Course Programme 2026/27

Group gathered outside a greenhouse, engaged in a garden discussion.

Choose a course then get in touch to make a booking or for more information. Alternatively, if looking for someone else you could always get them a gift voucher. Class sizes are small to give you the best experience and to optimise any practical elements.

All of our courses and workshops include refreshments and homemade biscuits or cake.

For a full calendar of our upcoming courses and workshops please go to Course Calendar.

***NEW COURSE***

Climate Resilient Gardening

1 day course, £110

Many of us are increasingly struggling to garden with much wetter winters and much drier, hotter summers. The gardens of our childhoods are definitely a thing of the past but we would still like to create beautiful spaces and grow plants, whether flowers, shrubs or vegetables, which give us pleasure. The question is 'how?'. We will look at what we can do to make our gardens more resilient and suggest plants which not only survive but thrive in these harsher conditions.

Wednesday 11th November 10-3

2027

Wednesday 3rd February 10-3

contact us for more info or to book your place

QUALIFICATIONS

RBGE Certificate in Practical Horticulture

10 week course, once a week, £950

The Certificate in Practical Horticulture (CPH) is a unique and very popular course which focuses on the essential skills needed by budding horticulturalists today. As a CPH student you will learn key practical skills, taught by experienced and enthusiastic horticulturalists. The essential theory behind the practice is explained, then most of the time is spent learning practical skills and getting your hands dirty. Subjects covered on the course include Soil Care, Feeding & Watering, Seed & Vegetative Propagation and Growing Media. At the end a certificate is awarded by The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) who developed the course.

The Applicants' Handbook provides a lot of useful information about this course.

Please note that there may be funding available to help with course fees, especially if you already work in horticulture. Contact us for further details.

Friday 11th September for 10 weeks (exc. 30th Oct) - 9.30-4.00 FULLY BOOKED

2027

Friday 8th January for 10 weeks (exc. 19th February) - 9.30-4.00

Friday 16th April for 10 weeks (exc. 4th June) - 9.30-4.00

Friday 11th September for 10 weeks (exc. 30th Oct) - 9.30-4.00

contact us for more info or to book your place

Diploma in Garden Design

32 week course, two days a week, £7500

This is the course for anyone wanting to become a professional garden designer, equipping you to set up on your own or join an established garden design practice. Whether you have just finished a horticulture course, are working as a gardener, looking for a career change or have retired and want a new challenge. You will learn to think like a designer and will gain all of the skills and knowledge in design, construction, horticulture and business which you will need to get going. You will be taught by some of the best in the industry including Tom Hoblyn, Adolfo Harrison, John Little, Colm Joseph, Darryl Moore and Joe and Laura Carey. Your mentors will include other award-winning garden designers and landscapers. A range of inspirational field trips to outstanding public and private gardens as well as growers is included in the programme plus site visits. Students will graduate with a portfolio of work and both the skills and the confidence to work on professional design projects. This course has SGLD (Society of Garden and Landscape Designers) Educator accreditation.

Term One: 15th September to 1st December (excluding w/c 26th October) 9.30 - 3.30

Term Two: 11th January to 23rd March (excluding w/c 15th Feb) 9.30 - 3.30

Term Three: 12th April to 5th July (excluding 3rd May and w/c 31st May) 9.30 - 3.30

2027

Diploma starts Monday 13th September

Take a look here for more information or get in touch to book your place.

DESIGN
Introduction to Garden Design

8 week course, once a week, £800

The course gives a basic foundation in the art of garden design, from site survey to final plan. We will look at the principles and processes involved, and discuss how great design is not about being artistic. We will visit an inspiring private garden, looking at design principles and features in practice, as well as at the key importance of right plant, right place. We will create planting plans using many different resources. It will be a collaborative process, with lots of input and support from the tutor.

Thursday 10th September for 8 weeks 10-3

2027

Thursday 7th January for 8 weeks (exc.18th February) 10-3

Thursday 9th September for 8 weeks 10-3

contact us for more info or to book your place

Border Design

2 day course £220

This two-day course will equip you with skills and ideas to draw up your own border design. You'll learn how to compose a planting scheme by exploring colour theory, plant combinations and styles, layering, seasonality and scale. We'll also look at practical considerations, such as soil type and aspect, and learn how to choose the right plant, for the right place.

