COURSE DESCRIPTION Pruning is an essential skill for gardeners and horticulturists. This short course answers the key questions: what to prune, when to prune, how to prune, and why pruning matters. Whether you’re a professional horticulturist or a passionate home gardener, understanding the science and art of pruning will help you promote healthy growth, enhance plant structure, and boost fruit and flower production.   WHAT THE COURSE COVERS – 9 LESSONS Lesson 1: Introduction

• Why, when and what to prune: How pruning affects plants
• Removing broken branches, dead or diseased wood
• Controlling the type of growth
• Controlling the plant’s shape and size
• Promoting healthy, bushy growth
• Rejuvenating a plant
• Why prune?
• Pruning different species
• Timing for pruning
• What is compartmentalisation?

Lesson 2: Types of Pruning

• Cleaning out dead wood
• Stopping
• Disbudding
• Deadheading
• Pollarding
• Removing branches
• Crown cleaning
• Crown thinning
• Crown reduction
• Crown lifting
• Crown renewal
• Root pruning
• Pruning trees in general
• Pruning larger shrubs
• Pruning tropical plants
• Pruning container plants

Lesson 3: Pruning Tools and Equipment

• Secateurs
• Pruning knife
• Loppers
• Pole pruners
• Hand saws
• Trimmers
• Chainsaws
• Gloves

Lesson 4: Pruning Hedges

• Selecting hedging plants
• Establishing a hedge
• Types of hedge
• Pruning or trimming an established hedge
• Rejuvenating old and overgrown hedges
• Pruning conifers
• Other hedging techniques
• Pleaching
• Tapestry hedges
• Mazes

Lesson 5: Shaping Plants

• How to develop an espalier
• Horizontal espalier
• Oblique palmette espalier
• Topiary
• Portable topiary
• Other plants suitable for topiary
• Single-stem topiary
• Verdant sculptures
• Bonsai
• Creating bonsai
• Pruning bonsai to shape it

Lesson 6: Managing Prunings

• Composting waste
• Choosing plants for composting
• Using compost to improve soils
• Composting in home gardens
• Indore method
• Using lawn clippings
• Mulching
• How to lay mulch
• Biochar
• Chipping

Lesson 7: Pruning for Fruit Production

• Before buying plants consider the shape
• Before pruning
• Points to consider when pruning
• Pruning specific fruits
• Citrus spp.
• Pruning a bush shape
• Pruning a standard shape
• Renovating an old citrus tree
• Open vase shape formative pruning
• Plum tree pruning
• Pruning apricots
• Knowing your buds

Lesson 8: Pruning Roses

• When to prune roses
• Pruning techniques for different types of roses
• Pruning climbers and ramblers at a glance
• Pruning roses as standards
• Dead heading roses
• Rejuvenating an old rose plant

Lesson 9: Compendium of Plants – How to Prune What and When

• Summary: Basic pruning guide
• Glossary

COURSE FEATURES

• 20-hour, self-paced course
• Fully online, flexibly paced
• Optional practical tasks throughout
• Automated self-assessment tests
• “Certificate of Completion” on achieving a 60% pass rate on a final assessment

WHO SHOULD STUDY THIS COURSE?

• Home gardeners who want to do a lot better in their gardens
• Anyone starting up or wanting to expand the range of services offered in a garden business (e.g. a lawn mowing business, seeking to offer an expanded service. When mowing work declines in winter, you can have another source of income, pruning roses and fruit trees)
• Anyone seeking employment as a gardener. This course can give you knowledge and skill that sets you apart and gives an employer a reason to consider you above other applicants
• Garden managers seeking to train their staff
• Gardeners, nurserymen, landscapers or horticulturists wanting to fill in a gap in their skills set.