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When I was younger, I wanted to help people and thought I would pursue a career in social services. Now, I help plants instead! I am a landscape supervisor at BNL Services, an environmental services company which provides landscape, cleaning, and waste management services. My team and I look after and inspect the trees and plants at Singapore Zoo, Night Safari and River Wonders. A typical day will see me check various trees for defects which might lead to falling branches, or even the whole tree. Once a defect has been spotted, I would need to rectify it. For example, if I spot dead branches on a tree, I will get my team to remove them. I love looking after plants and trees and I truly enjoy my work. It wasn’t always like this, though. My N-Level results weren’t great and of the 12 courses I listed in my ITE application, a Nitec in Urban Greenery & Landscape was my last choice. As fate would have it, it was the course I got into at ITE College East. I entered the course in 2018, having no idea what it would be like. By actively participating in class and horticultural activities organised by the school and industry, I slowly developed an interest. Having spent time outdoors and figuring out what makes plants tick, I discovered that, “Hey, it’s fun working with plants!”. My lecturer also played a big part in my career choice. Her passion for plants really inspired me — she was the one who showed me how important plants are. She gave me a lot of support while I was studying and created more opportunities for me to gain exposure and build my network in the landscaping industry. My family was surprised when they found out about my interest. They definitely didn’t expect me to be a plant lover since I wasn’t exposed much to nature when I was younger. Once they got used to the idea, they supported my decision to turn this interest into a career. Now, they are proud and happy that I choose to do what I love. After graduating from my Nitec course, I enrolled in the newly-introduced ITE Work-Study Diploma (WSDip) in Arboriculture & Horticulture in 2020. That was when I joined BNL Services. Stepping into the work environment as a young trainee, I found it a challenge to work with people of varying field experiences. But I took my time to learn from everyone. I worked hard to prove my capabilities and made sure I bonded with my team so we could all learn from each other. The WSDip course taught me more than just technical knowledge and skills. It also prepared me for the working world by teaching me how to interact with people from different age groups. This particular skillset keeps things interesting for me as well — I meet many people with diverse talents and perspectives in this industry and I really enjoy it. It gives me an opportunity to work with and learn from them. I may work with plants, but there is plenty of human interaction as well! I stayed on with BNL after completing my WSDip in 2022. I’m grateful to the company for giving me the opportunity to kick start my career in this industry. A highlight of my career so far was getting the chance to represent BNL and showcase the National Parks Board’s digitalisation capabilities to National Development Minister Desmond Lee at this year’s Green Thumbs exhibition. I know many girls would prefer not to pursue a career like mine. In this line, you can’t be afraid of working outdoors. As for me, I love being outside and bugs don’t bother me at all. Tree falls happen more frequently during the rainy season, so you’ve got to be prepared to work in the rain too. Personally, I prefer working without a raincoat as I find them quite restrictive. My love for nature goes beyond enjoying beautiful scenery. To me, plants and trees are living things, just like us. So instead of serving humans, I choose to serve plants and trees, despite having to do so under the hot sun for hours. ABOUT THE WRITER: Ms Makesvary Krishnasamy, 22, is a landscape supervisor at BNL Services. Though she is just starting out in the industry, she hopes to be a plant and tree specialist in the future. She is currently pursuing a certified arborist licence with the International Society of Arboriculture. At home, she is “mum” to a growing collection of money plants.