For many of you commercial growers and farmers, the career you chose came naturally. Like your parents and grandparents, you grew up immersed in horticulture or agriculture. Sound like you? Then your early years were likely packed with lessons on the challenges that go with that choice. But you also learned firsthand about the rewards of a life spent nurturing plants and land.

Many kids today never encounter the possibilities and potential of the life and career you enjoy. Fortunately, some horticulture- and agriculture-related programs are making efforts to change that. Today we’re offering up some inspiration from three such programs planting seeds of change with youth.

Seed Your Future, a horticulture-focused program, was founded in 2013 by Longwood Gardens and the American Society for Horticultural Science. The program seeks to “grow the next generation of horticulturists” by inspiring a love of plants and promoting plant-related careers. The program continues to thrive as more entities join the cause, and more campaigns appear.

One Seed Your Future campaign, known as BLOOM!, targets middle schoolers. It offers tools for adults working with youth and for hort industry members, too. Resources include lesson plans, activities, and online learning modules, plus ways to help hort industry members tell their stories and spark interest in “green-collar” careers—like the video tour by the Baltimore Orioles’ head groundskeeper. Plans for 2021 encompass youth at colleges and universities, too.

An Oregon program called Adopt a Farmer marks its tenth anniversary this year. Run by Oregon Aglink, a non-profit volunteer membership organization, the program works to bridge the gap between urban youth and the state’s agricultural roots. The program’s participating “farmers” reflect Oregon’s rich ag heritage, from greenhouse and nursery production to specialty agriculture to traditional farming and ranching.

Oregon Aglink’s Director of Membership and Programs, Allison Cloo, explains that all the “farmers” have a common theme: “They use knowledge and hard work to grow a product that will go from the soil to the consumer with the help of lots of other teams and technology along the way.”

Middle school classrooms at the heart of the Oregon program “adopt” a volunteer farmer/grower for the academic school year. Farmers and teachers then collaborate on science-centered curriculum to introduce kids to the science that farmers and growers like you use every day. In one case, a classroom developed a greenhouse production schedule based on the greenhouse grower-retailer they adopted.

Pre-coronavirus, a typical adoption meant a field trip to the farm and two to three classroom visits by the adoptee. For the time being, virtual farm tours and internet kids-and-farmer chats have taken their place. Frequent topics such as soil, irrigation, and genetics underscore the connection between science and the work folks like you do.

“Automated potting, measuring, watering, and so forth are a big hit, especially for the technical-minded kids,” Cloo shares. “When they see the scope and scale of the nursery operations, they get a real appreciation for all of the pieces of machinery and technology that make it possible.”

The Center for Growing Talent, run by the Produce Marketing Association, provides another example of planting seeds for the industry’s future. The Center’s Career Pathways Program introduces college students to career paths in fresh produce and floriculture. Students in the program learn about industry sectors from production to supply chain and the numerous career possibilities along the way.

As with the Adopt a Farmer program, Career Pathways depends on specialty ag and hort veterans, like some of you, to serve as Career Ambassadors to mentor students as they learn and provide guidance, motivation, and moral support. Live virtual sessions focus on learning about different industry segments to career networking and job advice.

While these three programs are just a taste of what’s available, they represent how simple it can be to pay it forward and invest in youth. We know that many of you are familiar faces to kids from farm tours and school career days. Whether you’re instilling a love for plants and gardening, or inspiring a horticultural or agriculture career, your efforts make a difference.

Here at ICL, we’re excited about the industry’s future and the next generations of farmers and growers like you. If you or someone you know is working with youth, we’d love to hear about it. Young people deserve to learn about the pleasures and possibilities of the life and career you chose. Every kid counts, and every seed carries hope.