Horticulture and Landscape

Landscape Architecture

• BSc (Hons) Landscape Architecture
• FdA Garden and Landscape Design

• Garden Design Courses
• Gardening Workshops and Events
• RHS Courses

Where could your career take you?

If you are interested in horticulture you’re likely  to be fascinated by science and nature and enjoy working outdoors. Perhaps you can see yourself helping to feed a growing global population or transforming cityscapes for workers and residents.

Or maybe you’d like to be at the forefront of research, work at world famous botanical gardens or manage championship sporting venues abroad.

Here are just some of the choices waiting for you:

• Scientist
• Botanist
• Scientific researcher
• Landscape architect
• Field scale crop production manager
• Produce quality manager
• Garden designer / landscaper
• Head gardener
• Head greenkeeper
• Park supervisor
• Commercial nursery manager
• Nursery production technician
• Kitchen gardener
• Entrepreneur
• Self employed gardener
• Garden centre manager
• Sales and marketing manager
• Garden designer

Your Reaseheath Experience

Work placements, community projects, training workshops, competitions – our horticulture students certainly don’t let the grass grow under their feet!

This year our student teams won a silver medal for their show garden at RHS Tatton Flower Show and two RHS Level 3 Diploma students were awarded gold at RHS Chatsworth Flower Show with their first attempt at creating a show garden.

We have also been helping to maintain relocated show gardens at the World of Wedgwood in Staffordshire. In return our students gained a privileged insight into the career of RHS Ambassador and plantsman Jamie Butterworth, who visited college with industry colleagues to unveil his ideas for the show garden he was building for Wedgwood.

Our students have designed a show garden for members at the Royal Cheshire Show, and carried out a variety of projects on campus and in the local community.

Industry links

We have strong training partnerships with key organisations such as the Royal Horticultural Society, the Landscape Institute, the British Association of Landscape Industries, the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board and the Association of Professional Landscapers.

We also collaborate with key suppliers including Makita (power tools), Marshalls Paving, Green-tech Ltd (landscaping materials) and J A Jones and Sons (plant nursery). Thanks to these industry links, our students enjoy workshops supported by industry professionals, ensuring they have the technical skills and knowledge of working with the latest materials and equipment.

Where you’ll be studying

You’ll be based in our Centre for Horticulture, the Environment and Sustainable Technology, which (as the name suggests) is dedicated to all things horticultural.

The centre houses our hi-tech commercial production unit, where we are trialling different systems of growing tomato and strawberry crops and a variety of herbaceous plants.We also have a dedicated design studio with the latest Mac computers and 3D design tools, landscape workshop, modern classrooms, a laboratory and our Feast café.

Elsewhere on the campus we have a well stocked library, computer rooms and quiet study areas.

Earn while you learn

If you’d prefer to earn and learn at the same time, we offer horticulture apprenticeships at levels 2 and 3. Depending on your career ambitions you can choose to specialise in either amenity, landscape and production horticulture or golf greenkeeping and groundsmanship. You will be supported by our work-based assessors in the workplace and either come in to college one day a week or in blocks depending on the apprenticeship you choose.

Finding the right course

While many of our students opt to gain a good grounding on our lower level courses others start at a more advanced level, particularly if they have high academic grades or previous experience.

Whatever your circumstances, our experienced staff will help you choose the course which is right for you. And don’t forget, all students complete relevant work experience.