to curator of horticulture
A landscape designer already meets 28% of what the curator of horticulture role asks for. The move turns on 11 required skills not yet in the profile.
67.1/ 100
1 How much of what a curator of horticulture is expected to do is already part of a landscape designer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the curator of horticulture role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A curator of horticulture role treats 5 of its required skills as things a landscape designer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- botany
- ecology
- horticultural design
- horticulture principles
- keep task records
What stands in the way is 11 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 6 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A curator of horticulture role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a landscape designer background worth leading with.
- already held horticultural design agriculture, forestry, fisheries and veterinary
- already held forest ecology natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held horticulture principles agriculture, forestry, fisheries and veterinary
- already held botany natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held ecology natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held keep task records information skills
All 6 carried skills, including the 5 the curator of horticulture role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 18 missing skills fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn advise on acquisitions required
- still to learn manage contracts required
- optional, not held advise on tree issues optional
- optional, not held educate people about nature optional
- optional, not held educate public on fire safety optional
- optional, not held educate the public about wildlife optional
- optional, not held support volunteers optional
- still to learn conduct workplace audits required
- still to learn manage database required
- still to learn manage ground maintenance required
- still to learn manage budgets required
- still to learn collection management required
- still to learn collection management software required
- still to learn advertising techniques required
- still to learn identify plants characteristics required
3 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a curator of horticulture role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 advise on acquisitions practise this
- 02 collection management study this
- 03 collection management software study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 6 skills that carry over
- already held botany knowledge
- already held ecology knowledge
- already held horticultural design knowledge
- already held horticulture principles knowledge
- already held keep task records skill
- already held forest ecology knowledge
The 3 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn biology required
- optional, not held forest conservation optional
- optional, not held respond to enquiries optional
7 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held advise on tree issues optional
- optional, not held educate people about nature optional
- optional, not held educate public on fire safety optional
- optional, not held educate the public about wildlife optional
- optional, not held forest conservation optional
- optional, not held respond to enquiries optional
- optional, not held support volunteers optional
35 held skills the curator of horticulture role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise supervisors skill
- not needed by the target role agronomy knowledge
- not needed by the target role building codes knowledge
- not needed by the target role characteristics of plants knowledge
- not needed by the target role conduct public presentations skill
- not needed by the target role create landscape designs skill
- not needed by the target role create solutions to problems skill
- not needed by the target role design principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role develop architectural plans skill
- not needed by the target role environmental design knowledge
- not needed by the target role green building practices knowledge
- not needed by the target role green building standards knowledge
- not needed by the target role green logistics knowledge
- not needed by the target role inspect project regulations skill
- not needed by the target role landscape analysis knowledge
- not needed by the target role landscape architectural instruments knowledge
- not needed by the target role landscape architecture knowledge
- not needed by the target role landscaping materials knowledge
- not needed by the target role lead hard landscape projects skill
- not needed by the target role make decisions regarding landscaping skill
- not needed by the target role make drawings skill
- not needed by the target role manage landscape design projects skill
- not needed by the target role manage rainwater skill
- not needed by the target role perform pest control skill
- not needed by the target role perform studies and field investigation skill
- not needed by the target role perform weed control operations skill
- not needed by the target role pest control in plants knowledge
- not needed by the target role plant disease control knowledge
- not needed by the target role plant species knowledge
- not needed by the target role principles of landscape construction knowledge
- not needed by the target role rainwater management knowledge
- not needed by the target role review construction plans authorisations skill
- not needed by the target role surveying methods knowledge
- not needed by the target role topography knowledge
- not needed by the target role work independently in landscaping skill
5 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn collection management required
- still to learn collection management software required
- still to learn advertising techniques required
- still to learn biology required
- optional, not held forest conservation optional
Common questions about this move
Can a landscape designer become a curator of horticulture?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A landscape designer already covers 28% of what a curator of horticulture is expected to do: 6 skills carry over, 5 of which the curator of horticulture role treats as required.
What skills does a landscape designer need to become a curator of horticulture?
11 required skills are missing, plus 7 optional ones. They fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is advise on acquisitions.
How hard is the move from landscape designer to curator of horticulture?
Its learning distance is 67.1 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.