Horticulture Career Guide: Roles, Salary 2025 & Future Scope

Horticulture career options are numerous as they involve the whole environment in which we grow. For instance, plants are one of the most important organisms in our world. We eat them, grow them, and use them for ornamentation and even medicine.

This leads to bright and fulfilling career opportunities for Horticulture students in plant breeding, genetic engineering, landscape design, farming, floral design, research, nursery production, education, food science, landscape construction and management, pest control, sales & marketing — the list goes on. Horticulture is the art, technology, business, education, and Science of plants. 

Students can opt for Horticulture courses at various levels such as UG, PG, doctorate, diploma, and certification. After this, they can seek employment through job profiles like Plantation Manager, Horticulture Specialist, Floriculturist, Horticulturist, etc.

The average salary of a Horticulturist is INR 5.3 LPA in India. Meanwhile, the salaries may vary depending on many factors such as company, geographical location, skill set, etc. Some top recruiting fields for Horticulture students include Defense, Healthcare, R&D, Agriculture, Manufacturing, etc.

Some top Horticulture recruiters in India include Defense, Healthcare Industries, WHO, Space and Research Agencies, Agriculture fields, Organic Industries, etc. There are various Horticulture colleges in India offering great placement opportunities to students such as Annamalai University, IARI, BBAU Lucknow, Integral University, Calcutta University, etc. 

Interested candidates can continue reading the article to get more details on the Horticulture career scope. 

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Top Career Profiles in Horticulture

With the constant development and modernization in the Horticulture and Agricultural fields, a plethora of employment options are emerging for aspirants. Here are some top Horticulture job profiles in India, candidates can look after:

Job Profiles	Average Salary
Horticulturist	INR 5.3 LPA
Agronomist	INR 5.1 LPA
Pomologist	INR 21 LPA
Floriculturist	INR 4.5 LPA
Nursery Manager	INR 4.2 LPA
Plant Breeder	INR 5 LPA
Landscaping Designer	INR 4.1 LPA
Plant Pathologist	INR 5.6 LPA
Agriculture Extension Officer	INR 4.4 LPA

Note: The salary data has been sourced from Ambitionbox.com.

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Specialization-Wise Horticulture Salary in India

Specialisations	Entry-Level Salary	Mid-Level Salary	Senior-Level Salary
Horticulture	INR 3.1 LPA	INR 5.1 LPA	INR 8 LPA and above
Floriculture	INR 2.5 - 4.5 LPA	INR 5 - 8 LPA	INR 10 LPA and above
Pomology	INR 4.2 LPA	INR 7.20 LPA	INR 9.6 LPA and above
Olericulture	INR 2.5 - 4.5 LPA	INR 5 - 8 LPA	INR 9 LPA and above

Note: The information is taken from external sites and may vary.

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Emerging Trends in Horticulture

With the advancement in technology, Science, and Research, there have been some trends that are emerging in Horticulture and being adopted by people. In this section, candidates can find some new trends and developments in the field that they should know about:

• Urban Gardening and Green Spaces
• Indoor Plantation and Vertical Farming
• Sustainable and Organic Methods
• Native Plants and Biodiversity
• Climate Resilient Gardening
• Plant-Based Medicine and Herbalism

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Horticulture Top Recruiting Sectors

Our country is the 2nd largest producer of fruits and vegetables making the Horticulture sector devote about 33% to the agriculture GVA, which is a significant contribution to the Indian Economy. These developments open doors to more employment opportunities for Horticulture students. Here are some top recruiting sectors for Horticulture in India.

Top Recruiting Sectors	Details
Indian Forest Services (IFS)	Similar to IAS and IPS, IFS is an esteemed all-India union service. The Chief Conservator of Forests, Assistant Inspector, and Deputy Inspector are some of the primary job roles offered by the GOI. To get the IFS posts, candidates must go through the UPSC examination process.
Food Technology Companies	Food technology companies hire Horticulture students for the roles of Quality Food Technologist, Process Technologist, Food Safety Technologist, Organic Chemist, etc.
Staff Selection Commission (SSC)	SSC conducts a state-level forest exam and selected candidates are offered multiple state government positions such as Agriculture Officer, Scientific Assistant, Laboratory Assistant, Technical Assistant, Foreman, etc.
Research Centers	Horticulture students can opt for research centers for jobs, be it private or government. Job profiles like Research Scientist, Project Associate, etc., are good options.
National Horticulture Board	NHB works to improve the integrated development of the Horticulture industry and to help in coordinating, and sustaining the production and processing of fruits and vegetables. Horticulture Officer, Deputy Director, etc., are some job profiles offered in NHB.
Fertilizer Manufacturing Firms	Assistant Plantation Manager, Seed Officer, Agricultural Research Scientist, etc., are the job profiles available in the Fertilizer Manufacturing Firms.
Healthcare Industry	Horticulture students can even find various research job opportunities in the Healthcare industry for clinical and medicinal trials.

