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Soil and Plant Scientists

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Conduct research in breeding, physiology, production, yield, and management of crops and agricultural plants or trees, shrubs, and nursery stock, their growth in soils, and control of pests; or study the chemical, physical, biological, and mineralogical composition of soils as they relate to plant or crop growth. May classify and map soils and investigate effects of alternative practices on soil and crop productivity.

Related: Agricultural Engineers Conservation Scientists Industrial Ecologists Microbiologists Precision Agriculture Technicians

Industries: Professional, Science, & Technical Farming, Forestry, Fishing, & Hunting Education Government

Summary
Details

Investigate responses of soils to specific management practices to determine the use capabilities of soils and the effects of alternative practices on soil productivity.
Identify degraded or contaminated soils and develop plans to improve their chemical, biological, or physical characteristics.
Provide advice regarding the development of regulatory standards for land reclamation or soil conservation.
Communicate research or project results to other professionals or the public or teach related courses, seminars, or workshops.
Conduct experiments to investigate the underlying mechanisms of plant growth and response to the environment.
Develop ways of altering soils to suit different types of plants.
Conduct research into the use of plant species as green fuels or in the production of green fuels.
Research technical requirements or environmental impacts of urban green spaces, such as green roof installations.
Plan or supervise land conservation or reclamation programs for industrial development projects.
Plan or supervise waste management programs for composting or farming.
Provide information or recommendations to farmers or other landowners regarding ways in which they can best use land, promote plant growth, or avoid or correct problems such as erosion.
Consult with engineers or other technical personnel working on construction projects about the effects of soil problems and possible solutions to these problems.
Study insect distribution or habitat and recommend methods to prevent importation or spread of injurious species.
Develop methods of conserving or managing soil that can be applied by farmers or forestry companies.
Conduct experiments to investigate the underlying mechanisms of plant growth and response to the environment.
Study soil characteristics to classify soils on the basis of factors such as geographic location, landscape position, or soil properties.
Conduct experiments to develop new or improved varieties of field crops, focusing on characteristics such as yield, quality, disease resistance, nutritional value, or adaptation to specific soils or climates.
Plan or supervise land conservation or reclamation programs for industrial development projects.
Develop improved measurement techniques, soil conservation methods, soil sampling devices, or related technology.
Conduct research to determine best methods of planting, spraying, cultivating, harvesting, storing, processing, or transporting horticultural products.
Identify or classify species of insects or allied forms, such as mites or spiders.
Plan or supervise waste management programs for composting or farming.
Study insect distribution or habitat and recommend methods to prevent importation or spread of injurious species.
Conduct experiments investigating how soil forms, changes, or interacts with land-based ecosystems or living organisms.
Conduct experiments regarding causes of bee diseases or factors affecting yields of nectar or pollen.
Investigate soil problems or poor water quality to determine sources and effects.
Survey undisturbed or disturbed lands for classification, inventory, mapping, environmental impact assessments, environmental protection planning, conservation planning, or reclamation planning.
Develop new or improved methods or products for controlling or eliminating weeds, crop diseases, or insect pests.
Study ways to improve agricultural sustainability, such as the use of new methods of composting.
Perform chemical analyses of the microorganism content of soils to determine microbial reactions or chemical mineralogical relationships to plant growth.
Develop environmentally safe methods or products for controlling or eliminating weeds, crop diseases, or pests.

Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.

Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.

Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.

Education

Bachelor's degree

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

No on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

82360/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

39.6/hr

Currently Employed

1,110

Yearly Projected Openings

130

Investigative: People interested in this work like activities that include ideas, thinking, and figuring things out. They do well at jobs that need:

Innovation
Intellectual Curiosity
Attention to Detail
Dependability
Adaptability
Integrity

Atomic absorption AA spectrometers
Augers
Autosamplers
Benchtop centrifuges
Circulating baths
Colorimeters
Conductivity meters
Desktop computers
Digital cameras
Drying cabinets or ovens
Electron microscopes
Fluorescent microscopes
Gel documentation systems
Gel dryers
Global positioning system GPS receiver
Handheld thermometer
Hydrometers
Inductively coupled plasma ICP spectrometers
Infra red or ultra violet absorption analyzers
Infrared imagers
Ion chromatographs
Laboratory balances
Laboratory beakers
Laboratory box furnaces
Laboratory flasks
Laboratory graduated cylinders
Laboratory mills
Laboratory mixers
Laminar flow cabinets or stations
Light absorption meters
Mass spectrometers
Microplate readers
Moisture meters
Multipurpose or general test tubes
Notebook computers
Orbital shaking water baths
Organic carbon analyzers
Osmometers
Particle size measuring apparatus
Permeability or porosity estimation apparatus
Personal computers
Personal digital assistant PDAs or organizers
Photometer
Polarizing microscopes
Portable data input terminals
Precipitation or evaporation recorders
Psychrometers
Radarbased surveillance systems
Rapid amplification or complementary deoxyribonucleic acid ends RACE technology products
Reciprocating shaking water baths
Refrigerated and heated reach in environmental or growth chambers
Refrigerated benchtop centrifuges
Sample holders
Soil core sampling apparatus
Soil testing kits
Spectrofluorimeters or fluorimeters
Spectrometers
Spectrophotometers
Tensiometers
Test sieves
Thermocouples
Tissue culture incubators
pH meters