Venue
Study from the comfort of your own home.
Times
Start when you wish, and work at your own pace. A guideline is issued to each student for assignments/exercises but there are no stringent deadlines.
Dates
Study At Your Own Pace
Details
This programme is designed to guide and support homeowners who want to create a beautiful, functional garden with a clear understanding of why certain design choices work, without feeling overwhelmed by technical jargon. Each candidate will acquire the skills to assess their own garden, make informed design decisions, choose plants wisely and work confidently with their own staff, a landscaper or contractor.
You do not need prior design experience. The programme will guide you step by step through the process, helping you to understand your space, make practical choices and create a garden that suits your lifestyle, climate and level of involvement.
Who Benefits
This programme is specifically designed for :
Homeowners who would like to design their own gardens;
Those who would like to advise or consult on gardens in a professional capacity, without being responsible for the complete design process. There is always an opportunity in the market for creatives to assist others with sound ideas and plant solutions.
Students are mentored and supported throughout the duration of the programme.
Outcome
On completion of this programme, you will have gained a clear understanding of the design process, an understanding of scale and reading plans and how to create a healthy, sustainable garden.
The comprehensive course material demonstrates how to assess your own garden, make informed decisions and choose your plants and accessories wisely, providing you with clarity, confidence and - the end result - a beautiful home garden.
It is a proven fact that a well designed garden adds to the resale value of your home.
Content
Practical components
Understanding your garden space (formulating a needs analysis and conducting a site evaluation)
Creative components
Shaping the big picture through developing a style or theme that works for you, designing with sustainability in mind, the building blocks of good garden design, choosing plants to enhance your ideas and to suit your climate, colour and its magical properties, thinking through special features and hard landscaping.
Understanding scale & reading plans
In this module, we provide essential knowledge to help you understand garden layouts and plans, scale and accurate plant placement. This will give you the confidence to review plans and work on a simple layout for your garden without the pressure of detailed technical drawing.
Note : Optional Drawing Module (Add-on)
For students who would like to take their design a step further, this optional drawing module builds on the layout principles covered in the Premier Garden Design Course. It introduces simple, user-friendly drawing techniques to help you translate your ideas into a clearer scaled plan, suitable for sharing with contractors or working from during installation. You are welcome to enquire about this addition, if and when you feel the time is right.
Designing with Maintenance in Mind
The course includes a module on designing with maintenance in mind. It covers the essence of good garden governance such as soil health, mulching and feeding and pruning.
Students may work at their own pace and according to their time constraints. You are encouraged to communicate with the principal or a tutor assigned to you, as often as you like.
While all notes are in English, your tutor is fully bilingual and encourages Afrikaans students to work in their home language.
Options
Not Applicable
Do I Need Previous Experience?
Not at all. Work at a comfortable pace and ensure that you are in regular communication with your tutor, should you need assistance.
Course Enquiries
You can submit your form in two ways:
1) Download the form, complete it, and upload it to the onlne form on this page. (Note: If you do not have Adobe Acrobat we suggest using PDFGear, which is a free program)
2) Download the application form, complete it and email it to info@schoolofgardendesign.com
We will be in contact with you shortly after the forms are submitted, but should you not hear from us within 48 hours please send a follow up email to the address above.
On application, you will be requested to pay a 20% non-refundable deposit.