How much does a Garden Associate make at The Home Depot?
What is the pay for job titles similar to Garden Associate at The Home Depot?
Which The Home Depot locations are popular with high-earning Garden Associate professionals?
Just waiting on my background check/drug test and I'll be getting started.
1.) What can I expect to deal with day-to-day? I'm assuming it will be pretty busy in the Spring/summer, and around Christmas as well.
2.) Any recommendations for shoes, gear, clothes, etc that might be helpful on the job?
3.) Any tips for learning more about gardening in general and being successful on the job? I don't know much about gardening at all
Thanks for your help, this sub has been a great resource through the hiring process
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See #3.
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Get Dr. Scholl's insoles. That is a recommendation for every associate, regardless of department. As for clothing, invest in cheap collared shirts and hats that you are willing to get dirty, because they will get dirty. Going into spring and summer, the hat will be an absolute necessity when working outdoors. As an InFocus Captain, I cannot recommend it enough. Always always always have a water bottle on you. You will be outside more than most associates and you must make sure you're properly hydrated. The hat and water bottle are two very easy steps to help avoid heat exhaustion.
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Lean on your experienced associates. Ask them questions. Ask them more questions. Keep asking questions until they get pissed off at you and offload an annoying customer onto you. If you're in a department that you don't know, then turn to the associates who do. It's the same in every department. Every one has its experts and if you follow them around and learn what they know, you will succeed. It'll take plenty of time, especially in garden, but you will learn. You'll want to know what seasons certain plants grow best in, what kind of soil they need, how much light they need per day, how much watering they need, etc. etc. Make sure you work to become well-versed in what kind of plants are popular in the region you work in. Obviously, if you're in the northeast, you don't need to worry much about succulents.
If you're working inside garden, then you're probably going to end up fielding a lot of questions about grills. The short version of grills is this: Weber. Other grills may cost less but they aren't as well-constructed, don't last as long and don't have nearly as good of a warranty. Weber is just plain better than everything else and is worth the cost, without question.
Also, since it's getting to grill and patio season, make sure to get to know the service desk and deliveries associates, because you will be helping a lot of customers to set up will calls and deliveries for grills and patio sets.
The problem with Garden is that its kinda like being in two different departments at once. You have to learn all about inside garden and outside garden. And just when you've got that down, the entire department flips to winter and you have to do it all over again.
Inside garden (going from left to right in my store): Cleaning supplies and accessories, BBQ's (propane, natural gas, charcoal), BBQ accessories, garbage cans, garbage bags, pesticides for both animals and lawns, pressure washers, hoses and accessories, hand tools, chain saws, leaf blowers, trimmers, edgers, tillers, lawn mowers, patio furniture, umbrellas, cushions, and outdoor fire places/heaters.
Outside garden: Plant food, outside decor, plant pots, edging, grass seed, fertilizer (and accessories), plants, deck boxes, soil, brick, sheds, and wheelbarrows.
My #1 piece of advice after you complete the web training is to pair up with an experienced associate and get them to walk the department with you. Learn where things are, so you can at least direct customers to the right area. Ask what the top selling models of each type of item are. Take some time to read the boxes and the information posted near the products (the BBQ's all have posters behind them that show warranty info and other features). Get them to show you how to do Will-Calls, set up deliveries, use myStoreTools and myApron effectively, and how to list a BBQ for assembly (if your store offers that service)
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The day to day stuff is questions from customers. Where are the ____? How much grass seed do I need to cover my X by Y lawn? Then there will be stuff that needs to be loaded. You will have to load a lot of patio furniture, bags of soil, and brick. We have lot associates (parking lot, carts) that you can call for help with carry outs but during the summer they also get overwhelmed.
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Good boots, sunglasses, shorts, and cheap thrift store polo's you don't mind destroying. Also, a good water bottle.
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I have been a D28 associate for two years now, going into my third spring season. I know barely anymore about plants than I did when I started. It practically takes a horticulture degree to know every plant we sell. The plants we get have little cards staked into the pot, they usually list how much sun/shade they need, potential height, and planting spacing. Read them.
Feel free to ask any other questions.
Hi all,
I really want to work full time at Home Depot but only as a garden associate since I come from a floral retail background and heard it’s one of the best positions at Home Depot. I’ve searched on the Home Depot career webpage and for my locations it doesn’t explicitly say “Garden Associate” but it says cashier, merchandising, support, lot associate, and so I assumed locations around me just aren’t hiring Garden associates, but then I checked all locations in California and none say “garden associate”. Is it called a different name that you have to apply for or will it say “garden associate” on the webpage and coincidentally there are just no openings for that position in California?