Thursday 12th & 19th November 10-3

2027

Wednesday 21st & 28th April 10-3

Thursday 11th & 18th November 10-3

PLANNING, PLANTING, MAINTAINING

The Sustainable Cutting Garden

1 day course £110

This course is taught by leading Norfolk cut flower grower and florist, Sarah Hammond, and will show you how to have sustainable, seasonal blooms in your own garden. She will cover the planning and establishment of your cut flower beds, however small or large your space. Sarah will then lead you through the next six months, looking at what you need do, month by month, as well as what you could be cutting now if you had planted it earlier. The focus is on growing perennials for cutting as well as promoting self-seeding and minimising the use of plastic, pesticides and water in your cutting garden.

Wednesday 14th October 10-3

2027

Wednesday 10th March 10-3

Thursday 22nd April 10-3

Wednesday 16th June 10-3

Wednesday 13th October 10-3

contact us for more info or to book your place

Planting for Year-Round Colour and Interest

1 day course £110

We will look at how to plan and plant for year-round colour and interest, using shrub stems and a range of leaf colours as well as flowering bulbs, perennials and annuals. The course will also cover techniques to extend summer flowering and create winter interest. There will always be a high and a low season in the garden but with some careful planting you can have colour and interest in your garden all year.

Wednesday 30th September 10-3

2027

Thursday 18th March 10-3

Wednesday 29th September 10-3

Willow & Hazel Plant Supports

1 day course £125 inc. materials

This popular course looks at the very important spring gardening job, creating supports for your precious plants before they need them. We will cover why, when and how to stake and support different plants and we will spend some time showing you how to create your own supports, including ones made from willow and hazel prunings. You will get the chance to make some simple supports yourself and go home inspired to make more.

2027

Thursday 11th March 10-3

contact us to find out more info or to book your place

Border Renovation

1 day course £110

You may have taken on a new garden or have a mature border which needs some attention. We will look at how to lift and divide perennials, prune and renovate shrubs, refresh the planting plan and increase the season of interest. We will look at how using colour, height and shape, as well as successional planting can provide year round interest. We will also talk about improving the soil structure with a range of organic mulches.

Wednesday 7th October 10-3

2027

Wednesday 24th March 10-3

Wednesday 6th October 10-3

Plants For Free – Propagation and Seed Saving

1 day course £110

This highly practical course shows you how to propagate many of your favourite plants and shrubs and create new plants for free. We will collect material for cuttings or you can bring your own. We will also look at why and how to save and store seed. There is a strong seasonal aspect to this course as we take the take the right type of cuttings for the time of year, collect ripe seed and sow seeds in their season. Expect to leave the course with newly propagated plants and some envelopes of seeds. Includes growing medium, containers and all plant material.

Wednesday 23rd September 10-3

2027

Thursday 25th March 10-3

Wednesday 22nd September 10-3

Gardening Under Glass

1 day course £110

You may have recently acquired a greenhouse or inherited one and you may be wondering how best to use it. The things you can grow under glass are endless: flowers, tropical plants, vines, vegetables. You can also use your greenhouse to get going early with seeds and to protect tender plants through the winter. You can have things growing and looking good all year round if you’d like to. This course will look at all these options and cover the key tips for what to grow and how to get the most out of your greenhouse, including watching out for potential pests and diseases.

2027

Wednesday 5th May 10-3

Developing An Annual Maintenance Plan

1 day course £110

Whether you look after your garden yourself or have some help it is really useful to create your own maintenance plan to make sure you know what needs doing each month. There are things which need doing at particular times of year, but much of the plan will be specific to your own garden. We will cover the whole gardening year and how to make sure you do all of the key jobs at the right time. This is a useful exercise for any gardener, including professional gardeners who can use this to create a work plan for each garden they look after. This is a particularly good follow up course to the Introduction to Garden Design or the Certificate in Practical Horticulture, but anyone wanting to plan their gardening year will find it useful.

