Dry Stone Mason-Trail & Restoration Technician

The Natural Garden designs and installs living landscapes and restores natural habitats in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley and Piedmont. In our landscapes we work primarily with native plants to feed the pollinators and support the greater food web, adding edible, herbal, and medicinal plants to nourish both human and wild inhabitants. Old-world stonework is incorporated into our ecological landscape designs to visually anchor the garden with timeless beauty. With over 25 years’ experience, The Natural Garden is the Shenandoah Valley’s source for creating healthy natural outdoor living spaces and for restoring streams, meadows, and woodlands to habitats of increasing biodiversity and natural beauty.

The best candidate for Dry Stone Mason-Trail & Restoration Technician has a love for the fine art of dry stonework and gets energy from creating works of art that will stand the test of time. They appreciate the balancing act required to bring safe, efficient, high-quality work to the job site each day all while in residential settings. We are seeking an individual who is aligned with our mission.

Primary Responsibilities

• Piece, cut, and set stones and boulders according to construction plans and specifications to create stone patios, walks, steps, walls and boulder outcroppings.
• Follow up grade repair and fine grading.

• Assist conservation landscaping team with hand grading, hardscape work, planting, trail work, and maintenance.

• Assist habitat restoration team with invasive exotic plant treatment and clearing, planting, and management.
• Safely operate chainsaws, brush cutters, string trimmers, and similar equipment.
• Actively develop understanding of native plant communities through on-the-job learning and other professional development opportunities.

Required Experience and Knowledge

• Experience with dry stone masonry, installing dry set stone patio, walk, and step projects and dry-stone walling projects.
• Willing to learn and move to an advanced level at dry setting stone patios, walks, steps, and dry stacking stone walls.
• Ability to assess the quality of stonework and materials.
• Ability to safely operate tools, machines, and other equipment.
• Positive and supportive attitude in the work environment.
• Able to communicate with a wide range of individuals (less experienced teammates, customers, other contractors, etc.).
• Able to move heavy stone by hand as needed, perform hand excavation and operate heavy machinery to excavate, load/unload, and place stone.
• Able to work outdoors for extended periods of time in a wide range of weather.
• Able to lift and carry at least 40 lbs. and be able to perform a variety of physical duties for 8+ hours daily with frequent bending, lifting and carrying.

• Adequate knowledge of mathematics to perform job duties.

• Able to visualize and implement work according to company aesthetic standards.

Other Duties

• The Natural Garden promotes cross-training: You may be asked to help with the nursery or perform other duties as needs arise. Occasional seasonal weekend work to help with the Farmer’s Market, sales events, and weekend water rotation is required.

Desired Experience and Knowledge

• Experience operating mini-excavators and skid loaders.
• Experience driving manual transmission trucks.
• Experience with the native plants of the Shenandoah Valley and the Piedmont of Virginia or the Mid-Atlantic Region.
• Experience driving manual transmission trucks.
• Experience pulling loaded trailers (two to seven tons).
• Education background including an associate or bachelor’s degree in natural resources, environmental science, ecology, wildlife conservation, conservation management, native plant botany/studies is preferred, but related training and program certificates will certainly be considered.

Plus

• Herbicide-Pesticide Applicators license or Commercial License.

Experience

• 0-3 years (Preferred)

Work Schedule

• Monday to Friday 
• Overtime possible
• Seasonal weekend work

Compensation and Benefits

• The hourly rate for this position is based on the candidate’s depth of experience, knowledge, and quality of references.
• $17.00 – $20.00 per hour.

***Possibility of higher starting pay with a candidate who comes with deep experience in stonework.

Benefits:

• Health insurance
• PTO
• Paid Holidays
• Option to earn semi-annual bonus

Required: 

Applicants must have a valid Virginia driver’s license, reliable transportation, and regular access to a smart phone for daily use.

Equal Opportunity Employer Statement: 

The Natural Garden is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state, or local laws.

This policy applies to all employment practices within our organization, including hiring, recruiting, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, leave of absence, compensation, benefits, training, and apprenticeship. The Natural Garden makes hiring decisions based solely on qualifications, merit, and business needs at the time.