RHS Certificate 3 -Principles of Plant Growth, Health & Applied Propagation

Home Studies Course -RHS Level III Certificate in the Principles of Plant Growth, Health and Applied Propagation.

• Learn to identify more plants
• Learn more ways to propagate plants
• Understand plant botany better
• Learn to manage pest and disease, prune different types of plants
• Take your career to a new level -increase business and job prospects in horticulture 

Prerequisite: RHS Certificate II in Horticulture or equivalent

Lesson Structure

There are 15 lessons in this course:

1. Taxonomic Classification of Plants
2. Structure and Function of Cells and Tissues
3. Role of Flowers and Fruit
4. Photosynthesis, Respiration, and Movement of Water
5. Effects of Tropisms and Plant Growth Regulators
6. Physical Properties of Growing Media
7. Chemical Properties of Growing Media and Role of Air and Water
8. Biological Processes in Growing Media
9. Nutrients and Plant Growth
10. Organic Techniques and Soil Management
11. Plant Pests, Diseases and Disorders Part A
12. Plant Pests, Diseases and Disorders Part B
13. Regulation of Chemicals and Storage Procedures
14. Seed Propagation
15. Vegetative Propagation

Each lesson culminates in an assignment which is submitted to the school, marked by the school's tutors and returned to you with any relevant suggestions, comments, and if necessary, extra reading.

Aims

• Demonstrate knowledge of the major divisions of the plant kingdom and an understanding of the taxonomic hierarchy and its relevance to horticultural practice.
• Identify and describe the different types of plant cells and tissues, their structure, and function.
• To understand the role and function of the reproductive parts of the plant and the seed in the plant lifecycle.
• Understand the mechanism and role of photosynthesis and respiration in the metabolism of plants, the role of water in the plant, and the movement of water, solutes, and assimilates through the plant.
• To develop an understanding of the effects of tropisms and other plant movements on growth and development.
• Understand the physical properties of growing media and their significance in relation to plant growth.
• To understand basic chemistry of soils and other growing media, and the relationship between their air and water content and plant growth.
• To understand the role of living organisms in the biological processes of soils and other growing media.
• To understand how nutrients affect plant growth and describe a range of fertilisers and their applications.
• To determine appropriate management programs for different soils in horticultural situations.

There's a System to Identifying Plants (extract from course)

For ease of study, the plant kingdom is divided into two main groups:

1) Higher Plants (flowering plants)
2) Lower Plants (non-flowering plants)

Higher plants are all seed-bearing and include trees and shrubs as well as the vast array of flowering plants. Although most seed-bearing plants produce flowers, some do not. Nevertheless, even these plants have ovules and pollen producing organs.

Lower plants include ferns, horsetails, algae, mosses and club mosses.

Botanical Classification

In the scientific system, plants are classified by dividing them into groups which have similar characteristics. These groups are then divided into smaller groups with similar characteristics. These smaller groups are divided again, and so on. The division of group to sub-group and sub-group to further sub-groups continues until you finally have only one type of plant in each group.

There are many different levels of division, although the main ones which we use in horticulture are at the bottom end of the scale (i.e. family, genus, species and variety).

What are Hormones and Tropisms (extract from course)

PLANT HORMONES

Plant hormones or ‘plant growth regulators’ are quite different to animal hormones. They are produced in the stems, leaves, roots and flowers of plants. They initiate biochemical processes that result in observable physiological responses in the plant.

Auxin (also known as indole-3-acetic acid or IAA) is a plant hormone that stimulates increases in cell length, especially near stem and root tips. It is produced in the apical meristem and then moves downwards toward the roots. As it does so, its concentration decreases. The extent to which cells in the plant stem elongate is directly proportional to the concentration of auxin present.

TROPISMS

Tropisms are plant growth responses to external stimuli. A tropic movement is always determined by the direction of the external (exogenous) stimulus. For instance, a plant might move its leaves or flowers towards the sun (positive tropism) or away from it (negative tropism). Tropisms are controlled by plant hormones.

What's Needed to Get the Certificate?

To obtain the certificate, awarded by the RHS in England, the student needs to sit and pass written exams conducted under supervision, and assessed by the RHS.

Exams can be arranged to be sat anywhere in the world.

Exams are offered twice annually; in February and June. A separate fee applies for exams; set by and paid to the RHS.

A network of exam centres are located across the UK for students located in the UK. For students located outside the UK; a provision is made for exams to be conducted "under arrangements for exceptional supervision".

This is one of several new RHS Qualifications being phased in to replace older courses over the second half of 2010.