Celebrity gardener Alan Titchmarsh has urged school leavers to consider grabbing a selection of garden tools and become horticulturalists as opposed to going to university.
The TV star has always been a proponent of the pastime and has claimed that gardening should be taught to all secondary school pupils as it is a "useful life skill".
Speaking to Amateur Gardening magazine, Mr Titchmarsh said that sending everyone to university is not a sensible move and will leave many skilled roles – such as gardening – extremely difficult to fill.
"We need practical skills to keep the country going and the fact that they've been undervalued, underrated and under catered for is a great mistake in terms of our civilisation. We need to value these skills again," he said.
He told the news provider: "Increased tuition fees are putting people off going to university.
"What I'm hoping is that maybe horticulture is one of the things that can benefit from that."
He said that the government should be doing all it can to promote gardening as a respectable, serious career choice.
His concern is that a recent survey showed that the perception of gardening is that it is for drop-outs.
Recently, a whole host of celebrities including Rikcy Gervais, Judy Dench and Pixie Lott supported a campaign aimed at boosting the profile of gardening and gardening skills.
Their support was part of the Royal Horticultural Society's Pot Art programme, which aims to get children reaching for the garden tools.
Mr Gervais said that not only was gardening extremely creative, but it was a brilliant way for young people to engage with the beauty of nature.
As part of the RHS's drive, he decorated a plant pot which was then auctioned online to raise cash for the organisation.
Mr Titchmarsh was another plan pot designer involved in the scheme and his creation raised more than £200.
