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      Home Courses Crop Production & Farming

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Short Course

Berry Production

  Become a Berry Fruit Expert Berry fruits are popular the world over. Some berries are grown widely, in different climates and countries (eg. strawberries), whilst others might be popular in some regions but not others. This course provides a sound broad based training for commercial growers and/or staff of berry farms. It is equally relevant to the enthusiast hobby grower who wants to get more serious about growing berry fruits.

Commercial Organic Vegetable Growing

  Working or wanting to work on an organic farm? “Learn the processes required to tap into the commercial organic vegetable market; this extensive course provides a wealth of knowledge and practical skills and shows you how to market your produce. Organic vegetables are crops with a future.” - Adriana Fraser Cert.Hort., Cert.Child Care, Adv. Cert. App. Mgt.,  Cert 1V Assessment and Training, Adv.Dip.Hort.   The demand for organically grown vegetables is currently a major growth area in commercial horticulture. This course is a good starting point in learning all aspects of organic vegetable production. There is a strong emphisis on organic principals and each lesson goes through ways to adapt them to everyday vegetable production. It is similar to the Organic Plant Culture course, but has more emhpisis on vegetables and methods for commercial production.

Commercial Vegetable Production

  Learn about growing crops of vegetables in productive way with these steps. Learning the importance of soils, cultural practices and pest and disease management is a great way to get optimum crop production.

Cut Flower Bulbs

  This course is designed to develop your ability to select and cultivate appropriate varieties of bulbs as cut flowers, in different situations. It gives you an understanding of the plant families bulbs belong to, their cultural needs, how to prevent and treat pest and disease problems plus the basis of horticultural knowledge: soil types and plant nutritional needs.

Cut Flower Orchids

  Would you like to grow orchids for the markets?Orchids are one of the most commercially viable cut flower crops (partially due to their beauty, and also due to their long shelf life). Learn how to produce orchid flowers for the cut flower trade! Orchids occur naturally from very cold temperate climates through to tropical locations; and provided you choose appropriate species and treat them according to location, it is feasible to grow orchids as cut flowers almost anywhere

Cut Flower Production

  Have you always wanted to know more about growing your own flowers from bulbs? And would you like to do it commercially? This is a course designed for the flowering bulb enthusiast or the commercial bulb grower supplying the cut flower market. There are ten lessons in this course with loads of practical skills to get you inspired and to get you growing! You will learn the basics of horticultural management covering soil types, plant nutrition, pest and diseases. It also covers the various types of bulbs used for production and in the home garden.

Fruit Production - Temperate Climate

  Become an expert at growing fruit. This course is ideal for anyone serious about fruit growing; from the small hobby farmer to orchard worker, or enthusiastic amateur who aspires to win first prize for their fruit at the local garden show.

Fruit Production - Warm Climate

  Become an Expert in Growing Tropical Fruits -in warm climates or in protected places such as a greenhouse. “Everyone dreams of having a tropical island with fruit trees. In this course we have people create their own fruit garden at home or learn how to produce and market stock commercially. - Tracey Morris Dip.Hort., Cert.Hort., Cert III Organic Farming. COURSE AIMDemonstrate skills in the establishment and management of commercial fruit production for warm climates.

Greenhouse Cut Flowers

  A course for commercial cut flower growers who are concerned exclusively with greenhouse production. International trade in cut flowers has grown over recent decades. In most countries, developed or in development, it is now possible to get the most popular types of cut flowers almost any time of the year. The industry has made this possible by doing three different things: 1. Expanding trade between countries (e.g. Australian tulips might be flown to the Netherlands in August and September, when they are not flowering in The Netherlands; and Dutch tulips might be flown to Australia when it is autumn in Australia) 2. Breeding new varieties has extended the flowering season for some plants. It is now, for instance, possible to grow Chrysanthemum varieties that flower all year round in some climates. 3. Growing in greenhouses has enabled farmers to take control of conditions that stimulate flowering; and cause plants to not only grow faster, but also flower at times when they might not have otherwise flowered.  

Mushroom Production

  Become a Mushroom Growing Expert There are many different types of mushrooms. To understand the culture of one, gives you a head start on understanding others. In this 100 hour course, you will focus on the most widely cultivated mushroom (ie. Agaricus). If your interests are wider than this, all is not lost. This course does provide a valuable introduction to a much wider range of mushrooms; and caqn be used as a starting point for growing any of these as well. The school has excellent and rare resources relating to growing a wide range of edible fungi; and can help set students on the right course for growing species beyond just Agaricus.  

Nut Production

  “It’s interesting how much you take for granted when eating those tiny creations that are so well loved. This course will give you an overview of what nuts are commonly grown, and some insight into those that are not.” - Tracey Morris Dip.Hort., Cert.Hort., Cert III Organic Farming, Tutor.

