Kate, I wish you the best of luck. I wish I had the kind of resources and the advice you have been given when I was just starting out. Botany is one of those fields in which a graduate degree will usually be helpful when it comes time to enter the job market. Does your local university have a graduate program? Look closely at the "Careers in Botany" link and see if you can follow the career that most interests you locally or if you'll have to follow the job instead. If that's the case, are you willing to relocate? How many people do you know who hate their job and have ulcers or emotional problems because they've followed the dollar instead of their heart? Do what you love and don't let anyone talk you out of it because it doesn't sound practical to them. If you are really good at what you do and love it, you'll find a job that you love. Let me tell you a little about what happened to me. I'd always loved science, nature, and plants especially, so when I returned to college Botany was the perfect match. Of all the classes I studied, I loved taxonomy and ecology the best, however, when it came time to choose a graduate program, I listened to the advice of the department chairman who told me that as a single mother I'd be better able to find employment after graduation if I learned lab skills. So, instead of doing the field botany I loved, I specialized in cell biology and physiology instead. I didn't hate it but would have been miserable had our department not required students to take courses in all areas and not just in their "field of interest". What is most ironic is that my daughter graduated from high school the same year I got my degree and was in college supported by her father at the time I was looking for employment. One of my fellow graduate students is now the director of the Center for Plant Conservation at the Missouri Botanic Gardens, and another is the director and senior botanist at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Others have university faculty positions, and one directs a science camp for kids. My undergrad advisor was right; I've had no problem finding employment, don't hate my job or have ulcers. Still, I regret that I didn't listen to my heart instead of my wallet.

First, I disagree with all the pessimism about careers in botany. I agree that botany is a somewhat generic term that can encompass a wide range of knowledge and skill sets. But that's the great thing about a botany degree - it can send you off a number of different paths where you can gain more experience to improve your qualifications. Botany majors can work in a wide variety of jobs ranging from positions in agriculture, horticulture, plant science research, biotechnology, conservation, environmental education and others. In agriculture, botanists are in pretty high demand in lab settings with large agribusinesses like Monsanto to work in the development of seeds and other plant products. In horticulture and agriculture, botany majors can also work in field settings in the propagation and management of plants. There are also a large number of entry-level lab technician jobs working for researchers in institutional settings - primarily academic settings. And if you're willing to pursue an advanced degree, you can work as a lead researcher. There are also a lot of botany jobs doing environmental education - from entry level naturalist jobs working with camps and school groups to more advanced jobs working in a formal school or institutional setting. In conservation, botanists are in super high demand with consulting firms doing plant survey and wetland delineations to help clients get permits for construction projects. Botanists are also employed by government agencies and non-profits working to protect important ecological areas. Really, botany is a great major for working in a wide variety of industries because it involves a highly specialized knowledge set that is in demand. I agree that the pay may not be as high as engineering, medicine, or other science-based professionals. But as you move up the ladder, you can definitely earn over $100K /year - especially in the private sector but also if you have an advanced degree and you work in an academic setting or you work for a government agency. To get more information, I would recommend looking at botany job boards to see firsthand the botany jobs that are being advertised by employers. For example see botany jobs here and see more examples here. Another valuable step is to follow up with botanists in different industries to set up informational interviews. They might even let you watch them for a couple of hours on the job. This will give a you a great sense of what botanists actually do in different industries and will give you a better idea of where you would be happiest working.

If you're heart is set on using the Rubbermaid container and the pump you have, all you really need is a lawn-type sprinkler or holes drilled in the outlet pipe from the pump -- just anything that will scatter the water around the inside top of the container. Start your seeds in sand or soil first, then transplant the "seedlings" into perlite inside net pots. You can drill the lid to the Rubbermaid container the right size using a hole saw and a drill motor, then just plop the net pots into the holes, add the seedlings and plant nutrient and let 'er rip! I use a similar setup in my "cloners". I merely direct the outlet spray from the pump to the underside of the lid and drill holes all along the edge of the plastic lid into which I drop my net pots. The net pots contain perlite and one seedling each. The water from the pump hits the lid and sprays in a circular pattern wetting each of the net pots. Use whatever size pot you think will accommodate your particular plant. Run the pump 24/7 if cloning or at least once every hour or so for regular growing. Just don't let the net pots actually dry out. It doesn't get much simpler than that.

Jekyll's comments are right on even for the US. I work for the US Fish & Wildlife out of an office located on an army post working with other departments in the environmental fields assessing noxious weeds, finding and recording threatened, endangered and sensitive plant species locations, t,E & S habitat (plants and animals), rangeland issues, biological control of weeds, and forestry issues. We work with many other agencies/orgs/schools such as the USDA, Forest service, Nature Conservancy, Heritage programs, Native Plant societies, USGS, Space Command and the neighboring Air Force base, Air Force Academy, and MIT on various research projects including forest pests, satillite imagery and watershed issues. Very rewarding work but not gonna get rich by any means. I look at it this way-I get PAID to be outside nearly every day to find, look at, collect plants and assess the environment. Sometimes I get to assess the land from a heliocoptor (the only way to fly)!! You daughter will undoubtedly be better paid than I am-I have a BA in Anthropology with lots of botany and environmental sciences. Also, people on the ground (field workers-such as myself) get paid much less than program managers (which I am not, but do not want to sit in an office all day either). Government pay scales vary widely between agencies but her Masters will help alot. The private sector may may be a better bet but again pay varies widely. The real money seems to be in Environmental Compliance issues whether that be T, E & S species, noxious weeds, or clean water (point source pollution and sedimentation coming off public lands and polluting watersheds). I would recommend that your daughter do as much work with GPS (global positioning systems, GIS (geographic information systems) equiptment/mapping software whenever she can. It's essential these days to be able to accurately record and map your work, and having a working knowledge of the hardware and software that produce these kind of maps will make her much more valuable to any organization.