Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse
In short: today's best AI models could do about 3% of this job's working time (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) if the work were set up for them, and about the same by the end of 2028 if progress keeps its long-run pace. The conversations, in-person and hands-on work, about 97% of the time, stays with people.
Manually plant, cultivate, and harvest vegetables, fruits, nuts, horticultural specialties, and field crops. Use hand tools, such as shovels, trowels, hoes, tampers, pruning hooks, shears, and knives. Duties may include tilling soil and applying fertilizers; transplanting, weeding, thinning, or pruning crops; applying pesticides; or cleaning, grading, sorting, packing, and loading harvested products. May construct trellises, repair fences and farm buildings, or participate in irrigation activities.
265,500 people do this job in the US. $35,660 a year.
Reviewed on September 30, 2026: what each task is made of, and what handing it over would ask.
A typical 40-hour week
- AI could take on0 h
- A person checks AI's work1 h
- Desk work AI can't do yet0 h
- Stays with people39 h
Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse, now: of a 40-hour week, AI could take on 0 hours, 1 hours become checking its work, 0 hours are desk work it can't do yet, and 39 hours stay with people.
The largest pieces: Record crop data (under an hour, a person checks); Identify pests and choose treatments (under an hour, a person checks).
Estimates for a typical week of this job, if progress keeps its long-run pace, counting work the best models finish four times in five. Every task is below.
of the working time. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
- 1%
- 2%
- 0%
- 23%
- 75%
of the work: Anthropic's measure of what people already bring to Claude at work (2025). It counts help with part of a task, so it can be higher than the share within reach.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
Change assumptionsHide assumptionsLong-run pace, four in five
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 2.4 work days long four times in five.
What handing it over would take, now
The 3% within reach splits by what a model would need. The dates, pace and reliability follow the controls above. Estimates.
of the working time. The material can be handed to a model and the result handed back.
of the working time. The model has to be connected to the system the work lives in.
is conversation short enough by length. This site leaves conversation with people, so it is not in the total.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 0%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 3%. Today's estimate: 3%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
Measured use over time
Of the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled and tied to a work task, 0.021% went to this job's tasks in May 2026, the 307th largest of the 447 jobs that showed up at all; 1 of its 27 tasks showed up. Within each of Anthropic's methods, never across a change: 0.044% to 0.068% (released February and March 2025); 0.37% to 0.46% (August 2025 to February 2026); 0.011% to 0.021% (April to May 2026).
Each release
| Conversations | Share | Rank | Tasks seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Released February 2025 | 0.044% | 295 of 708 | 2 of 27 |
| Released March 2025 | 0.068% | 222 of 703 | 2 of 27 |
| The week of Aug 4, 2025 (released September 2025) | 0.37% | 47 of 655 | 2 of 27 |
| The week of Nov 13, 2025 (released January 2026) | 0.36% | 47 of 672 | 2 of 27 |
| The week of Feb 5, 2026 (released March 2026) | 0.46% | 45 of 677 | 2 of 27 |
| April 2026 (released June 2026) | 0.011% | 352 of 434 | 1 of 27 |
| May 2026 (released June 2026) | 0.021% | 307 of 447 | 1 of 27 |
Measured, not estimated: Anthropic's samples of Claude.ai conversations, each tied by a model to an O*NET task, from the Anthropic Economic Index. It says where Claude's use goes, not how much of this job's working time it covers, so it is not on the same scale as the reach above. The releases differ in their sample, their classifier and the smallest share they report (the June 2026 file rounds each task to a hundredth of a percent, so a smaller task reads as none), which is why a change of method starts a new line. At least 96% of each older release's task-tied use matched this site's tasks, and all of the newest. Claude.ai only, so use through other tools and other companies' models is not in it. Every job ranked.
Robots and the physical work
Anthropic rates 94% of this job's working time as physical work. For 82% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 54% in a purpose-built cell, 22% in a structured facility, 6% in any setting. 1.16 of 3, the 65th highest of the 923 jobs.
- Not physical 6%
- No robot shown 12%
- In a purpose-built cell 54%
- In a structured facility 22%
- In any setting 6%
Anthropic's rating, not this site's estimate: Claude Opus 5, searching the web, rated each physical O*NET task by the kind of setting in which a robot it could cite (deployed, sold or demonstrated) does most of the task, weighted by its own estimate of each task's share of the time (What work can robots do?, September 30, 2026, data CC BY 4.0; every job ranked). A robot shown somewhere is not a robot in your building: cost, setup and safety decide that. The share within reach on this page still counts no body work. The robot behind each rated task is under the task below.
What changes for the people in this job
From the task-by-task review, by the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five. It says which parts of the work stay with people and which change, not whether anyone keeps a job: that depends on decisions no data set can see.
What stays with people
97% of the working time: the conversation, in-person and hands-on parts of the tasks.
- Direct seasonal crews, the in-person work, 18%
- Grade and sort the harvest, the hands-on work, 10%
- Repair farm equipment, the hands-on work, 10%
- Operate tractors and field machinery, the hands-on work, 9%
- Sell and deliver plants, the hands-on work, 5%
- Tend plants with garden tools, the hands-on work, 5%
What becomes checking the machine
2% of the working time: desk work a model could do by then, in tasks where a mistake costs something or a licensed person signs. A person checks it.
- Record crop data, costly if wrong, 1%
- Identify pests and choose treatments, severe if wrong, 0.7%
What to learn
- The hands-on craft. About 75% of the time is hands-on work, which no model here does; robots are rated separately on this page.
- The conversations. About 23% of the time is conversation and in-person work, which this site leaves with people: listening, explaining, persuading, calming.
