My internship was an unforgettable learning experience. I gained a lot of knowledge throughout the 3 months when I was working there. From tree planting to pruning, all of which I will take with me as I continue to expand my knowledge on various agriculture topics.
I worked at Ruppert Nurseries in Laytonsville, Maryland from May to August which amounted to around 430 hours in total. They are a wholesale Nursery that sells mainly to landscapers, contractors, and various companies in the horticulture industry. They sell a variety of deciduous and evergreen trees as well as shrubs. I chose this as my internship because I previously worked there over the summer last year. I enjoyed my time there so much that I decided to come back for my internship to gain further experience at a tree nursery. Additionally, my supervisors had a big impact on my decision to come back as they helped and taught me plenty the previous year making it an easier decision to return.
Over the course of my internship, I had various tasks. I sprayed weeds, planted liners, mulched, transplanted trees, pruned, and went with the off-farm crew to help with projects for customers. Although some tasks such as spraying weeds were tedious and time-consuming, I learned the importance of these tasks. Specifically, how they help keep the trees healthy and prepare them to be sold. However, my favorite tasks were transplanting and planting trees because there were various different steps to take and I could never get bored as we were always moving when doing this. I also enjoyed going with the off-farm crew to plant and mulch trees at various job sites. Working with my coworkers every day was a treat since we were a tight crew and everyone knew each other. Cracking jokes with my coworkers were some things that made the days go by faster and more enjoyable. Overall, by doing these tasks, I was able to gain insight into what it was like to work at a tree nursery and what to expect if I were to work at one in the future. Not only did I gain more insight into trees, but I was able to develop important communication skills as I had to interact with many individuals day by day.
This experience of working at Ruppert is one I could never regret and would do again. It has taught me plenty about maintaining trees and shrubs as well as how a nursery business would work. My summer internship at Ruppert made me realize that working with trees is important and working at a business that deals with trees such as Ruppert is a potential direction that I would like to take.
