Horticultural manager
A horticultural manager grows plants for use in parks, gardens and public spaces.
What you'll do
Day-to-day tasks
On a typical day you might:
- prepare and update business plans
- manage staff and budgets, analyse costs and make sure health and safety procedures are followed
- develop new products and negotiate with suppliers
- design layouts and develop planting programmes
- decide when to plant and harvest crops
- manage pests, disease and weed control
Working environment
You could work in an office or at a garden centre.
Your working environment may be outdoors some of the time.
Career path and progression
With experience, you could:
- move into a senior management role
- set up your own nursery or garden centre
- complete the Master of Horticulture qualification
What it takes
Skills and knowledge
You'll need:
- knowledge of biology
- knowledge of manufacturing production and processes
- business management skills
- analytical thinking skills
- the ability to motivate and manage staff
- the ability to sell products and services
- excellent verbal communication skills
- customer service skills
- to be able to use a computer and the main software packages confidently
How to become
You can get into this job through:
- a university course
- a college course
- an apprenticeship
- working towards this role
- a graduate training scheme
You could do a foundation degree, higher national diploma or degree in a subject like:
- horticulture and management
- commercial horticulture
- horticulture and plant science
Work experience during university
Employers value work experience so it's important to get as much as you can during your studies.
You could choose a course that includes a placement or internship. Your university careers service can also help you find work experience.
Entry requirements
You'll usually need:
- 1 or 2 A levels, or equivalent, for a foundation degree or higher national diploma
- 2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, for a degree
More Information
You could work towards this role by doing a college course in a relevant subject like:
- level 3 Diploma in Horticulture
- level 3 Certificate in Practical Horticulture
- T Level in Agriculture, Land Management and Production
- level 4 Diploma in Horticultural Practice
You could also get a qualification from The Royal Horticulture Society.
Entry requirements
You'll usually need:
- 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, for a level 3 course
- 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths for a T Level
- 1 or 2 A levels, a level 3 diploma or relevant experience for a level 4 or level 5 course
More Information
You could do a horticulture supervisor advanced apprenticeship to work towards a management role.
Entry requirements
There are no set entry requirements but it may help you to get in if you have:
- 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths, for an advanced apprenticeship
More Information
You could start as a horticultural worker to get experience and work your way up to a management role.
Some larger companies have graduate schemes working with fresh food, produce and crops.
Professional and industry bodies
You can find out more about careers in horticulture from the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB).
Further information
You can find out more about becoming a horticultural careers from The Royal Horticultural Society and The Institute of Agriculture and Horticulture.
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This page contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.