- Judgment where errors are severe. Some tasks are severe if wrong. Knowing when not to trust an output matters more there than speed.
- Reviewing work you did not do yourself. The tasks under What becomes checking the machine, where a mistake costs something, stay a person's to check: spotting what a draft gets wrong is a skill of its own.
Your own version of this job: read it against your job description. The headline is free; the full personal report, every task with its timeline and what to learn, is $19 (a sample).
The tasks
Sorted by . 27 tasks from .
| Task | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Direct and monitor the work of casual and seasonal help during planting and harvesting.Leading the crew in the field.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 18% | 1.7 h50 min to 3.3 h | In person 100% | Stays with people |
| Participate in the inspection, grading, sorting, storage, and post-harvest treatment of crops.By hand on the line.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, TOMRA 5S Advanced / Spectrim / Inspectra2 apple grading systems (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 10% | 1.3 h25 min to 2.5 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Repair and maintain farm vehicles, implements, and mechanical equipment.Hands-on repair.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 10% | 1.7 h25 min to 3.3 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Operate tractors, tractor-drawn machinery, and self-propelled machinery to plow, harrow and fertilize soil, or to plant, cultivate, spray and harvest crops.Driving the tractor through plowing, planting, spraying and harvest.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: in any setting, John Deere Autonomous 9RX / 8R tillage autonomy kit (Gen 2 Perception System) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 9% | 2.1 h50 min to 5 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Sell and deliver plants and flowers to customers.Selling at the counter and driving the delivery.Done more than monthly by most who do it.Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 5% | 50 min25 min to 1.7 h | Hands-on 60%, in person 40% | Stays with people |
| Plant, spray, weed, fertilize, water, and prune plants, shrubs, and trees, using gardening tools.Planting, weeding, watering and pruning by hand.Robots: in a structured facility, Carbon Robotics LaserWeeder / LaserWeeder G2 (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 5% | 2.5 h38 min to 6.7 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Harvest fruits and vegetables by hand.By hand in the field.Done several times a day by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Tortuga AgTech harvesting robot (now Oishii) (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 5% | 1.7 h25 min to 4.2 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Load agricultural products into trucks, and drive trucks to market or storage facilities.Loading the truck and driving it.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: in a structured facility, FoxBot Mk3 autonomous forklift (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 1.7 h38 min to 3.3 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Repair farm buildings, fences, and other structures.Hands-on repair.Done more than yearly by most who do it.Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 3.3 h50 min to 1.7 work days | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Harvest plants, and transplant or pot and label them.By hand in the nursery.Done more than weekly by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Visser Pic-O-Mat PFS-8 / Pic-O-Mat transplanter series (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 50 min17 min to 1.7 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Clean work areas, and maintain grounds and landscaping.By hand.Done more than weekly by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Tennant T7AMR / robotic scrubber fleet (Brain Corp autonomy) (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 50 min17 min to 2.5 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Set up and operate irrigation equipment.Setting up lines and pumps by hand.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 3% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach. Made of: how the task's time splits among five kinds of doing. Only the documents and systems parts can count as within reach, so a task that is 30% documents can be at most 30% within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
- Agricultural Equipment Operators0% now, 0% by 2028
- Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals2% now, 2% by 2028
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products7% now, 7% by 2028
- Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers0% now, 0% by 2028
- Pesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation18% now, 18% by 2028
- Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders5% now, 5% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).
Questions about this job
- How much of the work of Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 3% of the working time is within reach of AI models now and 3% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five. Within reach means a model could finish work that long at that reliability. It is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings.
- Which tasks of Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse come within reach first?
- Weighted by the time each takes, the tasks with the most within reach now (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) are: Record crop data (100% of the task's time now); Identify pests and choose treatments (40% of the task's time now); and Record plant growth (100% of the task's time now).
- Which tasks of Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse stay with people?
- Tasks that are people work or body work are not counted as within reach at any date. The largest: Direct seasonal crews; Grade and sort the harvest; and Repair farm equipment. Together such tasks are about 95% of the working time, and the people and body parts of the other tasks stay with people too.
- What should Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse learn as AI takes on more of the work?
- By the job's own task-by-task review, the first things to learn are the hands-on craft; the conversations; and judgment where errors are severe. By the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five, about 97% of the working time stays with people, 2% becomes checking a model's work and 1% could be handed over with lighter checks. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job.
- Do people already use AI for the work of Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse?
- In the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled for May 2026 and tied to a work task, 0.021% went to this job's tasks, the 307th largest share of the 447 jobs that showed up; 1 of its 27 tasks appeared. Anthropic's labor market measure puts the share of the job's tasks seen in real Claude use at work at 2%. These are measures of use, not of how much of the work AI could finish, and they cover Claude only.
- Can robots do the physical work of Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse?
- Anthropic's robot exposure rating (September 2026) finds 94% of the working time is physical work, and that a robot has been shown doing most of the task, somewhere, for 82% of the working time, 6% in any setting. Its index is 1.16 of 3. One example: John Deere Autonomous 9RX / 8R tillage autonomy kit (Gen 2 Perception System) for "operate tractors and field machinery". A robot shown somewhere is not one in every workplace; this site's own estimates still count no physical work as within reach.
- How is this estimated?
- From the 27 tasks O*NET lists for the occupation, each with an estimated length checked against GDPval and a share of the working time, reviewed one task at a time on September 30, 2026 for what each is made of (documents, business systems, conversation, in person, hands-on), and METR's measurements of how long a task the best AI models can finish, carried forward to the date from the latest, Claude Mythos Preview (early) in April 2026. Data checked November 10, 2026.
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