Course Title: Garden Design – Become a Garden Designer
Garden Design – Become a Garden Designer
Garden Design Online Course
This online distance learning course has been written by Susan Stephenson, a highly experienced horticulturist, who specialises in offering advice to garden designers just starting out in their profession.
Susan is a passionate garden designer in her own right, has written three books and lectures at two further and higher education colleges. Therefore, you can be confident that this course will help you acquire the knowledge and skills needed to become a true professional in this expanding area of horticulture. Start and finish at any time. Study at your own pace!
There are thirteen lessons to complete and cover what you will need to know to become a successful amateur or professional garden designer. The course is ideal for:
- creatively minded gardeners wishing to extend their range of services
- for beginners looking to forge a career as a garden designer
- gardening enthusiasts looking to redesign their own garden
- for those wanting to be self-employed
Get qualified and reap the rewards that this course can provide.
There are 13 lessons:
1. Become a Garden Designer
- About your course
- Introduction
- How gardens started (a bit of history)
- The garden today
- Designers today
- Where to find information
- Factors to be considered
2. Designers: What They Do and Why They Are Needed
- Owners requirements
- What a designer does
- Benefits of using a designer
- What a designer doesn’t do
- Providing guidance
- Types of client
- You, the designer
- Taking instructions
3. Getting Started
- Equipment
- Dress
- Suggested Authors
- CAD
- Impressions
- Checklists
- Wants and needs
- The design processes
- Assessment
- Survey
- Rough sketch
- FLP
- Drawing to scale
- Triangulation
- Relative and absolute measurements
- Labelling and keys
4. Soils and Sites
- The site itself
- Climate
- Micro climates
- Light and shade
- Rainfall and humidity
- Shelter
- Soil types and pH Improving soils
- Manures
- Fertilisers
- Lime
- Cultivation
5. Getting Down to the Design
- Arranging plants
- Height
- Borders
- Beds
- Information sources
- Plants for a particular position: alkaline, acid, shade, sun
- Plants for particular uses: scent, ground cover
- Designs for shapes and sizes: themes, shapes, form
- Principles of garden design: direction, rhythm, harmony
6. Schematic Planning
- Colour Colour wheel
- Getting it right
- Colour patch bedding
- Foliage for colour
- Height Features which need special consideration
- Fruit
- Containers
- Tubs
- Rockeries and alpine
7. Interest
- Winter in the garden
- Wildlife
- Lighting
- Furniture
- Safety
- Hazards and risks
8. Water
- Benefits
- Uses
- Siting a pond
- Water features
- Planting a pond
- Construction
- Plans
- Equipment
- Filters
- Maintenance
- Lighting
- Safety
9 Children and Pets
- Play areas
- Children’s gardens
- Marketing ideas
- Equipment and toys
- Plants
- Water and children
- Safer features
- Pets
- Clients
- Other people’s safety
10 . Elderly and Disabled
- Considerations
- Access
- Paths
- Safety
- Features
- Tools
- Other issues
- Safety in general
- Hazards and risk
11. Upkeep
- General
- Plant maintenance
- Feature maintenance
- Year planner: e.g. lawn
- Schedule of work
- Cost issues
- Variable costs
- Practical issues
12. Structures and More Designing With Plants
- Walls
- Fences and trellis
- Paths
- Greenhouses
- Sheds
- Stores
- Summer houses
- Other features
- Furniture
- Plants for linking areas
- Direction
- Height
- Trees
- Shrubs
- Groups of plants
- Plant selection criteria
13. Marketing Your Garden Business
- Expert advice on how to market your garden design venture
Please Note: Each lesson includes background reading on the essential “must knows” about the subject, a set task or tasks to consolidate and enhance your learning, plus a written assignment, which is marked and graded and then returned with helpful comments and suggestions.
When all lessons have been completed, there will be a final assessment taken at a time and place of your choosing, or a final project ( the topic of which will be agreed upon between your tutor and you).
Assessment: is based on a combination of completing all assignments and sitting for a final short one and a half hour exam, in your own location.
If you don’t cope well with exams then you may elect to undertake a project instead. This is a popular option.
In addition, most modules have a Set Task at the end of each lesson placed before the assignment. This is an opportunity to undertake practical work to help you acquire knowledge and skills and practical experience. This ADL feature is an added bonus not found at most online schools. Set Tasks are not required for assessment.
Some courses also have optional Self-Tests which are available on our online learning platform. These are not available by correspondence or by USB, and do not form part of your overall grade.
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As soon as payment has been confirmed you will be able to access your course materials online within 24 hours. Any further correspondence will arrive at your address between 3-4 days.
For any Questions or to Enrol please call 01227 789 649
Tags: design, garden design, horticulture