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Pesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Mix or apply pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or insecticides through sprays, dusts, vapors, soil incorporation, or chemical application on trees, shrubs, lawns, or crops. Usually requires specific training and state or federal certification.

Related: Agricultural Equipment Operators Cleaners of Vehicles & Equipment Landscaping & Groundskeeping Workers Pest Control Workers Water & Wastewater Treatment Plant & System Operators

Industries: Administration & Support Services Farming, Forestry, Fishing, & Hunting Wholesale/Commercial Sales

Summary
Details

Clean or service machinery to ensure operating efficiency, using water, gasoline, lubricants, or hand tools.
Provide driving instructions to truck drivers to ensure complete coverage of designated areas, using hand and horn signals.
Plant grass with seed spreaders, and operate straw blowers to cover seeded areas with mixtures of asphalt and straw.
Connect hoses and nozzles selected according to terrain, distribution pattern requirements, types of infestations, and velocities.
Lift, push, and swing nozzles, hoses, and tubes to direct spray over designated areas.
Start motors and engage machinery, such as sprayer agitators or pumps or portable spray equipment.
Fill sprayer tanks with water and chemicals, according to formulas.
Mix pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides for application to trees, shrubs, lawns, or botanical crops.
Plant grass with seed spreaders, and operate straw blowers to cover seeded areas with mixtures of asphalt and straw.
Cover areas to specified depths with pesticides, applying knowledge of weather conditions, droplet sizes, elevation-to-distance ratios, and obstructions.
Identify lawn or plant diseases to determine the appropriate course of treatment.
Clean or service machinery to ensure operating efficiency, using water, gasoline, lubricants, or hand tools.

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

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

History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
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.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
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.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
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.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
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.
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.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
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.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
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.
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.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

1 to 12 months on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

48570/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

23.35/hr

Currently Employed

1,200

Yearly Projected Openings

170

Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They do well at jobs that need:

Dependability
Attention to Detail
Independence
Cooperation
Integrity
Self Control

Chemical resistant gloves
Facial shields
Flow sensors
Fog or mist generators
Goggles
Hand sprayers
Hazardous material protective apparel
Hazardous material protective footwear
Laboratory graduated cylinders
Notebook computers
Personal computers
Respirators
Safety glasses
Seeder attachment
Spray truck
Sprayers
Stop watch
Tablet computers
Tape measures

Analytical or scientific software
Data base user interface and query software
Electronic mail software
Geographic information system
Inventory management software
Office suite software
Spreadsheet software
Web page creation and editing software

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Pesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation

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