Pot up seedlings and tag them
Fill containers with growing mix, set a seedling in each, tag it, and water trays once they're full.
Career profile
Crop, Nursery, or Greenhouse Worker
Farmworkers plant, tend and harvest crops, or grow nursery plants for sale.
Young plants in a row become a harvest or stock shipped to buyers. That takes both steady, repetitive handwork and noticing how plants change.
A day in the life
Weed the rows, then prune
Pull weeds by hand or with a hoe, then trim plants back with pruning shears.
Spot trouble on the leaves
Watch leaves for bugs or color changes, and tell the grower which plants seem to have trouble.
Pick ripe vegetables down each row
In vegetable-picking jobs, judge size, color and ripeness before picking, and handle produce gently so it won't bruise.
Quick facts
Learn on the job
United States
$17.15 an hour
United States · 2025
2% decline
United States · 2025–2035
Quick orientation
Preparation, pay & outlook
Preparation
Learn on the jobUsually no formal educational credential is needed; employer requirements vary.
Pay
$17.15 an hourThe 2025 national median was $35,660 annually.
Outlook
2% declineNational employment is projected to decrease from 2025 to 2035.
Fit, tradeoffs & changing tools
You might like this if…
- You enjoy hands-on work with plants.
- You notice small changes in appearance.
- You can stay careful through repeated tasks.
Things to weigh
- Repeated bending and carrying can be tiring. Fieldwork also exposes you to heat and changing weather.
- Seasonal jobs can mean long days during busy periods and gaps between jobs.
Where AI may help
Timers, moisture sensors and computer controls can switch irrigation valves on and off.
What people still lead
You still inspect plants and report problems that need attention.
What we can’t predict yet
How much watering and harvesting becomes automated will vary with the crop and equipment a farm adopts.
Pay in context
Earnings
Compare the wage rate with how much of the year the job lasts.
The middle and the spread
The 2025 median was $17.15 an hour, or $35,660 annually. The 10th and 90th percentiles were $15.82 and $21.96 an hour ($32,900 and $45,690 annually). These describe the wage distribution, not starting and experienced pay.
Workplace type can matter
In May 2023, this occupation averaged $17.25 an hour ($35,880 annually) in crop-production support businesses and $19.30 ($40,130 annually) in beverage manufacturing. These are historical industry averages, not current offers.
A season is not a full year
Annualized wages assume 2,080 paid hours. A seasonal job may provide fewer. Ask about expected weekly hours and the season's end date.
Openings despite decline
The earlier 2024–2034 projection estimated 71,700 openings annually, including replacements. That is a separate forecast period from the 2025–2035 decline shown above.
Getting started
Start with a field crew
- What the route involves
- Learn tool use and safety while doing planting or harvest work.
- What it can lead to
- You build crop-specific experience recognizing harvest readiness and handling produce carefully.
Join nursery production
- What the route involves
- Learn the nursery's routines for potting, watering and preparing plants for shipment.
- What it can lead to
- You gain experience taking container plants from transplanting through preparation for sale.
- What to check
- Some commercial nursery jobs require previous nursery experience; check the posting before applying.
You usually learn from an employer after hiring, working with a farm manager or supervisor.
After entry
Career paths
This starts where the entry routes leave off: early work, growing capability, and advancement or specialization.
Get consistent
Learn what a usable plant or harvest looks like, and handle it carefully through a full batch.
Learn the growing systems
Build skill in recognizing plant problems and managing watering or greenhouse temperatures.
Move toward crew leadership
A nursery lead may teach new workers, divide the workload and check completed work. Growing plants well becomes only part of the responsibility.
Where you can work
Vegetable fields
You work along outdoor rows with a harvest crew. Crop maturity determines what gets picked, and some tasks require coordinating your movements with others.
- Outdoors
- Field work
- Physical demands
Commercial nurseries
Outdoor growing areas and potting lines hold plants at different stages. Moving containers and packing orders are part of getting living plants ready to ship.
- Outdoors
- Physical demands
Production greenhouses
You work inside an enclosed growing space, sometimes with plants on raised benches. Watering, heating and ventilation help control conditions; sunny weather can still make the space hot.
- Indoors
- Physical demands
Try it
See whether the job clicks before you commit to the path.
Choose a plant you already care for and inspect it daily for a week. Record leaf color, visible damage and new growth. Notice whether you enjoy checking the same living thing carefully and keeping a useful record.
Stay safe: Observe without applying pesticides or diagnosing a treatment.
Sources
- O*NET OnLine / U.S. Department of Labor. Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse. Accessed 2026-10-03.
- O*NET OnLine / U.S. Department of Labor. National Wages: 45-2092.00. Accessed 2026-10-03.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Agricultural Workers. Accessed 2026-10-03.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. May 2023 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates: Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse. Accessed 2026-10-03.
- Dennis Nursery & Greenhouses Inc / U.S. Department of Labor. Nursery Worker — H-300-26156-985723. Accessed 2026-10-03.
- SOL Harvesting LLC / U.S. Department of Labor. Farmworker: Diversified — H-300-26181-068165. Accessed 2026-10-03.
- Penn State Extension. Drip Irrigation for Vegetable Production. Accessed 2026-10-03.
- Penn State Extension. Greenhouse Production. Accessed 2026-10-03.
- Iowa Department of Administrative Services. Nursery Worker 2. Accessed 2026-10-03.