Gardening & Landscaping

170 hours/12 months access/instructor supported

 

Overview

This gardening/landscaping course offers quality at-home career training filled with a number of professional landscaping ideas and gardening tips. The course even includes information on how to start a landscaping business. Whether you are interested in starting a new career, want to learn more about gardening, or just want to spruce up your yard, our gardening/landscaping course is for you!

We can help you combine your creativity and love of the outdoors into a rewarding new career – all in the comfort of your own home. With us, all of your gardening and landscaping distance learning materials are delivered directly to your door.

This detailed gardening/landscaping course offers a detailed instruction on a number of gardening and landscaping topics including:

	The basics of gardening
	Lawns and ground cover
	Different types of gardens and gardening
	Types of annuals and biennials to grow
	Vegetable and herb gardens
	Types of soil and content
	Improving soil quality
	Introduction to landscaping
	An overview of the landscaping industry
	Analyzing the landscape site
	The principles of landscape design

 

Texts books Include:

• Country Living Gardener Gardening Basics: How to Design, Plant & Maintain Your Garden by Ken Beckett, Steven Bradley, Noel Kingsbury, and Tim Newbury
• Introduction to Landscaping: Design, Construction, and Maintenance by Ronald J. Biondo and Charles B. Schroeder
• Start Your Own Lawn Care or Landscaping Business (Entrepreneur Magazine's Start-Up) by Eileen Figure Sandlin and Entrepreneur Press

 

 

Outline

 

 

Gardening and Landscaping Module 1 Designing the Garden & Choosing Plants     Designing the Garden   Planning the Garden   Constructing the Garden   Patio Gardens   Creating Surface Designs   Fences & Hedges   Containers   Designing Borders   Principles of Planting   Trees for the Framework   Shrubs & Vines   Roses   Water Loving Perennials   Bamboos, Grasses, and Ferns Gardening and Landscaping Module 2 Edible Plants & Garden Maintenance   Vegetables, Fruit and Herbs   Growing Vegetables   Planning through the Year   Leaves and Flower Heads   Fruiting Vegetables   Pruning Fruit Trees   The Herb Garden   Medicinal Herbs   Care and Maintenance   Basic Equipment   Knowing Your Soil   Plant Foods   Weed Control   Lawns   Growing from Cuttings Gardening and Landscaping Module 3 Landscape Design   Landscape Design   Working with the Customer   Analyzing the Landscape Site   Designing the Landscape   Starting with a Plan   Using the Principles of Art   Selecting Plants for the Design   Pricing the Plan Gardening and Landscaping Module 4 Landscape Construction & Maintenance   Preparing the Site for Planting   Installing Plant Materials   Installing Patios, Decks and Walls   Installing Fences and Walls   Using Light and Water to Enhance the Landscape   Watering, Fertilizing and Mulching   Establishing and Maintaining Turfgrass Areas   Controlling Pests in the Landscape   Calculating Landscape Maintenance Costs

 

Gardening and Landscaping Module 5
Starting a Lawn Care or Landscaping Business

• Industry Snapshot
• Business Basics
• Staffing Your Business
• Types of Landscaping Businesses
• Scope of Services
• Conducting Market Research
• Naming Your Business
• Legal Aspects
• Money Managing
• Tools of the Trade & Equipment
• Office Equipment
• Industry Associations
• Marketing Your Business
• Your Cyber Salesperson
• Writing and Producing a Newsletter
• Networking
• Income and Operating Expenses
• Your Formula for Success

 

 

Instructor: Caron B. Goode, Ed.D., NCC, DAPA

Education, psychology, mentoring, mind-body wellness, business management and professional writing comprise the wealth of experience Dr. Goode brings to her mentoring, courses, and books. Her interest in childhood development began when she taught special education children. Since then, she has worked with children and families in private psychotherapy practice, and has designed empowerment seminars for parents, professionals and corporations, consulted for public and private school programs, while writing and publishing for professional journals as well as major mass media.

Dr. Goode graduated with a Doctoral Degree from George Washington University in 1983 and is a licensed psychotherapist. In addition, she holds the titles of Licensed Certified Counselor, National Certified Counselor, and Diplomat of the American Psychotherapy Association.

 

Computer Requirements

Internet Access

·         Broadband or high-speed internet access is strongly recommended. Broadband includes DSL, cable, and wireless connections.

·         Dial-Up internet connections will result in a diminished online experience. Moodle pages may load slowly and viewing large audio and video files may not be possible.

Hardware

·         Virtually all Windows-Mac-Linux hardware configurations and processors are acceptable.

·         1 GB RAM recommended

Software

·         Operating Systems

§  Windows XP or Vista and Mac OS X 10 and higher, most Linux distributions

·         Web Browsers

§  Mozilla Firefox 2 and 3 (previous versions will work also)

§  Internet Explorer 6, 7 and 8

§  Safari is not currently recommended as it cannot display certain Moodle editing menus for both students and instructors

Media Plug-ins (These may be required depending on your course media-click on the links below to download the latest versions)

§  Adobe Flash Player

§  Adobe Acrobat Reader

§  Apple Quicktime

§  Windows Media Player

§  Real Player

§  PowerPoint Viewer (use this if you don't have PowerPoint)