What is gardening like in Aus?

[u/_Jensoon]

Hi All, I'm 23 years old from the UK and have been doing gardening for the last 4/5 years gaining a qualification in it.

In about a years time I'm looking to try get a working visa in Australia and come over to work and try and build a career in horticulture in Australia.

I just wondered what gardening was like in Australia. Are you planting out year round. Do you have distinct growing season's? Because obviously, being in the UK we only have spring and summer to really show off etc. And sometimes spring isn't even that good! Also, I'd appreciate some general tips for gardening in australia as I'm sure there are some differences.

Many thanks :)

[u/Maleficent_Laugh_125]

I'm in Brisbane, SE QLD sub tropical and very humid from October to April, most home gardening is done in Winter which is quite mild and Beautiful weather, Tropical fruit trees do well through summer but be aware the warmer months bring lots of rain, pests and snakes out, also if it's not torrential rain it can be years of drought.

Plenty of work but horticulture itself doesn't pay particularly well, lawn mowing businesses can make very good money however, especially if they offer hedging, garden clean ups and other services.

[u/_Jensoon → u/Maleficent_Laugh_125]

Interesting, yeah one of my family friends who lives in sunshine coast mentioned that lawn mowing does well. Makes sense, all year round being able to mow. Only reason I'd get the mower out at this time of the year in the south of England is to help pick up dropped leaves from trees easier!

Are snakes and critters a big problem with gardeners in australia, because people always go on about them in general. I wondered if they are a real problem for gardeners?

[u/daveo18 → u/_Jensoon]

I never saw many snakes when I was mowing. The sound of the equipment generally scares them away.

[u/Maleficent_Laugh_125 → u/_Jensoon]

You do see them, leave them alone and you'll be fine.

I ran a small mowing businesses for awhile, I aimed for $700/day as a sole trader which is very doable if you have decent equipment and a condensed route but it is hard work in the humid months.

Arborists can also do well, stump grinding can also be very lucrative.

There is plenty of opportunities with councils for parks and gardens work, the Botanic gardens in Mt Cootha in Brisbane is a awesome and would make an excellent place to work.

Good luck with your searches, I'd suggest jumping on seek.com.au to get a good idea of roles and salary expectations but for a general employee $30-$45/hour is fairly standard depending on experience/Qualifications

[u/_Jensoon → u/Maleficent_Laugh_125]

Perfect okay. Thanks mate, I'll take a look on seek. Thanks again