HortWeek is delighted to present the Cultivate Your Future podcast, in partnership with the Colegrave Seabrook Foundation.
At a time when horticulture needs to encourage a new wave of young people to come into the industry, this podcast is designed to highlight the multiple and varied career opportunities available.
We hear from people who have found their way into their chosen career through different paths, what their job involves and what it means to them.
Every two weeks, for the next two months, we will be releasing two episodes covering a particular job area.
This week we focus on plant breeding and horticulture consultant Neville Stein interviews Burpee plant breeder Simon Crawford.
Hear about the job satisfaction Crawford has drawn from breeding pest and disease-resistant tomato varieties for home growers and the reasons plant breeders are needed. He outlines the variety of careers within plant breeding, the skills needed now and into the future, routes into the industry.
Stein also interviews Tim Kerley, plant breeder at Kerley & Co.
Stein and Kerley discuss what the world of plant breeding offers, what the opportunities are and the skillset required. In a world that is facing significant climate change challenges, the need for plants that can adapt to heat, drought and other abiotic stresses has never been more important, and the work of plant breeders is in high demand.
