Trees For Rehabilitation (Tree Health Management) 100 Hours Certificate Course

There are 10 lessons:

1 Approaches To Land Rehabilitation

• The importance of trees - Erosion control
• Understanding plants
• Understanding plant identification
• Land management programs
• Biodiversity
• Soil degradation
• Erosion - Water erosion, Wind erosion, Control of erosion
• Salinity - Sources of salt, Control methods for salinity
• Soil acidification and other problems - Soil acidification, Compaction, Chemical residues
• Rehabilitation

2 Ecology Of Soils And Plant Health

• Biomass
• The Ecosystem - Abiotic components, Biotic components, Ecological concepts, The web of life, Other relationships between plants and animals
• Indigenous species
• Creating habitat corridors for wildlife – benefits, Other benefits, Situating corridors, Types of corridors
• Design considerations
• Edge effects
• What can happen at edges
• In general
• Soils - How soils develop naturally, The soil environment, Soil composition, Soil temperature
• Mycorrhizae
• Soil physical characteristics - Soil profile, Soil texture, Soil structure
• Soil chemical characteristics - Soil pH, Cation exchange capacity, Buffering capacity
• Improving soils
• Plant nutrition - What nutrients do plants need
• The nutrient elements - The macronutrients, The micronutrients
• Choosing the right fertilizer - How much fertilizer to apply
• Diagnosis of nutritional problems
• Pests and diseases and plant growth - Environmental factors
• Resistant plant species and cultivars
• Pests and Diseases - Biological control, Diseases include, Pests include, Life cycles, Preventative control

3 Introduction To Seed Propagation Techniques

• Seed propagation - Seed sources – 4 sources, Maintaining genetic identity in seed, Hybrid seed production
• Why do plants produce so much seed
• Collecting and harvesting seed – guidelines
• Selecting plants to collect from
• Timing
• Methods of collection
• Cleaning seed
• Storing seed
• Difficult seeds - Germination treatments, Soaking in boiling water
• Stratification
• Fire
• Leaching seeds
• Sowing your seeds - When to sow, Propagation media
• Containers for propagation
• The bog method
• Pricking out or tubing seedlings - After care
• Quality control – The UC System of Soil Mixes
• Example of a production system
• Propagation stage
• Transplanting stage
• Growing on stage
• Distribution stage
• Sources of seed and information
• Books on seeds and seed germination

4 Propagation And Nursery Stock

• Asexual propagation - Why cuttings? How to propagate a cutting, Classification of cutting types, Maintaining genetic identity in seed
• Types of Cuttings - Softwood cuttings, Semi-Hardwood Cuttings, Hardwood cuttings, Variations on cuttings, Nodal cuttings, Basal cuttings, Root cuttings
• Stock Plants - Planting out stock plants, Treatment throughout the year, Stock plants for root cuttings
• Ways of getting roots on difficult to root cuttings - Hormone treatments, Etoliation and banding, Cutting grafts, Misting/fogging, Light treatments, Bacterial treatments, Combining treatments
• Hormone Treatments in detail
• Nursery hygiene
• Spread of pests and diseases
• Recommended nursery hygiene practices
• Propagating Mixes - Vermiculite, Perlite, Sand, Rockwool, Peat moss
• Potting Media - Potting Soil Mixes, Pine Bark, Containers for potting up plants
• How to maintain plants in pots - Feeding, Watering, Ventilation and light, Temperature, Growing-on areas for container plants, Stop roots growing into the soil, Hardening off rooted cuttings
• The greenhouse - Types of greenhouses, Heated or unheated, Deciding on what you need, Problems with greenhouses, Environmental controls in the greenhouse, Temperature control
• Greenhouse irrigation methods, Runoff and leachate, Irrigation systems, Other structures for growing plants, The nursery site, How to propagate different species

5 Dealing With Chemical Problems

• Soil contamination
• Symptoms on plants of chemical contamination
• Foliage burn
• Treating foliage burn
• Rehabilitating damaged soils
• Prevention
• Accidental spillage
• Rehabilitation methods
• Using plants to extract contaminants
• Growing plants on contaminated soil
• Rehabilitating a building site
• Soil chemical composition and plant growth
• Alkaline soils
• Lime contaminated soils
• Trees which grow in lime soils

6 Physical Plant Effects On Degraded Sites

• Pioneer plants
• Site protection - Windbreaks/shelterbelts, Windbreak design, Other considerations
• Designing and planting a firebreak - Fire prone areas, How to arrange plants, Distances from buildings, Consider prevailing winds, Consider vehicular access, Maintenance, Fire resistant plants, Plants likely to burn
• Stormwater, waterlogging and drainage - Stormwater
• Drainage - Water-logging on a home-site, Constructing a swamp
• Soil Compaction

7 Plant Establishment Programs

• What to plant where
• Climate - Temperature, Wind, Frosts, Extreme hazards, Microclimates
• Plant selection criteria, Economics, Ongoing costs, Longevity, General hardiness
• Planting - When to plant
• Plant protection methods - Supporting trees, Staking, Frost protection for young trees, Sun protection, Mulching, Fencing, Wind protection

8 Hostile Environments

• Planning
• Rehabilitation techniques
• Coping with dry conditions - Overcoming dry soils
• Mulch - How to lay mulch, Mulch materials, Commonly used organic mulches, Living mulch and cover crops
• Weed management - Types of weeds, How are weeds spread? Preventative measures, Weed control, Methods, Commonly used herbicides
• Trees and large shrubs that tolerate salt
• Plant species that tolerate salt

9 Plant Establishment Care

• Planting procedures - Evergreens, Deciduous and bare-rooted plants
• Water and plant growth
• Transpiration
• Maintaining appropriate water levels
• Symptoms of water deficiency
• Symptoms of excess water
• Period of watering
• Minimizing plant water requirements
• Plant health – Conducting an inspection
• The Plant - Examining leaves, Examining fruit and flowers, Examining stem and branches, Examining roots, Identifying damage
• The Immediate Environment - Examining the soil, Examining surrounding plants, Other environmental factors, Methods of inspection
• Prioritizing problems
• Research

10 Rehabilitating Degraded Sites

• Environmental Assessment - Conducting an Environmental Audit
• Implementing a Land Rehabilitation Management Program - determining land objectives, determining a program and replanting.