Outdoor Plant Production (Crops I)

    This course started live as a Crops course developed by John Mason in 1980. Over the years it has been revised and upgraded many times with input from over 20 horticulturists in both the UK and Australia. In 1995 it was revised to satisfy curriculum for a nationally accredited Advanced Diploma in Horticulture (Australia). In 2003 it underwent a further major revision to align with an RHS Diploma in Horticulture Module "Outdoor Plant Production". Today's course is very much up to date and an excellent foundation for any type of outdoor plant production.

Soil Management (Crops)

  Good soil conditions are critical to the healthy growth of most plants. Over eight lessons this course will develop an understanding of physical & chemical properties of soils, the ability to carry out simple tests and determine soil characteristics, and to decide ways of treating a soil to improve its ability to grow plants. The course is specifically designed for crop production.

Viticulture

  Learn to grow Grapes A serious course for vineyard workers, hobby farmers, farm managers, amateur enthusiasts, or anyone working or aspiring to work in this industry.

Warm Climate Nuts

  Be a Nut Expert.  This course is for the curious grower who wants to learn more about types of warm climate nuts. For most people, a nut is a type of food and a delightful food at that! Strictly speaking, not all nuts are edible; but this course is only concerned with edible nuts and in particular, the ones that are grown more extensively around the world in warm climates.The tropical nut trees are dependent on your locality and conditions can vary quite considerably even in tropical areas, for example certain tropical areas may experience frosts. However there are so many varieites worth trying that it is worth learning about them all! There are eight lessons including a special project in this course. This course is designed as a detailed look at identification and culture of nuts in warmer climates. Emphasis is placed on the species that are of horticultural value.


Certificate

Certificate In Horticulture (Crops)

  A course for people working, or intending to work, in orchards or market gardens. This course is similar to other VHT002 horticulture certificates in its introductory (core) units, but devotes 50% of the course to topics specifically related to crop production. This Certificate in Horticulture involves the areas of work: CORE STUDIES - Divided into 15 lessons, approx. half of the course. STREAM STUDIES - a further 200 hrs of study specifically relating to plant protection ELECTIVES MODULES - a further 100hours of study to ensure the course is tailored to your needs or choice! CORE UNITS The Core Units comprise fifteen modules that are divided into the following sections: Introduction to Plants Plant Culture Soils and Nutrition Plant Identification and Use Pests, Diseases and Weeds

Certificate In Horticulture (Organic Plant Growing)

  Understanding established methods of plant growing and how main stream horticulture deals with this eg. the pesticides, herbicides, fertilisers and general growing methods used, is of fundamental importance for a shift to organic growing.To be truly informed, you need to know all the traditional and 'accepted' methods of plant growing as well as organic methods. This knowledge enables you to make informed and important decisions (for example) during farm conversion and understand what impact 'conventional' farming has on the land you farm, and on the health of the community and the ecology. At the very least it will enable you to understand, and convey to others, why you prefer organics as your chosen method of plant culture.This course is similar to other VHT002 horticulture certificates in its introductory (core) units, but devotes 50% of the course to topics specifically related to organic growing. A fantastic course for the Horticulturalist who sees organic growing as the right way to grow.

Certificate In Horticulture (Viticulture)

  This course does that as well as giving you the confidence to make decisions in the field. This is more than most certificates offered by others - at certificate level most courses will allow you, on completion, to 'work under supervision'. Our 'problem based learning' style gives you the edge - it gives you the ability to make informed decisions - drawing on the skills and knowledge gained throughout the course.This provides you with far more opportunities for advancement than other courses on offer at this level will. A 600 hr course for people working, or intending to work, in the production of grapes. This course is similar to other CVHT002 horticulture certificates in its introductory (core) units, but devotes 50% of the course to topics specifically related to the production of grapes for wine, drying or as fresh fruit.


Advanced Certificate

Advanced Certificate In Applied Management (Crops)

  This Advanced Certificate develops both the skills required to manage a horticultural farm (eg. Market Garden, Orchard), and also the knowledge in the identification, growing, processing and marketing crops and crop related products. This course is broad based, it extends your ability to make a profit or gain employment more easily then if you specialised in one crop. The management aspects allows you to understand the entire crop growing process - from planting through to sales.


Advanced Diploma

Advanced Diploma In Horticulture (Crops)

  Don't be restricted by courses that focus on only single aspects of this diverse area of horticulture. Diversity is the key to success in crop production and employers seek people with broad skills and knowledge.  Management, business management, marketing, horticultural science, technical skills, a variety of crops, hydroponics, plant protection - this course covers all these aspects of crop production (and a lot more) at management level. A comprehensive course formulated so you gain knowledge on all aspects of crop business management. It is designed for people wanting to work in this field, or for those looking to advance their careers in managerial or higher technical positions, within the horticultural crop industry.

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