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Why Choose Horticulture at OSU?

We stress broad knowledge, critical thinking, active learning, field based problem solving, analysis of novel situations, and application and synthesis from many areas.

Experience Oregon horticulture up close
You’ll get first-hand experience with Oregon horticulture. Many courses include field trips to farms, orchards, vineyards, golf courses, landscape management firms, and contemporary and historic landscapes. And, we have our own great OSU facilities for increasing your knowledge and skills – Woodhall Vineyard, Lewis-Brown Research Farm, and state-of-the art greenhouses.

We emphasize active learning
Our courses tackle contemporary real-world decisions faced by professional horticulturists. They include hands-on labs, diagnostics, landscape construction, student-managed projects, and field-based problem solving. Research opportunities are available. You will become skilled at finding and synthesizing information in order to deal with the novel situations you will face during your horticultural career.

Our faculty members are world-class experts
Our faculty members help people grow healthy and productive crops, develop and maintain beautiful and functional landscapes, and manage world-class golf courses. They breed new varieties of crops, explore new production practices, and develop new pest and weed management strategies. They research the basic biology of horticultural crop plants, explore the ecology of horticultural systems, and work to develop a productive and sustainable horticulture.

We are proud of the diversity of our students
Our students come from all over Oregon, the United States and the world. Some have grown up in horticulture as part of family farms or horticultural businesses; others simply know they enjoy working with plants and want to build a career in horticulture. Some are recent high school graduates and some began their studies at a community college. Others are returning to school later in life to pursue a new career. They come together as a vibrant and supportive student community. Many develop friendships and gain new skills through the Horticulture Club, Landscape Club, Turf Club, and Vitis Club.

Explore your interests
You can choose from the following undergraduate options:

Environmental Landscape Option:

The landscape industry is a large ($72 billion annual output in the U.S.), diverse profession offering careers in landscape design, landscape construction, landscape management, landscape restoration, conservation, park management, botanical and public gardens, urban forestry, research, consulting, and interiorscaping. Landscape professionals design, build, and manage aesthetic, functional, and environmentally responsible spaces where we all live, work, and play. In recent years, the industry has expanded and rapidly become more sophisticated to meet the challenges of today’s urban environment. Consequently, there is great demand for creative, motivated individuals who love the outdoors and enjoy working with plants, soil, water, nature, and people.

Horticultural Communication

Effective communication skills are crucial to the success of many sectors of modern, professional horticulture: Horticultural companies and commodity groups market their products to the general public; horticultural professionals communicate the needs of their industries to government policy makers; educators and researchers share research results with those who could benefit from them; public information officers of public/private agricultural organizations alert donors and stakeholders to issues of mutual interest. The Horticultural Communication option was developed to meet these needs in the field.

Horticultural Research

The Horticultural Research option is designed for students interested in graduate school and a career in academic or industrial research. It provides an excellent foundation in the natural sciences and horticulture, and accommodates the specific interests of each student. Graduates of this program will be critical thinkers, and experienced technical communicators. They will be skilled in finding and using information, as well as synthesizing information from many sources to analyze novel situations and solve problems.

Ecological and Sustainable Horticultural Production

Students in the Ecological and Sustainable Horticultural Production option gain the knowledge and skills necessary to plan and manage horticultural production systems for nursery, greenhouse, fruit, and vegetable crops. They come to see horticulture as an activity that is connected to our larger society and which includes issues of ecology, economics, and politics.

Turf Management

The turf industry offers professional opportunities in golf course maintenance, park and athletic field maintenance, and landscape maintenance. This continually growing industry offers more career track jobs than any other area in horticulture. Golf course maintenance, leading to positions such as golf course superintendent, historically has drawn the most students and is the largest component of the curriculum. Graduates in this option compete well for top jobs throughout the West, with most finding work in Oregon, Washington, and California. Athletic field maintenance is emerging as a strong career track opportunity as well.

Viticulture and Enology

The Oregon wine industry has experienced steady growth since wine grape production began in 1961. Oregon now ranks second nationally in number of wineries, and Oregon wine production output is the fourth highest in the United States. Vineyards and wineries have also become an integral part of the Oregon tourism industry.