What Do Nursery Workers Do (including Their Typical Day At Work)

Job Description

Nursery Workers work in nursery facilities or at customer location planting, cultivating, harvesting, and transplanting trees, shrubs, or plants. They also plant, spray, weed, fertilize, and water plants, shrubs, and trees, using hand tools and gardening tools.

Other tasks include:

• Sell and deliver plants and flowers to customers.
• Sow grass seed, or plant plugs of grass.
• Harvest plants, and transplant or pot and label them.
• Regulate greenhouse conditions, and indoor and outdoor irrigation systems.
• Dip cut flowers into disinfectant, count them into bunches, and place them in boxes to prepare them for storage and shipping.
• Cut, roll, and stack sod.

We asked Nursery Workers how satisfied they are with their job. Here is what they said.

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62% of them said they were satisfied with their job and 57% said they find that their job makes the world a better place or helps to make someone else’s life better.

Typical Day At Work

On a daily basis, Nursery Workers sow grass seed, or plant plugs of grass. They record information about plants and plant growth.

A typical day for a Nursery Worker will also include:

• Dig, cut, and transplant seedlings, cuttings, trees, and shrubs.
• Plant, spray, weed, fertilize, and water plants, shrubs, and trees, using hand tools and gardening tools.
• Maintain and repair irrigation and climate control systems.
• Fold and staple corrugated forms to make boxes used for packing horticultural products.
• Tie and bunch flowers, plants, shrubs, and trees, wrap their roots, and pack them into boxes to fill orders.

We asked some Nursery Workers a few questions to find out what else does their work day look like. Here is what we found.

	Do you have telephone conversations everyday in this job?	29% said yes
	How important is it to work in a team in this job?	8% said very important
	Do you have group discussions everyday in this job?	74% said yes
	Do you talk or work with customers everyday in this job?	2% said yes
	Do you have to deal with angry customers everyday in this job?	20% said yes
	Do you have to make decisions everyday in this job?	23% said yes

Other responsibilities

Besides their typical day, Nursery Workers also cut, roll, and stack sod. They may also maintain inventory, ordering materials as required.

On a weekly to monthly basis, Nursery Workers Dig, rake, and screen soil, filling cold frames and hot beds in preparation for planting. They might also Harvest plants, and transplant or pot and label them.

In addition, they Fill growing tanks with water.

Although specific duties may vary, many of them Move containerized shrubs, plants, and trees, using wheelbarrows or tractors.

To some Nursery Workers, it is also their responsibility to Clean work areas, and maintain grounds and landscaping.

Working life

Standard 40 hour work week

Seasonal (only during certain times of the year)

In a typical work week as a Nursery Worker, you can expect to work 40 hour work week.

Is this right for me

People who are suitable for this job tends to like work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They like working with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery..

They also like following set procedures and routines. They like working with data and details more than with ideas.

You can read more about these career personality types here.

Explore other careers

http://www.bls.gov/OOH/farming-fishing-and-forestry/agricultural-workers.htm

http://afop.org/

http://www.csrees.usda.gov/

http://www.fsa.usda.gov/FSA/