Cutting Propagation 100 Hours Certificate Course

There are 8 lessons:

1 Introduction.

• The principles of propagating plants by cuttings
• Importance of cuttings
• Phenotype vs genotype,
• Why choose cutting propagation
• Where to get cuttings from
• Basic cutting technique.

2 Stem cuttings.

• Ease with which tissue forms roots
• Types of stem cuttings (softwood, hardwood, semi hardwood, herbaceous, tip, heel, nodal, cane etc)
• Treatments (eg. basal heat, mist, tent, etc), testing rooting, etc.

3 Non-stem cuttings.

• Leaf cuttings
• Root cuttings (natural suckering with or without division
• Induced suckering
• In situ whole root cuttings
• Ex situ detached root cuttings)
• Bulb cuttings
• Scaling and twin scaling
• Sectioning
• Basal cuttage.

4 Materials and equipment.

• Selection and maintenance of stock plants
• Disinfecting cutting material;

5 Growing media.

• Propagation media; biological, chemical and physical characteristics of propagation and potting media
• Testing for toxins
• Air filled porosity
• Potting up cuttings
• Soil-less mixes
• Rockwool, etc.

6 Factors affecting rooting.

• Juvenility
• Cutting Treatments (hormones & their application, anti transparents
• Acid/base treatments
• Disinfectants etc)
• Callusing
• Mycorrhizae
• Carbon Dioxide enrichment, etc.

7 Setting up a propagation area.

• Creating and managing an appropriate cutting environment in terms of: Water; Disease; Temperature; Light and Air Quality. Greenhouses and other structures
• Watering methods (mist, fog, capillary etc), heating, etc.

8 Management of cutting crops.

• Estimating cost of production; Keeping records, etc.

• Establish an area near where you live that can be used for the raising of cuttings ,It doesn't need to be a greenhouse, just a sheltered place where you can raise the cuttings you will be asked to grow for this course.
• Select ten different plants that can be grown by stem cuttings. Practice preparing different types of cuttings until you feel you can do this well.
• Place samples of your cuttings in a propagating mix and place in the propagation area. Keep the mix moist and observe the behaviour of the cuttings. (eg. does it put on new leaves? Do changes in temperature effect growth? Do any cuttings die? etc. )Make notes of your observations. You will be asked questions about your results later in the course.
• Prepare leaf cuttings for five different plant species.
• Prepare root cuttings for five different plant species.
• Prepare bulb cuttings for five different plant species.
• Place samples of cuttings in a propagating mix.
• Visit three plant propagation nurseries and see if you can find out where they obtain their propagation material.
• Test soil samples and name them.
• Go to your local nursery and/or garden supply and find out what rooting hormones they sell. See if you can discover what chemicals the products contain.
• Visit three different commercial greenhouses.
• Prepare a pot of cuttings and estimate the cost of production for each cutting produced.

The quality of this course is second to none, from the in-depth learning you will get to the expert individual mentoring you will receive throughout your studies. The mentors for this course are:

Susan Stephenson

BSc in Applied Plant Biology (Botany) Univ. London 1983.

City and guilds: Garden Centre Management, Management and Interior Decor (1984)

Management qualifications in training with retail store. Diploma in Hort level 2 (RHS General) Distinction.

Susan Stephenson is a passionate and experienced horticulturist and garden designer. She has authored three books, lectures at 2 Further and Higher Education Colleges, teaching people of all ages and backgrounds about the wonders of plants and garden design, and tutors many students by correspondence from all over the world.

Susan studied botany at Royal Holloway College (Univ of London) and worked in the trading industry before returning to her first love plants and garden design. She is therefore, well placed to combine business knowledge with horticulture and design skills. Her experience is wide and varied and she has designed gardens for families and individuals. Susan is a mentor for garden designers who are just starting out, offering her support and advice and she also writes, delivers and assesses courses for colleges, introducing and encouraging people into horticulture and garden design.

In 2010, Susan authored a complete module for a Foundation degree (FDSC) in Arboriculture.

Susan holds the RHS General with Distinction. She continues to actively learn about horticulture and plants and (as her students will tell you) remains passionate and interested in design and horticulture.

Steven Whitaker

Diploma in Garden Design (Distinction) – The Blackford Centre, Gold Certificate of Achievement in Horticulture, Level 2 NVQ in Amenity Horticulture, Level 1 NOCN Introduction to Gardening, – Joseph Priestly College, BTEC Diploma in Hotel, Catering and Institutional Operations (Merit), Trainer Skills 1, & 2, Group trainer, Interview and Selection Skills – Kirby College of Further Education

Steven has a wealth of Horticultural knowledge, having ran his own Design and Build service, Landscaping company, and been a Head Gardener. His awards include five Gold awards at Leeds in Bloom, two Gold awards at Yorkshire in Bloom and The Yorkshire Rose Award for Permanent Landscaping. Steven has worked with TV’s Phil Spencer as his garden advisor on the Channel 4 TV Programme, “Secret Agent”.

He is qualified to Level 2 NVQ in Amenity Horticulture and has a Diploma in Garden Design which he passed with Distinction. Steven’s Tutor and Mentor was the Chelsea Flower Show Gold Award-winning Garden Designer, Tracy Foster. He also works for a major Horticultural Commercial Grower in the field of Propagation and Craft Gardening. Steven lives in Leeds where he is a Freelance Garden Designer and Garden Advice Consultant.