Gardener
The responsibility for preserving and enhancing the aesthetic attractiveness of planted terrain falls to a professional gardener. This entails applying gardening concepts when fertilizing, watering, moving, and maintaining diverse varieties of flowering plants, bushes, trees, etc.
Who are gardeners?
Duties
When you work as a gardener, you are in charge of the following duties:
- Monitoring, eliminating undesirable aspects like weeds, and transplanting trees or flowers as necessary to keep lawns, flower beds, groundcovers, and other plants on the property in good condition.
- When caring for gardens, follow all organizational rules and security procedures. Pay close attention to any safety risks, mishaps, and physical injuries that need to be reported to senior personnel.
- Use your knowledge and understanding of pesticides and fertilizers to handle them both as needed, taking into account factors such as the effectiveness of application methods, ratios, and the rate at which chemicals are mixed.
- Examine the condition of ornamental landscapes and add any necessary moss, wood chips, or mulch based on the type of plants and the environment.
Everyday Life
The majority of your day will be spent outside amid various plants in a garden setting, and the job of a gardener is highly hands-on. In your role as a gardener, you will be focused on upholding high standards for the trees and plants that fall under your jurisdiction, making sure that they are developed and preserved using fundamental horticultural tasks, such as clearing leaves, pruning, and weeding trees, floral or herbaceous plants, as well as mowing particular lawn areas.
Depending on the type of garden you are in charge of, you might need to engage with curious visitors on a regular or irregular basis by answering their questions or leading enjoyable workshops on gardening techniques. To reduce the dangers brought on by pests or disease, you should pay close attention to preventative care for the best health and look of the allocated plants. When trying to renovate or improve the current environment, landscape managers and landscape designers will occasionally contact a gardener.
Job Scheduling
You may anticipate working about 37 hours a week as a gardener. If you work independently, you will have more freedom when it comes to scheduling your hours, which will depend on the time of year and ongoing project deadlines. Due of the favorable weather for plant growth, gardeners are busier in the summer than they are in the winter. Since many activities include hauling and lifting heavy loads, people interested in this type of career path must be very physically strong. For protection, you might need to put on safety gear such a hard hat or gloves.
Expansion of the job
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), workers in industries like gardening or landscaping may experience a 6% rise in job prospects between the years 2014 and 2024. Homeowners will need the specialized abilities of a gardener to manage their property, especially their yards, gardens, and grass areas, due to the rapidly aging population in the nation and longer work hours.
With enough practice, gardeners advance to become senior or master gardeners who are in charge of a staff. Once they have a good name in the field, some also start their own company to serve private clientele. If becoming a professional gardener is something you’re interested in, you might also consider landscaping or greenskeeping, working in forestry and conservation, or becoming a farmer. To be considered for these careers, you would need at least a high school graduation.
Common Employers
Gardeners work for businesses, educational establishments like colleges or universities, as well as for individual citizens. Local governments, botanical gardens, theme parks, and non-profit organizations that assist in conservation are additional locations to look for employment.
A Guide to Gardening
The minimal requirements for gardening depend on your personal career objectives. For instance, there are no formal schooling requirements if your goal is to work as a groundskeeper or landscaper because you will learn the necessary skills through on-the-job training.
However, you need obtain a certificate or associate’s degree in a related field like landscape design, horticulture, etc. to advance in this business and take on expanding jobs like a garden designer or landscape architect. You will learn the fundamentals of plant maintenance and the aesthetics of gardening from such programs. More and more community schools and universities are offering specialized gardening courses that include crucial skills like organizing, cultivating, and maintaining vegetable or flower boxes.
Gardener Pay Information
The information below will help you learn more about this profession. The editorial material and recommendations on this page are based on our research, while the income and growth information is based on newly released Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- Low Range for National Annual Salaries
- $20,820 On Average $27,460 On The High End, $39,520
- nationwide minimum wage
- Low range: $10/hour; Average range: $13/hour; High range: $19/hour
How do Gardener salaries compare to those in other jobs nationwide? According to the most recent data on employment across the country, gardeners can earn an average yearly wage of $27,460, or $13 per hour. It is therefore a Salary Above Average. When just starting out or depending on the state you live in, they may make $20,820 or $10 per hour on the low end.
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