 Mary Williams and Ann Hopkins are two of 100 volunteers |
An army of volunteers will help run the National Botanic Garden of Wales when most of the staff are laid off next week. The attraction's dire financial difficulties means three quarters of those working there will lose their jobs on 5 November.
To keep it open to the public, managers will rely on the goodwill of volunteers to water the 100,000 precious plants, maintain the grounds and show visitors around.
The garden already has around 100 active volunteers who help out on a part-time basis and now it is trying to recruit more.
 |  We have about 100 volunteers gearing up to supplement the various jobs in the gardens  |
Weekly induction courses are being staged and students, pensioners and housewives are signing up to help out.
A special volunteers day was held on Wednesday and organisers said they were pleased with the response.
Despite the wet and miserable weather, around 40 people attended including new recruits from Swansea Institute of Further Education.
Good response
Volunteer coordinator Peter Bernays said: "We have been doing this for the past three weeks now.
"We have about 100 volunteers gearing up to supplement the various jobs in the gardens.
"We are looking for more volunteers to join us and people are signing up daily at the moment. We have had quite a response this morning.
MEET THE VOLUNTEERS Meet some of the volunteers who will help run the garden 
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"We have got a large number of jobs from the obvious work with horticulture and allied to that work out on the farm estate.
"We have also got a number of jobs working with visitor services, working in the ticket office, transporting people around the gardens, showing the film in the AV theatre."
Mr Bernays said the volunteers came from a wide range of backgrounds.
"A fair percentage of people are retired people," he added.
"Also a number of younger people working in horticulture and we are finding quite a good response from students."
Emergency funding
Next Wednesday the number of full-time jobs at the garden will be cut by about 60.
Because of the debts, trustees and managers say they have no option but to make the reductions.
Talks are on-going with Carmarthenshire council and the Welsh assembly to secure emergency funding.
But even with this help there is only enough money to keep the attraction open until December.
Among those offering their services on Wednesday was 39-year-old conservation student Simon Whitehead from Swansea.
He said: "I have been here before on a visit with Swansea Institute.
"We were impressed with what they have got here."
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