r/Horticulture

Hello! If you have a Horticulture degree, what are you currently doing for work? I’m looking for career options and ideas.

I am interested in going back to school and would absolutely love to study Horticulture. However, I need to be realistic about what can help me get a good job when I’m finished school. I have a great school program lined up but I’m not quite sure if this is a smart route to go. Any advice is appreciated! TIA :)

Ok so I just purchased a blue berry bush at a big box store, planted it in ground not potted. before we go any further instead of mentioning, checking the pH of the soil, can we maybe shed light on other issues that are possible. Here are the details.

I live in central Canada, the native soil is clay, I dug out an area three sizes the plant and filled it with spagnum peat moss and pine bark.

We just came out of a mild cold snap, like -1 celcius overnight.

Mind you they were kept outside at the garden center with the same overnight temps with the plant looking healthy.

Now with the plant in the ground at about 2 weeks so far it's started to turn red. no roots have started to spread at this point.

What other factors excluding ph and the cold snap could cause the plant to start turning red?

also I apologize if my post seems poorly written or confusing, I'm buzzing pretty good right now and felt the need to ask at this time haha. ... also should I re plant it in a pot instead of in the ground lol.

Been reading and talking with growers/garden centers lately across NY, Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Minnesota etc and the feedback is surprisingly similar everywhere.

Cold nights.

Rain nonstop.

Windy almost every week.

Very few real sunny stretches.

what is your location situation ？what is your solution to make your greenhouse more control led？

I come from a software/data background and I've worked in telecoms and fintech before moving into environmental restoration work thanks to a family friend.

What started as just building systems for a conservation operation unexpectedly pulled me deep into the ecology side of things.

I spend a lot of time around:

• seed collection
• indigenous species propagation
• cuttings
• restoration projects
• rehabilitation sites
• nursery tunnels and shade nettings
• greenhouse operations
• ecological monitoring

Originally I was there to solve operational/data problems: tracking stock, plant movement, survival rates, project allocations, reporting, quoting systems etc.

But over time I became genuinely fascinated by the actual work itself.

One thing that challenged me is ecology work has some of the messiest but most valuable data I’ve ever seen.

Field notebooks.
Spreadsheets.
Plant tags.
GPS points.
Species naming inconsistencies (but thanks to iNaturalist. love that app)
Years of observations trapped in disconnected systems.

At the same time, the people doing this work are trying to solve incredibly important problems: ecosystem recovery, biodiversity conservation, river restoration, indigenous propagation and long-term environmental resilience.

As a developer, it completely changed how I think about software. Honestly I’m still learning a lot, but I’m really enjoying being around this space.

I even want to start a small backyard greenhouse/nursery setup myself just to learn more hands-on. Are my kind accepted in this space? 😄

We are selling mangoes directly for the first time. Until now, we used to sell everything in the local market, but this time we wanted to also sell ( idea of making chemical-free goodness affordable for everyone). Our mango farm has been maintained naturally from the beginning, almost like a forest. This time, we are also trying to do direct-to-end-user sales in a fully natural way.

But ripening the mangoes is becoming very difficult. We tried using dried paddy grass and ripe bananas, but only about 10-20 kilos are ripening per day. Are there any better/quick natural methods for ripening mangoes? At this rate, it is becoming very hard for us. We still have around 500+ kilos of mangoes left. Please give us some advice

I'm trying to pivot from corporate finance into something more nature-oriented. Currently exploring my paths and wanted to speak to some horticuluralists about possible career trajectory.

Some questions:

1. How/why did you end up working in horticulture?

2. What does a day to day look?

3. What did career progression look like?

4. Are there any certifications that are worth pursuing?

5. How can I get into this as a career path?

Yes, I read the pinned post - it's 5 years old so I'm curious to see if anything has changed since then.

About 8 years ago I bought 4 pawpaw seedlings, only one has made it. It flowered for the first time this spring! I know only one won't get me fruit, but I think it is neat. Plus I live in Southwestern Ontario and it is not at all common here, like close to limit if its growth.

Could I possibly transplant it? I suspect the answer is no, knowing what I know about them. But, maybe someone with experience can chime in with some advice.

I have until the fall, probably October maybe November before the property is sold. I currently have a nice semi shaded spot that could work for it if it can survive and future plants for fruit.

I work at a small business greenhouse, we have fans but ive never seen them on. Half of my day is in the greenhouse, the rest is either outside or in an open garage. The point being, this is more like landscaping work than commercial greenhouse. So for anyone who can relate, what are you wearing on 80°F+ days? I really hate wearing shorts to work for a handful of reasons but I havent found pants that dont have me on the verge of a heat stroke.

I was going to do a layer of paper bags at the bottom to keep soil in and I'm wondering if I need to add a small layer of gravel at the bottom of the raised bed for drainage.

I've tried searching online but haven't been able to find a concrete answer (pun intended).

I currently work at a botanical garden in the US with a strong reputation and historical plant collection. I thought this job would be a great way to finally get some proper training from an institution, but that hasn’t been the case.

My job title is horticulturist, but it has taken me an insane amount of time (almost a year) to do work beyond pruning and weeding. I’ve tried to expand my range of work in different ways, but I’m often not given the okay. The job description was far more robust than what I’m currently being utilized for.

I’d love to know if other horticulturists working in botanical gardens have had similar experiences, and if so how do you navigate it?

Have you had any experiences with gate keeping? Old boys club vibes? Lack of feedback/structure? I currently feel there’s no real structure to “move up” and I feel frustrated at not getting to take advantage of all the knowledge and expertise.

Would love any general advice on where to look for more training, I’d love to do more education/workshops and am curious how other horticulturists or folks in botany have approached this.

Any and all advice welcome!

Thanks

- a sad kid in the dirt

I'm looking to start a nursery that grows philodendrons, anthuriums and monsteras. I'm having trouble finding what sort of soil mixes a nursery that grows this type of plants would use. Traditionally a hobbiest would use an aroid mix but I've found it essentially impossible to find any place that sells aroid mixes in bulk. Any recommendations for what sort of soil mix I should be looking for/sourcing from?