Wanted: A head gardener at Sissinghurst, Kent As well as conserving the past, the new head gardener needs to bring their own vision to the garden, he adds. Originally Harold looked after the structure. He was a superb draughtsman, and was responsible for the vistas and the lines of the walls. Vita was responsible for the planting - she was flamboyant, and wanted everything to be full and wild," he says. Then Pam and Sibylle developed it more towards the garden that the public knows today, with perfect lawns and high-quality horticulture. Vita liked high spots, and was happy with a border which only looked good for two weeks a year. Pam and Sibylle elongated interest, but probably went a bit too far towards having things controlled and ordered. I think the new person needs to try and pull out a bit more of the Vita influence in the garden, and bring some of the exuberance back to the planting. We don't want to change the garden greatly, but there's the potential for experimentation, as long as it's done in the correct fashion. Alexis agrees: "When I started, my predecessor, Sarah Cook, told me that I had to keep abreast of fashions in horticulture, in order to be able to ignore them," she says. That doesn't mean you can't try new things, but they have to be in keeping with the style. Many of the things I'm proudest of are small touches, trying to bring some of the romantic informality back into the garden, like putting roses and honeysuckle back in the orchards; things that will ramble around and mind their own business without needing too much attention. As every gardener would say, the weather has sometimes been a challenge. At Sissinghurst you also have to deal with up to 195,000 visitors a year. Sometimes when it's busy in the cottage garden or the herb garden, it's impossible to work. Every gardener has to have a few things to do, so they can move if the crowds become too intense. But equally the best part of the job has been just being here, being in this garden almost every day. While I'm thinking about the future, I'm also sad and sentimental about the past. I'll miss Sissinghurst terribly - it's hard to imagine not being here. I'll miss the camaraderie of working with such a great staff, and of feeling like you're looking after a part of history. Someone once asked me how I inspired my team to keep working hard, and I said I don't really need to. It's a beautiful, wonderful thing: an inspiration in itself. For more information about the vacancy, visit nationaltrustjobs.org.uk Sissinghurst will be open next year seven days a week (01580 710701; nationaltrust.org.uk/sissinghurst-castle)