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Garden Design Course (Level 3 Award)


eDistance Learning

Summary

Price
£371.25 inc VAT
Finance options
Finance options available
Study method
Distance learning
Duration
120 hours · Self-paced
Qualification
Level 3 Award
Awarded by NCFE - Investing In Quality
Additional info
  • Exam(s) / assessment(s) is included in price
  • Tutor is available to students

Overview

A distance learning course is the ideal way to gain a Level 3 in Garden Design. Whether you're looking to go on to further education, improve your job prospects or expand your knowledge, distance learning Garden Design is a flexible and convenient course, which allows you to comprehensively prepare for a Garden Design exam or career through home study. What's more, because the distance learning Level 3 Garden Design course is a fully comprehensive course, no prior knowledge is required.

The Garden Designer Course is a positive step in taking control of how you can plan and create your garden. It could also be the first step towards a successful garden design business.

Garden designers need to be trained in the principles of design and in horticulture, and have an excellent knowledge and experience of using plants.

Our Garden Design distance learning course will teach you about the Design Layout, considering elements such as paths, walls, landscape features, water features, sitting areas and decking.

The course also covers information about the plants themselves, with consideration given to their horticultural requirements, their season-to-season appearance, lifespan, size, speed of growth, and combinations with other plants

COURSE KEY TOPICS 
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Unit 1 – Garden Design & You
Unit 2 – What Good Design Achieves
Unit 3 – Starting to Design
Unit 4 – The Importance of Soils & Sites
Unit 5 – Starting Real Design Work
Unit 6 – Planning
Unit 7 – Designing for Interest
Unit 8 – Water in the Garden
Unit 9 – Children & Pets
Unit 10 – Gardening for Users with Disabilities, the Elderly and Garden Safety
Unit 11 – Upkeep & Maintenance
Unit 12 – Structures in the Garden
Unit 13 – Marketing Your Garden Design Business
Unit 14 – Tricks of the Trade

HOME STUDY SUPPORT
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You will be provided with comprehensive materials designed to provide you with everything required to complete your course of study. You will have your own personal tutor helping you with your course work and with any questions you may have. Plus you can contact our Student Advisors by email or phone for all the practical advice you may need – so we really are with you 100%.

What's more, you'll have access to the online student portal, where you can interact with other students, browse our resource library and manage your account.

COURSE ASSESSMENT
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This course is marked through a process of continuous assessment guided by your tutor following NCFE guidelines. This means that your qualification will be awarded according to your performance on assessments rather than by taking an exam.

We send the full course out with the units listed above, you then read through the course in your own time and complete the assignments which you send to your tutor for marking. There is no word count for these assignments. However, one sentence answers will be rejected and you will have to re-submit it for marking.

Upon verification of the activities, exercises and assignments, a certificate of achievement will be awarded by the national awarding organisation NCFE, as confirmation that your written work has met all of the learning outcomes and assessment criteria for the programme.

COURSE DURATION
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We recommended you spend approximately 120 hours of your time studying for the Garden Design course. The pace of study is completely up to you. To give an example, if you dedicate 2 hours a week to the course it would take you a year to complete but if you could spare 4 hours a week you could complete it in six months.

Get started today, and you can earn your Level 3 NCFE Award in Garden Design in as little as six months, or take up to a year, if you prefer – the choice is yours.

Description

The NCFE Level 3 Award in course name course is divided into 14 comprehensive modules:

Unit One – Garden Design & You
Introduction to design; History and development; How gardens started; The beginnings; The garden today; Designers; Types of garden designers today; Where to find information; factors to consider; The gardens around you; And Unit 1 Summary.

Unit Two – What Good Design Achieves
Designers, what they do and why they are needed?; The design process; The owner’s requirements; What the designer does; The benefits of using a garden designer; Providing guidance; Types of client; You as the designer; Taking instructions; Drawing skills; and Unit 2 Summary.

Unit Three – Starting to Design
Getting started – Equipment & Dress; Design by computer (CAD); Impressions of the garden; The initial visit; The client checklist; The design recipe; Site assessment; Surveying and measuring; Slopes; The rough sketch; The FLP (Functional Layout Plan); Triangulation and chain surveys; drawing to scale; Labelling, heights, number charts and keys; The design principals of Direction, Rhythm and Harmony, and what they mean; and Unit 3 Summary.

