INTERVIEW WITH A
horticultural
traveller
Learning about gardeners from far flung and exotic locations around the world can be both inspirational and educational and tempt us to put these interesting destinations on our travelling bucket list. Angie Thomas interviewed passionate horticultural lecturer Dan Austin about some of the fantastic places he has visited during his horticultural travels.
What is your ‘day job’ and how did you get started in horticulture? I guess you could say gardening is in my blood. My grandparents had a small orchard in the Riverland in South Australia, where I spent many school holidays working and firmly caught the horticulture bug. After finishing high school, I was fortunate enough to land an apprenticeship in horticulture working at TAFESA’s Urrbrae campus. During this time, I negotiated all sorts of training that wasn’t part of my regular timetable and with the extra knowledge, it wasn’t long before I was encouraged to get my teaching qualification and return to the organisation as a trainer. 10 years later and things have gone full circle. My regular day job involves lecturing across a range of horticulture topics and I now coordinate TAFESA’s horticulture apprentices from across the state.
What do you enjoy most about teaching horticulture? I love getting hands on with plants and being out in the sun (or rain, but it is all part of it). We get tired and we get dirty, but there aren’t many vocations with as many smiles and laughs. The best people are in horticulture and it is great reuniting with graduates in industry and seeing what they have achieved.
How did you begin your horticultural-based travel? During my apprenticeship, I gained a place in the Yates 6 Pack program with the International Plant Propagator’s Society, which allowed six young people to travel interstate and attend the Society’s annual conference and it was eye opening. I gained exposure to what was happening, not only around Australia but around the world. So, when I learnt the Society also offered an all-expenses paid exchange program to South Africa, I was barely back home before my application was in. The next year I was on the plane and after the experience of touring South Africa’s nursery industry, I was quickly hooked on horticulturalbased travel.
G R O W I N G W I T H Y O U - YA T E S
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