After years toiling in employment limbo and struggling with inner demons, David Scott and Lawrence Carrington spent the last six months working with their hands — chopping, cleaning, pruning, digging and planting in Bronx parks.

They have helped beautify the borough through a new welfare-to-work program focused on horticulture and coordinated by the nonprofit Mosholu Preservation Corporation (which also publishes the Norwood News).

Now that they’ve completed the program, which ended in early August, they’re hoping to continue to reap the fruits of their labor by landing careers in horticulture. (A second crew completes the program in September.)

Scott, 49, and Carrington, 52, enrolled in the horticulture program through University Behavioral Associates (UBA), a program funded with stimulus money and run through Montefiore Medical Center’s psychology department.

Like everyone who participates in UBA, the pair applied for public assistance while struggling with substance abuse.

“Individuals who apply for public assistance who have a Bronx address and need an assessment for substance and alcohol abuse are sent to us,” said Susan Lally, the vocational supervisor for UBA. An evaluation of substance abuse is mandatory for public assistance applications, she said, but participation in UBA is voluntary.

Those who enroll in UBA have access to “whatever services they need, such as medical treatment or work activity, and all the resources they need so that they can be healthy and on the pathway to employment,” Lally said.

Initially, UBA participants spend two days per week in the classroom doing pre-employment activities and three days per week on a work experience program, such as public maintenance or clerical work. Once they complete their work experience, participants can apply for paid experience, such as the horticulture program.

According to Lally, UBA helps 300 out of 1,200 participants find jobs every year, making it the city’s most successful welfare-to-work program.

After spending eight months in UBA, the men joined the horticulture program in February. They were immediately put to work in various parks across the Bronx.

They found the work taxing, but they stuck with it.

“A lot of mornings I dragged myself out of bed just to be with the fellas,” Carrington said, noting that the eight-man crew began to refer to themselves as the “Magnificent Eight.”

“The best part about it was we all grind together,” Scott added. “There were times when we had to stand together to create heat. And let me tell you, that creates a bond.”

While they bonded, they also made progress. They have worked on a total of seven parks in the Bronx, including stretches along the Bronx River. They also achieved Citizen Pruner licenses, which allow them to care for trees in the city.

Jennifer Beaugrand, director of the horticulture program, is pleased with the group’s performance. “It’s been amazing, really. I couldn’t have asked for a more hardworking, dedicated group of employees,” she said. “They’ve just been phenomenal and the work that they’ve done has been amazing.”

With their licenses, good friendships, and a solid skill set under their belts, both men are now seeking full-time jobs in horticulture. Steady employment will be their last step in abandoning welfare for good.

“For so long I took so much for granted,” Scott said, recalling his history of procrastination and ambivalence. Despite his past, he remains optimistic about his future and says, “Now I’m right where I need to be.”

Now that they’re on their own, Carrington and Scott want people know they are interested in private contracts. “If anyone in the area needs their lawn and shrubs cut, we will be available,” Scott said. Carrington added with a nod, “We have a lot of talent.”