Unit Four – The Importance of Soils & Sites
Soil and horticultural potential; soil and sites; climate (oceanic, etc); temperature; Light, shade and shelter; Rainfall and humidity; Soil types and pH; Topography; The soil environment and horizons; profile pits; Improving the soil with manures, fertilisers, line and mulches; Cultivation and drainage; Soil life – good and bad; and Unit 4 Summary.

Unit Five – Starting Real Design Work
Getting down to design; Arranging plants; practicalities; function and form; Right plant, right place; Height, borders and beds; Information sources; Plants for problem positions; Plants for alkaline and acid soils; Shade; Sunny; Dry; Plants for particular uses (focal points, climbers, ground cover); Designing for shapes and sizes (formal, informal); Linking shapes; Playing with ideas and concepts; Problem sites; Downward slope; Upward slope; Long and narrow; Short and square; L-shaped; Corner; and Unit 5 Summary.

Unit Six – Planning
Planning for themes – ideas, styles and how to enhance; Plants for colour and height; The colour wheel; Getting the planting mix right; Colour patch bedding; foliage; Features needing thought; Fruit growing in small areas; Containers, tubs and patios; Plants to define areas and give direction; Rockeries and alpines; Hedges; and Unit 6 Summary.

Unit Seven – Designing for Interest
The garden in winter; Attracting wildlife; Managing wildlife; Herbs and weeds; Other services; Lighting; Furniture; and Unit 7 Summary.

Unit Eight – Water in the Garden
Introduction and uses; Siting a pond; Materials, depths and size; considerations; equipment; safety; filters; planting the pond; planning for timing and colour; Maintenance; Lighting and lighting design for water; Water features; construction diagrams; and Unit 8 Summary.

Unit Nine – Children & Pets
Children; Play areas; Children’s gardens; Equipment and toys; Plants, poisonous plants and other potential threats; Safety - water and children; Pets in the garden; Clients’ dogs; Dogs; Cats; and Unit 9 Summary.

Unit Ten – Gardening for Users with Disabilities, the Elderly and Garden Safety
Access; Paths; Safety, features other issues; Watering; Tools; Visually and sensory impaired sensory gardens; Conclusion; Safety checklist; and Unit 10 Summary.

Unit Eleven – Upkeep & Maintenance
Introduction; Assessing maintenance; Builders, diggers and landscapers; Plants; Ponds; Structures; Lawns; Beds; Schedules of work; Maintenance schedules; Cost issues; Practicalities; Plant schedules; and Unit 11 Summary.

Unit Twelve – Structures in the Garden
Walls, fences and trellis; Timber; Iron; Wire; Paths and patios; Green houses, sheds and stores; Other structures; Summerhouses; Furniture; and Unit 12 Summary.

Unit Thirteen – Marketing Your Garden Design Business
Where are the clients; How to reach clients, Word of mouth, Advertising; Portfolio and plant files; Shows and fairs; Visiting potential clients; Clarifying your service; Charging; Keeping records; Tax and accounts; Help; VAT; Insurance; Unit 13 Summary and Final Course Project (Full Design).

Unit Fourteen – Tricks of the Trade
An additional unit crammed with useful hints and tips for garden designers.

Requirements

The good news is that no prior learning knowledge or experience is essential to take this course. This course is openly available to anyone wishing to learn more about Garden Design and would like to take part in a highly rewarding home study course.

Questions and answers

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FAQs

Study method describes the format in which the course will be delivered. At Reed Courses, courses are delivered in a number of ways, including online courses, where the course content can be accessed online remotely, and classroom courses, where courses are delivered in person at a classroom venue.

CPD stands for Continuing Professional Development. If you work in certain professions or for certain companies, your employer may require you to complete a number of CPD hours or points, per year. You can find a range of CPD courses on Reed Courses, many of which can be completed online.

A regulated qualification is delivered by a learning institution which is regulated by a government body. In England, the government body which regulates courses is Ofqual. Ofqual regulated qualifications sit on the Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF), which can help students understand how different qualifications in different fields compare to each other. The framework also helps students to understand what qualifications they need to progress towards a higher learning goal, such as a university degree or equivalent higher education award.

An endorsed course is a skills based course which has been checked over and approved by an independent awarding body. Endorsed courses are not regulated so do not result in a qualification - however, the student can usually purchase a certificate showing the awarding body's logo if they wish. Certain awarding bodies - such as Quality Licence Scheme and TQUK - have developed endorsement schemes as a way to help students select the best skills based courses for them.