Hermitage Staff Spotlight: Bradley Roberts

Every month, we introduce one of our amazing staff members and give more insight on what it’s like to work at Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage! This month, we are spotlighting Bradley Roberts, our new Historic Garden Manager.

• What is your job title? Historic Garden Manager
• How long have you worked at The Hermitage? My first day was June 1, 2021.
• Can you describe what you do in a few sentences?  I manage the historic gardens of Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage, which includes: Plant care and maintenance, landscape design and implementation, irrigation management and plant identification and education. Our focus is on historic gardening, so all the plant material we use at the Hermitage pre-dates 1920.
• How did you come to work at The Hermitage? I found the job posting on the American Public Garden Association website. I have always liked the Nashville area, so it was a good fit.
• What is your favorite thing about working here? I love the opportunity to preserve and restore a historic garden. It is almost like I am walking back through botanical time. There is so much to learn from researching historical plants. There is a direct connection between people’s lifestyle and the plants that were being cultivated at a given time through our history.  This position always me to explore those connections.
• What is something that surprised you about working at The Hermitage? Well, the number of white-tailed deer present at The Hermitage. We have a large population, and they are very friendly toward people. They also love to feast on all our beautiful plant material. The Hermitage Garden is like a big salad bowl for them.