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Horticultural worker

Horticultural workers grow and sell plants in garden centres, and tend to plants in parks and gardens.

Potential salary
£13,000 to £30,000
Working hours
43 to 45 a week
  • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
  • the ability to work well with others
  • the ability to work on your own
  • to be flexible and open to change
  • persistence and determination
  • physical skills like movement, coordination, dexterity and grace
  • the ability to work well with your hands
  • physical fitness and endurance
  • excellent verbal communication skills
  • to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device

Your day-to-day duties may include:

  • sowing seeds, planting bulbs and ornamental plants
  • growing plants from cuttings and by grafting
  • taking care of plants - watering, weeding, pruning, feeding and spraying
  • mowing grass, cutting dead growth and branches, and general tidying
  • laying paths and looking after ornamental features
  • researching new strains of seed and plants in the lab for crop production
  • picking, sorting and packaging produce to be sent to retailers
  • selling plants and other products
  • advising customers in a garden centre

You could work on a country estate, in a park, in a garden or at a garden centre.

Your working environment may be outdoors in all weathers.

With experience you could progress to a supervisor or manager role, or set up your own nursery or garden maintenance business.

You could move into a research job for a university, or with a food and agricultural development company.

You can find out more about careers in horticulture through Grow Careers and The Royal Horticultural Society.

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