Level 2 Certificate in Practical Horticulture (Short courses and Adult Learning, College Course)
- Aberglasney Gardens
Royal Horticultural Society qualifications are aimed primarily at vocational candidates intent on acquiring the necessary skills and knowledge to pursue a career in horticulture. This course is also ideal for dedicated amateurs who want to have their horticultural knowledge and skills formally assessed.
It is run at both Aberglasney Gardens and the college’s rural-based Gelli Aur campus.
The course covers essential craft skills which include the planting, pruning, propagation and maintenance of plants along with the establishment and management of turf and maintenance of garden features.
Learners will also be able to identify a range of plants, pests, diseases, pathogens and disorders.
Course details
- Part time
What you will learn
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Programme Features
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Programme content
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Progression and employment
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Method of assessment
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Entry requirements
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Additional costs
The course is based at Gelli Aur campus and Aberglasney Gardens, which has excellent practical facilities and offers students the opportunity to work alongside experienced horticulturalists.
Students have access to the library at the college’s Gelli Aur campus, which has a large stock of horticultural learning materials.
Gelli Aur is set in the quiet and rural Tywi Valley and is home to the college’s agricultural provision.
We cover 8 topics:
- Plant Identification: provides the skills and knowledge to enable learners to identify a wide range of plants.
- Plant Establishment: provides learners with the skills involved in the establishment of plants in containers and the open ground.
- Plant Propagation: provides learners with the skills and underpinning knowledge to propagate plants professionally.
- Plant Health: provides the skills to be able to identify and prevent a range of threats to plant health.
- Plant Care: equips learners with the skills and knowledge to be able to implement garden maintenance plans.
- Plant Pruning: equips learners with the horticultural skills and knowledge to be able to prune a range of plants.
- Garden Features: provides learners with the skills and underpinning knowledge to be able care for and maintain a wide range of garden features.
- Grassed Areas: provides learners with the skills required to establish and maintain grassed areas in private and public garden settings.
Learners may progress to the RHS level 2 Certificate in the Principles of Plant Growth and Development.
Progression to RHS level 3 qualifications is also an option.
These options can be discussed during the course.
Assessment is by means of a range of practical activities timetabled and assessed within the approved centre.
Assessment will take the form of two direct practical competence assessments by RHS assessors and an online assessment.
Candidates will need to successfully pass all three assessments:
- The first practical competence assessment takes place between January - March.
- The second practical competence assessment takes place between mid-April until mid-July
- The online competence assessment is scheduled for late June
Learners who have successfully completed the level two practical certificate and the theory-based RHS level 2 Certificate in the Principles of Plant Growth and Development qualification will be awarded the RHS level 2 Certificate in the Principles and Practices of Horticulture.
Applicants should have some work experience in the industry or be experienced gardeners. There are no academic entry qualifications for this course.
All learners are required to pay for the course prior to enrolment.
You will need to provide your own stationery, PPE and bypass secateurs and may also incur costs if the department arranges educational visits.