# Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse

> Manually plant, cultivate, and harvest vegetables, fruits, nuts, horticultural specialties, and field crops. Use hand tools, such as shovels, trowels, hoes, tampers, pruning hooks, shears, and knives. Duties may include tilling soil and applying fertilizers; transplanting, weeding, thinning, or pruning crops; applying pesticides; or cleaning, grading, sorting, packing, and loading harvested products. May construct trellises, repair fences and farm buildings, or participate in irrigation activities.

- Edition: Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition
- Page: https://www.collegesref.com/careers/farmworkers-and-laborers-crop-nursery-and-greenhouse
- SOC code: 45-2092.00
- Career family: Farming, fishing and forestry
- Median annual pay: $35,660 (10th percentile $32,900, 90th percentile $45,690)
- Projected growth: Decline, -2.4%
- Openings a year: 72,500
- Typical entry education: No formal credential
- Bright outlook: no
- Data years: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

## Interest profile (code RCE)

| Interest area | Score (0–100) |
| --- | ---: |
| Realistic (R) | 100 |
| Investigative (I) | 22 |
| Artistic (A) | 5 |
| Social (S) | 14 |
| Enterprising (E) | 23 |
| Conventional (C) | 39 |

## What you'd do

- Performing General Physical Activities (importance 76/100)
- Handling and Moving Objects (importance 72/100)
- Getting Information (importance 70/100)
- Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events (importance 69/100)
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates (importance 67/100)
- Controlling Machines and Processes (importance 65/100)
- Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge (importance 64/100)
- Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment (importance 64/100)
- Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials (importance 62/100)
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems (importance 62/100)

## Skills

Operations Monitoring, Speaking, Active Listening, Critical Thinking, Monitoring, Operation and Control, Reading Comprehension, Repairing, Social Perceptiveness, Time Management

## Knowledge

Biology, Food Production, Mechanical, Administration and Management, Chemistry, Mathematics, English Language, Production and Processing, Customer and Personal Service, Transportation

## Also called

Agriculture Laborer, Agriculture Worker, Apple Picker, Apple Thinner, Apple Turner, Asparagus Cutter, Bale Sewer, Baller, Bean Picker, Beet Topper

## Related careers

- [Agricultural Equipment Operators](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/agricultural-equipment-operators): $41,730 median pay
- [Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/farmworkers-farm-ranch-and-aquacultural-animals): $36,670 median pay
- [Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/graders-and-sorters-agricultural-products): $35,730 median pay
- [Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/landscaping-and-groundskeeping-workers): $39,150 median pay
- [Pesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/pesticide-handlers-sprayers-and-applicators-vegetation): $46,340 median pay
- [Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/separating-filtering-clarifying-precipitating-and-still-machine-setters-operators-and): $51,610 median pay

## Sources

- [O*NET Database](https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html), version 31.0 (CC BY 4.0)
- [BLS Employment Projections](https://www.bls.gov/emp/tables.htm), version 2025-35, data year 2025 (Public domain (U.S. government work))
- [BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics](https://www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm), version 2025, data year 2025 (Public domain (U.S. government work))
- [NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk](https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cipcode/resources.aspx?y=56), version 2020, data year 2020 (Public domain (U.S. government work))

O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.