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QUALIFICATION: KLC Open Learning Certificate in Planting Design and RHS General Certificate in Horticulture.

ASSIGNMENT: 3 test papers and project work for submission to KLC.

EXAMINATION: Optional RHS General Certificate in Horticulture examination (included in the course price).

DURATION: Average time taken to complete the course is 8-12 months, allowing 10 hours a week although there is no time limit on the course.

Knowing how to use plants can be extremely daunting for even the most experienced gardener. This course provides an in-depth study of every aspect of planting design that will allow students successfully completing the course the option to sit the RHS General Certificate in Horticulture examination.

The course is presented in five colourfully illustrated manuals. The manuals are accompanied by a ring binder containing the test papers and project work, along with the glossary, reading list and useful tables and this will be the basis of your course notes. During the course you will build up a substantial plant portfolio, allowing you to recognise and name a vast array of shrubs, trees and plants. By submitting three pieces of project work, you will learn how to maintain and care for plants and understand the requirements of different environments and conditions. The course will also show you how to survey a garden and draw up a planting plan that will allow you to communicate and develop your creative ideas on paper. The course work also includes test examples of the RHS General Certificate, so that students will be fully prepared for the examination.

At the end of the course, students will have developed a specialist skill that can help to completely transform an outside space. It is also a subject that demands passion and will no doubt form the basis of a life-long pleasure.

THE SYLLABUS

 MANUAL 1

• Plants through history – including their significance, symbolism and practical uses.
• Plant classification and nomenclature – how and why plants are named, including family, genus, species, cultivars and varieties.
• Plant categories – from the largest (trees and shrubs etc) through to the smallest (perennials and bulbs etc).
• How to research – researching botany and soil science (especially the plant nomenclature).

       MANUAL 2

• Basic botany and plant science – what is a plant and how does it function and grow? Includes pollination and fertilisation.
• Soil science – what is soil composed of and how to improve and manage it.
• Plant propagation – including planting, sowing and all propagation techniques.
• Plant management – pruning, feeding, watering (including control and management of pests and diseases).

       MANUAL 3

• Plants in practice - applying the principles and examining specific examples of plant husbandry.

       MANUAL 4

• Surveying a garden – how to carry out a site survey and analysis (in order to produce a planting plan for a client).
• How to draw a planting plan – a step by step guide to drawing a planting plan with supportive drawings and illustrations.

       MANUAL 5

• Designing with plants – the principles of planting design. How to use form, texture and colour in a planting scheme.
• Creating successful planting combinations – looking at plant associations and what makes them succeed.
• Working with different planting environments and conditions – creating planting schemes that will suit different sites and locations. Working to a client’s brief for different themes and situations.

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