Nurseries are places where people grow and care for plants, only to turn around and sell them to others. Not only is this job a lot of fun, but it contributes to creating a greener planet—that’s a win-win for all!
If you want to work at a nursery, you’ll need to know what kinds of interview questions at nursery companies usually get asked. In general, you’ll be looking at questions that focus on your experience with plants.
However, if you need a bit more detail, keep reading. This guide goes over all the most common interview questions at nursery positions.
Are You Familiar With How to Work With Plants?
If you have any past experience working with plants, this is the time to let your employer know. You can talk about any relevant degrees, work experience, or volunteer experience that you have that could showcase you’ve got knowledge about working with plants.
You can also reference a personal garden if you’re a hobbyist. Although it’s not formal experience, being a hobbyist can still gain you points with the interviewer because it shows you’re passionate about plants and have casual experience in the field.
What Are Some Skills You’ll Need for This Position?
Interviewers may ask this question to see if you know your stuff and would really be able to be beneficial while working at a plant nursery. When it comes to working at a nursery, a couple of skills you’ll need include:
- Stamina for standing on your feet
- Knowledge of plants and how to care for them
- Knowledge of types of soils and fertilizers
- Customer service and interpersonal skills
Remember, these are just a couple of the skills you’ll need for the position. You can always list out any additional skills you think of that would be handy in caring for plants.
How Do You Handle Repetitive Tasks on the Job?
Working at a nursery can be fun, but it can also be repetitive. Many of your tasks will involve completing the same actions over and over again, such as watering plants or changing soil.
For this question, make sure to let the interviewer know that repetitive tasks aren’t a problem for you. You can talk about how this allows you to get in the zone and focus on your work, or you can talk about how repetitive tasks are relaxing to you. Whatever your answer, just make sure to keep it positive.
If a Plant Wasn’t Thriving, What Would You Check First?
One of the most important parts of working at a nursery is making sure that the products, in this case, the plants, are in great condition. As a result, you’ll need to know what to do in the event that a plant isn’t doing so well.
For this question, you’ll want to let the interviewer know that you’d start by looking for signs of wilting, such as browning leaves and flowers. From there, you can look for bugs that could be eating the plant, or to check the soil to see if the plant has enough water.
These details will help you determine what action needs to be taken in order to save the plant and get it back to health.
What Experience Do You Have With Pesticides?
Pesticides are an important part of working at a plant nursery because they’re what help keep plants free of bugs. If you have experience working with pesticides, this is the time to let the interviewer know.
You can talk about any pesticides that you’ve successfully used in the past and why you like them. You can also go over pesticides that work for specific bugs or natural and organic pesticides that won’t harm the plants.
Remember—for this question; this is where you can let your knowledge of plants shine. The more knowledge you can share, the more likely you may be to get the job because you show the hiring manager that you have the experience necessary to be successful in the position.
How Would You Handle a Difficult Customer?
Although nursery positions require working more with plants than with people, that’s not to say that you won’t have any human interaction at all. In fact, you’ll be spending a fair amount of time selling the plants you handle to potential customers.
To answer this question, you’ll want to give details as to how you would handle a customer who is upset or reacting poorly. In general, you’ll want to reference things like listening closely to the customer’s concerns. You can also mention that in the event that the customer becomes extremely upset, you’d escalate the situation to the manager.
What Challenges Do You Anticipate With This Position?
Even plant nurseries have their challenges, and it’s important to be aware of this. With this question, interviewers want to get a feel for your attitude toward challenges and see how prepared you are to handle issues that may come up.
Although there are a couple of different challenges you might face, a few things you can mention include:
- Plants failing to thrive
- Difficulty keeping annual plants alive in colder months
- Selling unpopular plants to potential customers
Wrapping Up: Get Hired at a Local Nursery
When it comes to interview questions at nursery positions, remember that you’ll need to focus on providing as much detail as you can to any past experience you have. You’ll also want to implement the STAR interview method for any behavioral questions you get asked.
With those tips in mind, you’ll have no problem acing your interview at a nursery and landing yourself a fun and relaxing job working with plants.
