Learning with Experts
RHS Level 2 Certificate: Principles of Plant Growth & Development
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Course Overview
Are you passionate about plants, gardening, or pursuing a career in horticulture? The RHS Level 2 Certificate in the Principles of Plant Growth & Development is the ideal course to expand and certify your knowledge, whether you're a beginner looking to develop professional skills or an established horticulturist seeking formal recognition.
Units & Modules
This course provides a strong foundation in plant biology, health, identification, and styles, ensuring students develop a well-rounded understanding of how plants grow, thrive, and respond to different conditions.
It consists of two key units, divided into four modules each:
Unit 1
1. Plant Science 1
Provides underpinning knowledge of the plant, its structure and function.
2. Plant Health
Provides underpinning knowledge and understanding of the effect of a range of factors on plant health.
3. Plant Nutrition
Provides horticultural knowledge of plant nutrition and growing media.
4. Plant Specification
Provides horticultural knowledge to make recommendations for planting based on matching plant need and site requirements.
Unit 2
5. Plant Science 2
Provides an understanding of the range and role of plant adaptations.
6. Planting Styles
Provides horticultural knowledge of the factors involved in creating a wide range of different horticultural plantings.
7. Horticulture and Society
Allows learners to develop their knowledge and understanding of horticulture’s contribution to society, including social, environmental and economic.
8. Biodiversity
Provides an applied knowledge of the roles of plants in creating habitats to encourage biodiversity.
SUCCESS
Designed for exams, with a consistent 80%+ pass rate amongst our learners!
Satisfaction
4.5/5 rating – for course quality, support, study materials, and exam prep.
confidence
A decades experience teaching 1000's of students on various RHS syllabuses.
GLOBAL
Proudly serving the RHS in 18 countries, across 4 continents.
Course Information
The RHS Level 2 Certificate in Principles of Plant Growth and Development is an internationally recognised qualification from the Royal Horticultural Society. This course is based on the new 2022 syllabus.
Given our learning platform, we can accommodate students in different time zones, and allow the flexibility for you to learn around your own schedule, and start right away.
- Examinations - At the end of your learning, you will have to sit two exams which are split up based on the two Units. Students who are learning with us will take these exams online from home. We will handle all of the bookings on your behalf. The exams are normally held in February, June and October (on specific days in each month). You are welcome to split up the Unit exams into two separate sessions. Whilst you must complete the exams to gain the qualification, we won't make bookings for a specific exam session without your explicit consent.
- Assignments & Feedback - During your time in each of the 8 topics, you will test your exam writing skills in a series of lesson-end assignments. Whilst these don't count towards your final grade (this is dictated by the exam results), they do give you a chance to put your learning into action and receive exam-related feedback based on your responses. Tutor feedback is issued for each of these assignment; usually within 72 hours of submittal.
- Total Course Time - There are 46 lessons in total, spread over the 8 topics. We find most students like to take 1 lesson per week, but you can study faster or slower. You can also take breaks between topics. The two overall measures we use are Guided Learning Hours (GLH) which sets this course at 120 hours, and Total Qualification Time (TQT) which sets this course at 180 hours.
You'll be ready to take your exam when you have completed all the lessons, assignments, and worked through the qualification-wide outcomes learning material and exam preparation materials.
The course price includes all 46 lessons of content, the online RHS exams and registration fees, and also qualifies you for RHS student membership.
Course Tutors
Dr Noel Kingsbury
Renowned garden designer and author known for naturalistic planting and collaborating with Piet Oudolf.
Dr Noel Kingsbury is an acclaimed garden designer, best-selling author of numerous books and long-time collaborator of the renowned designer Piet Oudolf. With a doctorate from the University of Sheffield he is a leading figure in naturalistic planting design and the New Perennial Movement.
Tom Cole
Experienced educator, horticulturist, BBC broadcaster, and RHS Associate specializing in land-based education.
Tom has spent much time delivering RHS qualifications at Capel Manor College. He is an RHS Associate and speaker, qualification writer for Pearson/ BTEC and marks RHS Level 2 exams. Tom is also currently expanding a small, but perfectly formed soft landscape and maintenance business. Aside from teaching, he regularly broadcasts on BBC Radio Essex with Ken Crowther and contributes to various garden magazines.
Chris Whitelock
Senior RHS Examiner, horticultural consultant, trainer, and former Head of Horticulture.
Chris is a Senior Examiner for the RHS and a consultant and trainer for horticultural businesses and trade organisations. He has also inspected horticultural colleges for Ofsted and has been a Head of Horticulture for numerous institutions.
Ki Tong
PhD candidate at the University of Edinburgh and a chartered landscape architect with 8 years of experience.
Ki is studying for her PhD at the University of Edinburgh, focusing on the design of outdoor spaces for older adults in care homes. She is also a chartered landscape architect with over 8 years of design and construction experience.
Stephen Millam
Horticulture lecturer and plant scientist with 20+ years of experience.
Dr Millam studied Horticulture at Writtle College. He then spent 20 years as a plant scientist in Scotland and is now a lecturer who has successfully delivered RHS courses for over 18 years.
Why choose Learning with Experts?
Frequently asked questions
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.
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, the downloadable notes take about an hour, and we then recommend that you spend around an hour on each assignment.
How often can I speak with the Expert?
The time you have to interact with your tutor is limited for each individual Topic. Your tutor interaction period will start as soon as you enter the Topic classroom - however, this means you can take a break between Topic's.
You will have between two and three months per Topic (depending on length) to chat to your tutor and to have your assignments marked. During this period you can ask them as many questions as you would like.
If you find that you are struggling to complete the assignments in the allocated time, 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
