Horticulturist Career

Horticulture is the study of the cultivation, production, marketing process, and propagation of ornamental plants, flowers, turf, vegetables, fruits, and nuts.

The Work of Horticulturist:
The work in horticulture broadly covers growing and maintaining horticultural farms, orchards, plantations, and gardens for various organizations. They may also maintain glass houses for out-of-season and delicate plants. With the widespread commercialization of this activity, there are now industrial houses which handle large scale and scientific cultivation of fruits and vegetables. Specialists in plant-types may manage plant-growing operations or retail outlets such as nurseries.
Some horticulturists go into marketing, fruit and vegetable processing and preservation and landscaping. Few others enter into the development and maintenance of own and country parks, picnic areas. Golf courses, as also landscaping of gardens, lawns, hot-houses and nurseries.

Horticulturist Education And Skills
BSc Horticulture is a four years program for which eligibility is 10+2 with Physics, Chemistry and Biology or Agriculture. The graduate programme teaches about the care of flowers trees, and shrubs; equipment maintenance; and grounds management and about various scientific techniques to improve the quality and quantity of plants. Admission to BSc in Horticulture is on the basis of performance in the entrance examination conducted by various colleges.

Those seriously interested in this field should go for a Master’s degree in some specialized field like floriculture (production and marketing of floral crops), pomology (production and marketing of fruits) and landscaping (production, marketing and maintenance of plants). An MBA in agri-business teaches students strategy, managerial skills and business acumen of the fields.

Key Skills of Horticulturist

• Love of flowers and trees and a good understanding and familiarity with plants of all types.

• Ability of get on well with all sorts of people ranging from scientist to nursery worker.

• Ability to work within demands and constraints of weather and season.

• Interest in Nature and concern for the environment

• Good organizational, planning and research skills

• Ability to manage and supervise others Some Institutes

• Dr. Y.S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forstry, Solan (www.yspuniversity.ac.in)

• G.B. Pant University of Agriculture, pant Nagar, Nainital (www.gbpuat.ac.in)

• Indian Agricultural Research Institute, new Delhi (www.iari,res.in)

• Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Jabalpur (www.jnkvv.nic.in)

• Chandra Shekhar And University of Agriculture and Technology, kanpur (www.csauk.ac.in)

• Annamalai University Annamalainagar (www.annamalaiuniversity.ac.in)

• Tamil Nadu Agricultural University Coimbatore (www.tnau.ac.in)

• University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore (www.uasbangalore.edu.in)

• University of Agricultural Sciences, Krishinagar, Dharwad (www.uasd,edu)

• CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar (www.hau.ernet.in)

• Mahatma phule Krishi Vidyapeeth (MPKV), Rahuri (www.mpkv.mah.nic.in)

• Dr Panjebrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth (Dr.PDKV), Akola (www.pdkv.ac.in)

• Dr Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidypeeth (Dr BSKKV), Dapoli (www.dbskkv.org)

Horticulture Salary:
A fresher starts with a package of RS 10,000 to RS 15,000 per month. Those with higher qualification may start with better salary.

Job Prospects of Horticulture:
Most work for agro-based industries, fruit and vegetable processing units, forestry-based industries and state horticulture and forest departments. Many work in hotels, health farms and holiday resorts to beautify their surroundings.
The current trends toward urbanization and population increase, together with the increased demand for gardening landscaping services for preserving and restoring the environment have ensured a continuing demand for horticultural goods and services. This all has, in turn, resulted in an increased demand for horticulturists.