Subjects covered include: Garden planning and design; the garden lawn; the herbaceous border; flower garden; soil management; vegetable garden; herb gardening; the small fruit garden; maintaining and caring for a garden pond; pest and weed management; greenhouse gardening; propagation. Students have up to three years to complete this course, allowing them to work through the modules at their own pace. On average, however, it takes students around 8 - 10 months to complete the course, based on 2 - 3 hours study time per week.

why choose us?

Our tutorial support is second-to-none! You'll be assigned a personal tutor as soon as you enrol who will work with you all the way through. You can contact your tutor directly at any time if you have any questions or problems, or if you would just like a chat about how the course is going. Tutorial support is by e-mail and/or telephone.

detailed course outline

Course Book: The Gardener's Year, Alan Titchmarsh.

Module 1: Introduction. Garden planning and design. Pond design basics.

Module 2: The garden lawn. Soil preparation. Planting. Lawn care and maintenance.

Module 3: The herbaceous border. Year round maintenance plan.

Module 4: Flower garden. Selecting species for your garden. Pruning and Propagation. Drying flowers.

Module 5: Soil basics. Developing and maintaining a good quality soil. Digging Methods. Organic matter. Drainage.

Module 6: Vegetables all the year round - selecting varieties, caring for crops, harvesting, crop rotation. The herb garden.

Module 7: The small fruit garden. Management, storage and preservation. Jams/ home-made wine.

Module 8: Maintaining and caring for a garden pond. Plant residents. Selecting fish. Encouraging wildlife.

Module 9: Pest and weed management. Chemical methods. Biological controls.