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Examine the expectations and inferences underlying selected job positions. Consider timely topics in career preparation and the struggle for fulfilling employment. Analyze what could be improved in either situation. If this blog reminds you too much of work, then peruse my namesake blog for lighter fare.

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Saturday, February 25, 2012

Landscape Laborer w/ Design Skills

http://madison.craigslist.org/trd/2852998991.html


Job Title: Landscape Foreman/Crew leader (McFarland)

Date: 2012-02-22, 1:34PM CST

We are looking for a responsible, professional person to help lead our landscaping team!!
Valid drivers license a must, CDL preferred, must supply drivers abstract if offered interview
Minimum of 5 years of experience with a professional company
Must have thorough knowledge of landscape plants and construction and be able to demonstrate at interview
Please. . .. . . only skilled applicants apply!!

Competitive Wage and Benefits offered to the right person!!
If you have most of these qualifications, still apply, we are always looking for good people!
Please reply to this email with your resume attached.


How does one demonstrate “thorough knowledge of landscape plants and construction” at the interview? Does one diagram a hypothetical landscape showing the best places to plant the azaleas and hydrangeas? Does one describe the step-by-step process for grading and edging a terrace garden? There just might be an exam with questions such as:

“True or False: Pouring milk onto sandy ground makes the soil more viable for plant life.”

(True: Because sandy soil is moderately alkaline and because milk is slightly acidic, adding milk to the soil makes it more pH-neutral.)

“Explain the desirable pH range for growing plants.”

(6.0 to 7.5, because any more acidic than 6.0 tends to produce ferrous phosphates, because any more basic than 7.5 tends to produce calcium carbonates, and because such ‘–ate’ compounds are insoluble and crowd out other nutrients.)

After all, someone could research on the Internet and write a summary paper surveying the various landscape and construction methodologies as well as which plants thrive in which climates, soil compositions, and soil acidities. An academic fresh out of college would be able to write such a research paper and boil it down to some talking points, and it seems the job poster knows this because he/she begs, “Please – only skilled applicants apply!”

I suppose the requirement of at least five years of experience “with a professional company” means having planned, dug, and cultivated many projects for a landscape firm rather than having worked as a paralegal, administrative assistant, or call center worker. I imagine the entreaty to apply “if you have most of these qualifications” should be interpreted as, “If you’ve done fewer than five but more than two years of professional landscaping, then apply for our talent pool.”

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