5 Jobs in Horticulture

If you love working in the great outdoors then a career in horticulture could be perfect for you!

Horticulture-5-jobs

5 Jobs in Horticulture

Seed your future and grow your career in Horticulture!

If you love working in the great outdoors then a career in horticulture could be perfect for you! A horticulture qualification can lead to careers in plant breeding, landscape design, floral design, botany, nursery production and management, food science — the list goes on.

Read on to learn more about 5 potential career opportunities in Horticulture.


Landscape Designer

Landscape professionals design, plan and manage all kinds of outdoor spaces and create a visually appealing space by planting flowers and trees. As a landscape designer you can choose the types of plants as well as trees that will thrive in a particular climate and environment and have knowledge of all sorts of plant life. 

Duties: creating plans, designs and drawings, surveying sites, advising on matters to do with environmental conservation, producing contracts and estimated costs, presenting proposals to clients for approval and agreeing time-scales.

What you can earn: The average salary for a landscape designer is £29,000. With experience, you could earn between £30,000 and £45,000. 

 

Plant Breeder

As a plant breeder/geneticist your aim will be to develop useful traits in plants, such as disease resistance and drought tolerance. You’ll also work to improve characteristics such as appearanceand your role will be vital to the agricultural industry as there are constant challenges to meet market demands, and to increase and maintain yields in important crops.

Duties: Identify and select plants exhibiting desirable traits, based on natural genetic variation. Cross plants to produce new breeding material for field and glasshouse trials. Analyse and scientifically assess plant breeding in laboratory and field trials and select the best varieties.

What you can earn: Entry-level plant breeders earn in the region of £20,000. With around five years’ experience, salaries can reach £25,000. Highly experienced plant breeders can earn £40,000+.

Nursery and Greenhouse Manager

Nursery and greenhouse managers are responsible for the daily operations involved with running a greenhouse or nursery. In this position you would typically oversee the production of trees, shrubs, flowers, and plants (including turf) used for landscaping.

Duties: Plan, organise and coordinate workers engaged in propagating, cultivating, and harvesting horticultural specialities such as trees, shrubs, flowers and other plants.

What you can earn: The average salary for a greenhouse manager is £37,000. This range varies between £25,000 and £52,000, depending on experience level and the employer.

Ornamental Horticulturist

An ornamental horticulturist works with plants used in decoration and consists of floriculture and landscape horticulture. Each is concerned with growing and marketing plants and with the associated activities of flower arrangement and landscape design.

Duties: You may put together corsages and other floral arrangements, investigate flower providers, place orders, arrange for shipments and receive deliveries.

What you can earn: The average horticulturist salary in the United Kingdom is £20,475 per annum.

Botanist

The work of botanist concerns all sorts of plant life. Botanists may conduct their work out in the field searching for new types of plants and are experts at identifying parts of trees and plants. 

Duties: Studying plants traits and their environments, traits. Conducting fieldwork, collecting and testing plant samples, and recording observations. Testing the effects of weather, pollutants, pests, and other problems on different plant species.

What you can earn: Entry level is around £22,000, however, this can increase to £45,000 and above with experience.

 

What training do I need for a career in Horticulture?

It is challenging to make it in horticulture on practical experience alone. Most employers will expect you to have a thorough grounding in the science and theory behind horticulture, as well as being able to prove you have the necessary skills for the job. Discover how Oaklands College can put you on the right path for your chosen career in Horticulture here.

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