Horticultural worker vs ground worker

The differences between horticultural workers and ground workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a horticultural worker and a ground worker. Additionally, a ground worker has an average salary of $29,875, which is higher than the $27,124 average annual salary of a horticultural worker.

The top three skills for a horticultural worker include mowing, GRASS and prune. The most important skills for a ground worker are mowing, GRASS, and hand tools.

Horticultural worker vs ground worker overview

	Horticultural Worker	Ground Worker
Yearly salary	$27,124	$29,875
Hourly rate	$13.04	$14.36
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	20,323	33,720
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 35%	High School Diploma, 38%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	2	2

Horticultural worker vs ground worker salary

Horticultural workers and ground workers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Horticultural Worker	Ground Worker
Average salary	$27,124	$29,875
Salary range	Between $21,000 And $34,000	Between $24,000 And $37,000
Highest paying City	Amherst, NY	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	Alaska
Best paying company	Floratech	Mount St. Mary's University
Best paying industry	Health Care	Government

Differences between horticultural worker and ground worker education

There are a few differences between a horticultural worker and a ground worker in terms of educational background:

	Horticultural Worker	Ground Worker
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 35%	High School Diploma, 38%
Most common major	Plant Sciences	Business
Most common college	-	-

Horticultural worker vs ground worker demographics

Here are the differences between horticultural workers' and ground workers' demographics:

	Horticultural Worker	Ground Worker
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 57.1% Female, 42.9%	Male, 85.7% Female, 14.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 20.0% Asian, 2.1% White, 62.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 21.8% Asian, 2.1% White, 61.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%
LGBT Percentage	3%	3%

Differences between horticultural worker and ground worker duties and responsibilities

Horticultural worker example responsibilities.

Used spade, trowels, rakes, sprayers and hedge trimmers for gardening.
Operate leaf blowers, hedge trimmers, weed whackers and mow lawns to maintain gardens and beautify parks.
Remove and mow weeds or grass.
Operate powered equipment such as mowers, chainsaws, electric clippers, edger's.
Maintain a sanitary environment by following company procedures such as raking grass and garbage removal.
Operate power lawnmowers, handsaws, pruners, etc.

Ground worker example responsibilities.

Manage hardscape installation team and project
Operate vehicles and power equipment such as mowers, snow blowers, electric clippers, sod cutters, or pruning saws.
Aid in the maintenance of equipment as needed (lawn mowers, tractors, weed-eaters, leaf blowers, etc . )
Mow rough, greens, fairways, hand water greens, spread seed on greens and fairways, rake sand traps.
Used both hand shovels and plow trucks to remove snow.
Operate backhoe and bobcat to assist plumbing and irrigation dept.

Horticultural worker vs ground worker skills

Common horticultural worker skills

Mowing, 23%
GRASS, 14%
Prune, 10%
Hand Saws, 7%
Plant Identification, 7%
Flower Beds, 7%

Common ground worker skills

Mowing, 12%
GRASS, 10%
Hand Tools, 9%
Grounds Maintenance, 8%
Blowers, 4%
Routine Maintenance, 4%

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Horticultural Worker vs Ground Worker

Updated January 8, 2025

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