Thursday 13th May 10-3

contact us to find out more or to book a place

Peony, Dahlia and Tulip Masterclasses at English Peonies

Please go to englishpeonies.co.uk for more information and for dates

VEGETABLES AND FRUIT

Your Veg Patch

1 day course £110

Have you started growing vegetables for the first time recently or have you just taken on an allotment? If you are new to growing edibles this covers all you need to know about establishing and maintaining a vegetable garden. We will cover crop rotation and successional sowing to ensure you eat your own vegetables for most of the year. We will look at what you could be eating now and what you should be sowing now to eat later in the year. We have our own veg patch which where we can show you our set up and what we are growing now.

Wednesday 4th November 10-3

2027

Wednesday 3rd March 10-3

Wednesday 3rd November 10-3

contact us for more info or to book your place

Fruit Tree Care

1 day course £110

This course will cover everything from selecting fruit trees to planting and staking them, and from training fruit trees (espalier, cordon, fan) to annual pruning and protection from pests and diseases. We have examples of plum, apple and pear trees trained on posts and wires in our garden which we will look at, as well as some of the original orchard on the estate.

Wednesday 18th November 10-3

2027

Wednesday 10th November 10-3

contact us to find out more or to book a place

PRUNING

Pruning Shrubs and Roses

1 day course £110

Do you want to know what to prune at this time of year and how to do it?
This is the introduction you need to what and how to prune each season. Different shrubs (including roses) need different techniques and we will teach you how, with a practical seasonal session, pruning a range of shrubs, using various tools and methods.

Wednesday 25th November 10-3

2027

Wednesday 24th February 10-3

Wednesday 17th November 10-3

Summer Pruning

1 day course £110

This is an introduction to what and why to prune in summer as well as to the different pruning methods required for a range of shrubs. There will also be a hands-on, practical session where we will use various tools and methods to carry out seasonal pruning including spring flowering and tender shrubs, fruit trees, hedges, climbers, evergreens and specifically rambling roses and Wisteria.

Renovation Pruning

1 day course £110

This is an introduction to pruning, combining essential theory with a practical session on renovating shrubs and small trees. This will cover how to restore overgrown shrubs which may not have been pruned for some years, when to prune fruit trees and bushes, when to prune evergreen and deciduous shrubs.

Wednesday 2nd December 10-3

2027

Wednesday 24th November 10-3

Rose Sculpture with Jenny 'Niff' Barnes

1 day masterclass, £200

Niff is known to thousands on social media for 'Niffing': her unique techniques for creating rose sculptures in winter with wall-trained roses, and how to manipulate stems to make the free-standing, sculpture-like ‘cages’. She has turned rose training into an artform, creating beautiful organic shapes that add to the garden regardless of the time of year. The overall effect is one of neatness, structure and control, important in the winter months when there is little else to see. Come summer, the vigorous shoots break out from their constraints and the rose’s full glory returns. During this exclusive workshop Niff will show exactly how to create amazing structures and you will have the chance to try out different techniques on roses in the gardens. She will also cover how to handle the new growth which follows the initial prune, as well as pruning in year two onwards plus general rose care.

Tuesday 27th October 10-3 FULLY BOOKED

Wednesday 28th October 10-3 FULLY BOOKED

Thursday 26th November 10-3 FULLY BOOKED

contact us for more info or to join the waiting list

Christmas Wreath Workshops

Morning workshop £70 (including all materials and refreshments)

We will show you how to make your own gorgeous and unique festive wreath from scratch using locally gathered seasonal foliage and berries as well as sustainably grown moss (no foam at all). We will start with coffee and homemade biscuits to get you in the mood and finish with a festive glass of fizz and a homemade mince pie. Classes are small and if you book early you may be able to arrange a private workshop for you and your friends.

Friday 27th November 10-1

Thursday 3rd December 10-1

Friday 4th December 10-1

2027 dates tbc

OTHER COURSES

We keep these classes very small to ensure a highly practical, hands-on experience. All materials are included.

Basic Bricklaying

1 day course £150

You may be wanting to create a small retaining wall, a raised bed or some steps. This course will cover all of the basics. We will look at what tools, equipment and materials to use and why, how to quantify materials, different foundation types and mortar mixes and how to set out correctly. Most of the day will be spent doing the practical bit: laying several courses of brick and building a brick corner. You will need to bring your own set of bricklaying tools with you (we will tell you what to get).

Thursday 5th November 10-3

2027

Thursday 15th April 10-3

Thursday 20th October 10-3

get in touch to book a course or find out more

Norfolk School of Gardening

Course Programme 2026/27

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