Pip Bensley

Climbers & Clematis

£45 £36 Save 20%
Level: Peer






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The difference between Peer & Expert levels

Both Peer and Expert levels provide:

  • Video lessons led by an expert tutor
  • Downloadable lesson notes
  • Practice assignments
  • Group learning in a 20-student online classroom
  • Lifetime access to videos, notes, and classroom

The Expert level additionally includes:

  • Personalized feedback and coaching from your tutor
  • Private messaging with your tutor
  • Certificate of completion
Level: Peer

Course overview

Florist, plant buyer and RHS flower show exhibitor and judge Pip Bensley teaches you how to grow climbers and clematis in this online clematis and climbing plants course.

If you're new to gardening or climbing plants or if you're looking to develop your knowledge about clematis or choosing the best climbers for your garden, Pip will take you through from beginner to expert.

Choose the Expert option for personal feedback from Pip on your assignments.

You'll learn:

  • when to prune clematis and other climbers
  • which climbing plants to choose for your garden
  • how to choose climbers that can grow through trees
  • creating garden privacy with climbers
  • what types of climbing plants to grow in which areas of the garden
  • how to solve wisteria flowering problems
  • pruning rambling roses

Perhaps you have some in the garden and want to learn how to make more of what you have? You might be planting a new garden from scratch or helping a friend or client choose climbers for their garden.

Subjects like pruning, planting and using climbers in your overall design can be really intimidating but this course demystifies all of these so that you can really enjoy using climbing plants in your gardening.

Watch course trailer

Lesson summary

Climbers, and Their Role in the Garden
To choose the right climbers for your garden I am going to show you how they grow and what kind of supports you need for each of the different types. I will also introduce the idea of different planting layers in the garden and how you can make use of them to bring more colour and flower to your planting. This is climbers and clematis demystified. All this information is generously peppered with invaluable hints and tips I have picked up over 30 years of buying and selling plants.
Be Prepared
When you start to choose plants, whether for your garden or someone else’s there are a series of questions you should ask. This lesson takes you through them one by one and covers important topics like shady spots, climate, soil types, buying on a budget and future maintenance.  Don’t ever be led astray by a pretty picture on a label again. Armed with this checklist you can be sure that you are ready to choose with confidence. I also look at colour schemes and the effect that colours have on mood plus how to make the most of an inherited colour scheme.
The Nitty Gritty
You’re ready to go out and buy the climbers you have chosen now. Garden centres and nurseries can be intimidating so I arm you with all the information you need to choose the very best quality plants. I explain about pot sizes and the benefits of planting specimen plants. There are some professional tips you can use when planting to get the best from the climbers and clematis, I will share these with you. Pruning is a subject that even very experienced gardeners find confusing so I have put together a simple guide to pruning with special emphasis on Clematis and Wisteria, two of the trickiest subjects.
The Fun Stuff
Now you are ready to put together all the skills you have learnt and lesson 4 is all about how to use clematis and climbers in your design. It includes tips on making the most of colour, scent and fruit. Different kinds of garden features are also considered – would a pergola be best for you or would pillars work best? Finally I look at planting in pots, the best shaped pots, different materials for the and which composts should you use.

Choose how you want to learn

Expert-level

Develop your learning further with marked assignments and personal tuition:

  • Start the course whenever you like
  • Tutor access for personalised assignment feedback & coaching
  • Certificate of completion and CPD learning hours
  • Online classroom with up to 20 classmates
  • Lessons with expert videos & notes
  • Group chat & direct message with tutor & classmates
  • Lifetime access to videos, notes & classroom

Peer-level

Get the most from shared knowledge and community study:

  • Start course whenever you like
  • Practise what you learn with your peers
  • Online classroom with up to 20 classmates
  • Lessons with videos & notes
  • Course assignments
  • Group chat & direct message classmates
  • Lifetime access to videos, notes & classroom

meet the expert

Pip Bensley

Pip is an RHS judge, floral designer, and former Hillier Garden Centres buyer with expertise in climbers.

Read more

Why choose Learning with Experts?

Start whenever it suits you, and immerse yourself in motivational lesson tutorials with expert guidance.
Enhance your learning and personal growth with lesson assignments. Each course includes an optional assignment at the end of every lesson.
Drop a friendly message or respond to your assignment feedback. Our world-class experts are just a click away, ready to help you!
Stay informed about your own progress and those of your peers, and take joy in celebrating achievements along the way.
Chat and share ideas with passionate communities of learners from around the world.

Frequently asked questions

What’s the difference between PEER and EXPERT levels?

At Peer and Expert level, you get access to the same core content and features:

  • Video lesson tutorials led by your expert tutor
  • Downloadable lesson notes
  • Option to practise what you learn with lesson assignments
  • Group learning within an online interactive classroom of up to 20 classmates
  • Lifetime access to videos, notes and classroom

If you choose Expert level, you get all of the above plus the following:

  • Personalised assignment feedback and coaching from your expert tutor
  • Opportunity to interact with your expert tutor through a private messaging system
  • Certificate of completion.
What is an online classroom?

Our online classroom has been developed to allow you to learn from our experts in a sociable environment alongside up to 20 other students. After each video tutorial led by your expert, you will be encouraged to practice what you have learned with optional assignments - these can be seen by the other students in your class, who are free to share their own thoughts and questions with you.

You will be encouraged to take part in an ongoing class discussion where you can discuss ideas, post images or work, and comment on each other’s assignments. It’s a great way to learn from other like-minded people who share your passion from all over the world.

This means not only do you benefit from people who are outstanding in their field, but also from a close-knit group of like-minded people whom you can learn alongside. Group learning has shown to greatly improve not just the experience of studying, but also how well you retain the knowledge, and we have built our classroom experience around this fact.
When can I start my course and how long will it take?

You can start your course any time within 12 months after receipt of your purchase confirmation email. Once you start, you’ll have lifetime access — meaning you can revisit the lesson videos and notes whenever you want.

Our courses are designed so that you can study at your own pace, some prefer to binge learn while others like to spread their studying over a longer period of time - it’s completely up to you. To give you a rough time frame, each lesson video is approximately 30-40 minutes long, and we recommend that you spend around an hour on each assignment.
How often can I speak with the Expert?

If you opt for the Expert version of your course, the time you have to interact with your tutor is limited to course length. You will have one week per lesson to chat to your tutor and to have your assignments marked, and during this period you can ask them as many questions as you would like.

To find out the length of each course, head to the product page and look at the Course outline to see how many lessons it contains. e.g. a four lesson course assumes that you will have completed the assignments within four weeks.

Your tutor interaction period will start as soon as you enter the classroom. If you find that you are struggling to complete the assignments in the allocated time or you wish to put this function on hold, just get in contact with one of the team via the support button and we will help you out.
Support and full FAQs

If you need any help with a course, be it one you’ve started already, or one you are looking to purchase, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our Support email address, or view the full FAQ’s here.

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Awards and accreditations

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