Historical Landscape & Horticulture Internship (Chesterwood)

PROJECT SUMMARY

For the first time in 100 years, the Chesterwood Buildings and Grounds team are restoring the historic Perennial Border Garden in the Studio Garden at Chesterwood. This is the most highly viewed and ornamental section of the gardens at Chesterwood.

In 2023, Chesterwood engaged historical horticulturist Ellen McClelland Lesser to research, study and develop a restoration plan for the Studio Garden plants. The result was a comprehensive plan to restore the perennials of the Studio Garden to its original design as created by Daniel Chester French. Since then, Chesterwood has restored the brick and mortar of the Studio Garden courtyard brick walls (2024), and the historic retaining stone wall will be restored in the fall of 2025. The last part of this project will be the restoration of the actual historic gardens with the implementation of new perennial plants following French’s original design, as well as the restoration of the Iris flower beds, some evergreens, apple trees and the hydrangea trees.

The Chesterwood garden was conceived at a moment of transition in American garden design. Exuberant floral displays were on the wane; more architectural gardens were on the rise. A trip to Italy in 1900 where Mr. French “pursued gardens assiduously” seemed to alter his plant choices. The flower borders, originally almost exclusively filled with annuals, by 1901 contain perennials as well. By then, the walls were finished, and perennials were making a show at the garden beds, pointing to an elegant but otherwise Neo-Colonial flower garden. Mr. French went his own way, and he looked at the whole garden composition – land, architectural features, plants – with the eye of a sculpture.

We are looking for an enthusiastic, driven, and knowledgeable intern to join our team for the summer and create a cataloging system as well as a planting plan graphic for the plants that are returning to the garden.

National Trust internships are temporary experiential learning opportunities with no expectation of employment at the conclusion of the internship.

For this internship, the National Trust is offering a stipend of $4,000 to help offset expenses. The period of the internship would be from approximately June 1 – July 24, for approximately 28 hours per week (some flexibility of schedule available).

DUTIES

• Work at Chesterwood four days a week (7hr/day). Days can be flexible.
• Create worksheets describing the individual varieties of plants being planted in the garden.
• Create a PDF document containing the varieties of plants that will be returning to the garden. Each plant having its own page with a photo and description of the plant’s characteristics.
• Creating an aesthetically pleasing and intelligible plan view graphic showing the plant species according to their location in the plant bed.
• Assist building and grounds staff as needed.

EDUCATIONAL VALUE TO THE INTERN

The intern will gain experience under the mentorship of respected preservation and museum professionals, in an educational setting at one of the nation’s leading arts & cultural and non-profit advocacy organizations. The intern will also have the opportunity to participate in educational programming offered via the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s organization-wide internship program. Students may also be eligible for college or graduate school academic credit at the discretion of their institution.

Specifically, the intern will gain knowledge in the following areas:

• Historic Preservation
• Horticulture
• Landscape Preservation
• Landscape Maintenance
• Landscape Construction

At the end of the project the intern will have produced a rendered plan view drawing containing historic plant varieties as well as a PDF document containing the characteristics and identification of herbaceous plant material which can be added to their professional portfolio in support of their future career pursuits.

QUALIFICATIONS

• At least second year student in Landscape Architecture or a Landscape Design program.
• Strong hand graphics and digital graphic skills.
• Work on site for three days per week.
• Basic analytical and problem-solving skills, including issue identification and prioritization. Basic project-organization skills.
• Excellent attention to detail.
• Ability to collaborate and achieve results with supervision, including ability to interact professionally with key internal and external stakeholders as needed. Public contact and ability to work successfully in close proximity to others required.
• Strong organizational skills required, with ability to prioritize, multi-task efficiently, and meet deadlines in a timely fashion
• Ability to adapt and be flexible in a dynamic work environment. Ability to work effectively with frequent interruptions required. Able to handle frequently changing and/or unscheduled tasks with accuracy.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills. Friendly and professional demeanor on the phone and in writing, with ability to speak and write clearly in English. Bi-lingual language skills are a plus.
• Ability to work effectively with culturally diverse colleagues; connections to or experience helping to engage culturally diverse audiences and partners a plus. Bi-lingual language skills (especially English/Spanish) a plus.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office products required, including Outlook, Word and Excel. Familiarity with Auto CAD, Adobe Photoshop and Adobe inDesign.
• Ability to work effectively in a remote environment, maintaining productivity and communications to meet deadlines and goals is required.
• Bachelor’s level studies (or equivalent years of experience) required; current or rising juniors, seniors or graduate students preferred. Studies or demonstrated interest in Horticulture, Landscape Design and Landscape Architecture and Historic Preservation.