Note: The information is sourced from external sites and may vary.

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Top Horticulture Recruiters

Horticulture Top Government Recruiters
Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)	Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI)
State Agriculture Departments	Indian Forest Services (IFS)
National Institute of Horticultural Research (NIHR)	National Horticulture Board (NHB)
Hindustan Insecticides Limited	KVK Sehore

Information Source: Multiple external sites (may vary)

Along with government organizations, many top-notch private companies hire Horticulture students for various job roles. Here are some top private recruiters for Horticulture students in the table below.

Horticulture Top Private Recruiters
Suminter India Organics Private Limited	Organic India Private Limited
Nature Bio-Foods Limited	AAP Pharma Technologies, India Pvt Ltd
Godrej Agrovet	DeHaat
Nuziveedu Seeds	Nurture.farm

Information Source: Multiple external sites (may vary)

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Horticulture Jobs in the Government Sector

Here are some common Horticulture jobs in the government sector:

Government Job Profiles	Average Salary
Horticulture Development Officer	INR 8.3 LPA
Research Scientist	INR 5.1 LPA
Agricultural Extension Officer	INR 3 LPA
Horticultural Inspector	INR 4 LPA
Horticultural Technician	INR 1.7 LPA
Government Horticultural Consultant	INR 5.5 LPA

Information Source: Multiple external sites (may vary)

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Horticulture Jobs in the Private Sector

Horticulture jobs in the private sector in India offer diverse opportunities in fields such as agriculture, landscaping, agribusiness, and technology. Here are some common Horticulture jobs one can find in the private sector:

Private Job Profiles	Average Salary
Agronomist	INR 4.6 LPA
Nursery Manager	INR 3.8 LPA
Landscaping Designer	INR 6.1 LPA
Floriculturists	INR 1.5 LPA
Fruit and Vegetable Production Manager	INR 10.9 LPA

Information Source: Multiple external sites (may vary)

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Best Horticulture Colleges for Placements (in India)

There are around 286 Horticulture colleges in India, of which, 111 are private and 84 are government institutions. Among these, many colleges offer great placement opportunities to students. Here are some options candidates can consider while opting for a Horticulture college:

Top Horticulture Colleges	Average Package Offered
Annamalai University Placements	INR 13.55 LPA
Indian Agricultural Research Institute - IARI Placements	INR 9.96 LPA
BBAU Lucknow Placements	INR 7.21 - 9.85 LPA
Integral University Placements	INR 3 - 9.3 LPA
University of Calcutta Placements	INR 9.2 LPA
Banaras Hindu University Placements	INR 9 LPA
Bihar Agriculture University Placements	INR 9 LPA
Gujarat University Placements	INR 8.75 LPA
Aligarh Muslim University Placements	INR 8.65 LPA
Birsa Agricultural University Placements	INR 8.09 LPA

Source: Official/counselling body of the institute/exam.

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Top Indian Cities to Get Lucrative Jobs After a Horticulture Degree

Refer to the table below for more information on Top Indian Cities to Get Lucrative Jobs After a Horticulture Degree:

Major Cities	Job Scope	Average Salary
Hyderabad	Farm Manager Horticulturist Internship Horticulturist Agriculture Engineer	INR 3 LPA
Bangalore	Horticulturist Landscape Engineer  Junior Agronomist	INR 8.5 LPA
Pune	Horticulturist/Landscape Manager Agri or Horticulture Sales Executive  Landscape Designer	INR 3.6 LPA
Mumbai	Horticulturist Horticulture Executive Horticulture Supervisor	INR 6.8 LPA
Vadodara	Horticulturist Horticulture Executive Agriculture Engineer	INR 5.3 LPA
Kolkata	Senior Sales Manager - Horticulture Products Horticulture Product Manager Horticulture Executive	INR 3.8 LPA
Delhi/Delhi NCR	Horticulture Manager Project Engineer - Horticulture Horticulture Executive Section Officer (Horticulture) Horticulture Supervisor	INR 5.3 LPA

Note: The information is sourced from external sites and may vary.

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Following are the most popular Horticulture Courses Colleges in India. Learn more about these Horticulture Courses colleges (Courses, Reviews, Answers & more) by downloading the Brochure.

Following are the top exams for Horticulture Courses. Students interested in pursuing a career on Horticulture Courses, generally take these important exams.You can also download the exam guide to get more insights.

Following are the most popular Horticulture Courses courses, based on alumni reviews. Explore these reviews to choose the best course in Horticulture Courses.

Following are the most popular Horticulture Courses UG Courses . You can explore the top Colleges offering these UG Courses by clicking the links below.

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