horticulture

thumb|A horticulture student tending to plants in a Market garden|garden in [[Lawrenceville, Georgia, March 2015]] thumb|The Rock Garden, Leonardslee Gardens Horticulture (from ) is the science and art of growing fruits, vegetables, flowers, or ornamental plants. Horticulture is different from general agriculture, agronomy, and gardening in that it involves specialization and controlled cultivation and management of plants and their ecosystems. It can be distinguished by its subfields and or unique botanical expressions. There are various divisions of horticulture because plants are grown for a variety of purposes. These divisions include, but are not limited to: propagation, arboriculture, landscaping, floriculture and turf maintenance. For each of these, there are various professions, aspects, tools used and associated challenges -- each requiring highly specialized skills and knowledge on the part of the horticulturist.

Typically, horticulture is characterized as the ornamental, small-scale and non-industrial cultivation of plants; horticulture is distinct from gardening by its emphasis on scientific methods, plant breeding, and technical cultivation practices, while gardening, even at a professional level, tends to focus more on the aesthetic care and maintenance of plants in gardens or landscapes. However, some aspects of horticulture are industrialized or commercial such as greenhouse production or CEA.