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Horticulturist
Horticulturists are professionals involved in the growing, selling, and maintenance of plants for indoor and outdoor use. Some specialize in plants indigenous to Southern Africa. They seek to beautify cities, towns or suburbs and provide better recreation facilities. It requires a lot of research in the field to understand the conditions under which plants grow.
Horticulturists’ work can be divided into four different spheres:
Commerce: plants are propagated and seeds produced for marketing by nurseries and in greenhouses or hothouses.
Parks and decorative areas: a park administrator concerned with layouts and cultivation of plants in landscapes, parks and public gardens and also with the beautifying of areas such as pavements and entrances of towns and cities, areas adjacent to freeways and railway stations.
Conservation: Horticulturists / Specialist Horticulturists / Curators of Botanical Gardens work in association with scientists and develop plant collections from all over Southern Africa to get to know how to conserve them, grow them and develop an appreciation for indigenous plants.
Supplementary products: as researchers, advisers, or salespeople of chemicals, fertilisers and horticultural products / elements.
Research: involved with the development of improved varieties of plants. Horticulturist scientists, those with university degrees in horticulture, are the most likely to work for various agricultural research institutes conducting research on vegetables, fruit and flowers as well as on grape and wine preparation.
They also work on environmental and pest control and some work on improving and cultivating plant varieties, hybrids.
Horticulturists often work with engineers, landscape architects, environmental conservationists and town planners. They could provide plant decorations for functions and offices or be involved in the creation of recreational areas such as botanical gardens, nature reserves and hiking trails, where people can relax or exercise, and also for research, conservation and the education of the public. They may contribute to the conservation of the environment through the provision of green zones, the establishment of vegetation in certain areas and soil stabilisation.
Horticulturist work mainly outdoors, at research institutes, production farms, nurseries, parks and botanical gardens, and in conservation areas where they might propagate rare and endangered plants, including those used for traditional healing.
Satisfying Aspects
- working with nature and plants
- challenge and variety of the work
- working outdoors at least some of the time
Demanding aspects
- long periods of seemingly unsuccessful research
- having to obtain advanced education
- continue studying to keep abreast of the latest developments within this field
Requirements
A horticulturist should:
- have an inborn love of nature;
- enjoy working outdoors;
- be creative and know how to arrange trees, shrubs and flowers in a landscape and to blend colours and shapes;
- be responsible and interested in conservation;
- have technical abilities;
- be patient and have perseverance;
- be able to make decisions independently;
- be able to foresee horticultural activities over a whole year and to plan accordingly.
School Subjects
National Senior Certificate meeting degree requirements for a degree course
National Senior Certificate meeting diploma requirements for a diploma course
Each institution has its own entry requirements.
Compulsory Subjects: Mathematics (some institutions require Physical Sciences and / or Life Sciences)
Recommended Subjects: Life Sciences, Physical Sciences, Agricultural Science
Training
Degree: BSc (Agric) degree - UKZN, UFS, UP, US, UFH, NWU, NMMU, UNISA, UZ, UV. Horticultural Science - US.
Diploma: BTech, N.Dip: Horticulture - UNISA, CPUT, DUT, TUT.
Environment and Recreation - DUT, Environmental Health - CUT, CPUT, DUT, TUT, UJ, NMMU, Landscape Technology - CPUT.
Agricultural Colleges: Elsenburg Agricultural College in the Western Cape and Cedara Agricultural College in KwaZulu Natal offer a diploma course which includes Horticulture.
The Institute of Parks and Recreation Management (SA) monitors the courses offered at the training institutions and also offers seminars and conferences on Horticulture. Students can enrol as student members and qualified horticulturists as senior members of the Institute.
Employer
- Large fruit, vegetable and flower farms
- Department of Public Works
- Provincial administrations
- Public corporations and semi-state institutions
- Nurseries and botanical gardens
- Manufacturers of pesticides, fungicides and fertilisers
- Municipalities
- Universities and universities of technology
- Research institutes
- Self-employment, with enough experience and capital, can start own horticultural enterprise
Contact
Botanical Society of South Africa
Private Bag X 10
Claremont, 7735
Tel: (021) 797-2090 Fax: (021) 797-2376
www.botanicalsociety.org.za
South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI)
Private Bag X7
Claremont, 7735
Tel: (021) 799-8800 Fax: (021) 799-8617
www.sanbi.org,za
Agricultural Research Council
P O Box 8783
Pretoria, 0001
Tel: (012) 427-9700 Fax: (012) 342-3948
Agri SA
P O Box 1508
Pretoria, 0001
Tel: (012) 322-6980 Fax: (012) 320-0557
www.arc.agric.za