Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers
Landscape or maintain grounds of property using hand or power tools or equipment. Workers typically perform a variety of tasks, which may include any combination of the following: sod laying, mowing, trimming, planting, watering, fertilizing, digging, raking, sprinkler installation, and installation of mortarless segmental concrete masonry wall units.
- Median pay
- $39,150
- Doing it now
- 1,188,600
- By 2035
- Up 4.7%
- Usually needs
- No formal educational credential
a year
across the country
149,500 openings a year
to get in
What the work involves
- Mow or edge lawns, using power mowers or edgers.
- Care for established lawns by mulching, aerating, weeding, grubbing, removing thatch, or trimming or edging around flower beds, walks, or walls.
- Use hand tools, such as shovels, rakes, pruning saws, saws, hedge or brush trimmers, or axes.
- Prune or trim trees, shrubs, or hedges, using shears, pruners, or chain saws.
- Gather and remove litter.
- Mix and spray or spread fertilizers, herbicides, or insecticides onto grass, shrubs, or trees, using hand or automatic sprayers or spreaders.
- Water lawns, trees, or plants, using portable sprinkler systems, hoses, or watering cans.
What to study
The fields of study the Department of Education links to this occupation, most widely taught first.
- Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Facilities ManagementSee 121 colleges that teach it
- Applied Horticulture and Horticultural Business ServicesSee 42 colleges that teach it
Who it suits
O*NET scores every occupation on six interest dimensions. This one leans hardest on these three.
Hands-on and practical
Organised and precise
Creative and expressive
Careers like this one
Where this comes from: the description and the task list are O*NET, which the Department of Labor maintains. Pay, workforce size, outlook and the education normally needed are the Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections programme, 2025 wages and 2025 to 2035 projections. Half of them earn more than $39,150 a year, which means half earn less, and what you would earn depends on where you work and how long you have been doing it. The fields of study come from the National Center for Education Statistics crosswalk.