What I do

I am part of a team who look after thousands of plants at the John Innes Centre. We look after plants in aid of scientific research. I spend a lot of my time making the perfect compost, replenishing the in-house seed store, so basically preserving all the lines of plants, including wheat, oats and even peas for future generations and I take care of the plants in our on-site glasshouses and polytunnels.

Hear more about Lewis's role by watching the video below...

How I became a technician

When I was younger, I used to help my grandad on his allotment, so my career stemmed from there. At secondary school, I enjoyed media studies, IT and the arts. I am quite creative, and I think that’s why horticulture suited me, because there are many different aspects of creativity in this field. After school I studied a BTEC Level 3 in Horticulture.

During college I visited the John Innes Centre and was shown around the facilities, and it really opened my eyes. Once college finished, a friend of mine joined the John Innes Centre and told me they were looking for someone, so I also joined, initially, for two six-month contracts. My position in horticultural services then became full time.

A typical day in my
working life

I start at 8 am and finish at 4 pm. I take care of a few glasshouses and polytunnels on site, primarily growing cereal crops for scientists. I spend a good chunk of my time caring for the plants, so I do a walk round and carry out checks, making sure the watering is all done and that nothing is out of hand. I keep an eye out for pests and diseases that can quite frequently appear on the crops.

I routinely spray the plants and keep them clean and make sure everything is as hygienic as possible, and that, ultimately, means that the plants are happy. I am mainly involved with growing cereals, but I also grow some brassicas, like rapeseed, in the polytunnels.

We also have ash trees, because we are doing some work around the ash dieback disease. The scientists we work with fill in crop requirement forms online for me and other members of the team, detailing the crop they are growing, for how long and where they want to grow it. We then get the tickets for the pots or the trays they need to grow the seeds in. I look after the soil mixing that we do on site, so I oversee calibrating the soil mixes to ensure they are accurate. These get put into the individual pots that get used every day.

I really enjoy being able to work outside every day.

Working with other like-minded people is what makes me happy.

A little more about
my everyday role

What I love most about my job

Working in a team and the variation of the work are what I love the most. At some times of the year, you are bogged down with one particular thing that needs to get done, but there is a huge variety, like maintenance of the plants and keeping the environment clean. There is also seasonal change.

The best bits about working in a team

Since I have taken over the responsibility for soil mixing, I have worked alongside my colleague, who has worked here since 1969! It is nice to hear how things have changed and evolved.

The most exciting thing I’ve achieved so far in my job

I have been involved in a big project with a seed bank that we have on site called the Germplasm Resource Unit (GRU) that is being replenished. This has been running for a few years and is still ongoing. It has taken up a lot of the polytunnel space, and there is a lot of responsibility to make sure the plants are happy in order that the seeds needed to replenish supplies are available. There is a lot of seed from the 1970s and beyond that was grown back in the day to eliminate certain diseases. It is fascinating that they still exist in seed form.

What I wear to work

The area I work in is quite low-risk. Although some plants get sterilised, the plants that we grow tend to end up on the compost. When I do chemical spraying, I have to wear PPE, rubber wellies, white suit, mask and rubber gloves as a precaution, to make sure I am protected from the chemicals.

What I do to relax

I have started going to the gym, and I have to stick to that! I enjoy gardening, even outside of work. My parents have moved in with my nan and I am gradually redoing their garden, to make it nice for all of them.

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