Learn planting, the Piet Oudolf way

We’re delighted to welcome Piet Oudolf, the most influential garden designer of the past 25 years, to MyGardenSchool. Piet is the co-author of Planting the Piet Oudolf Way alongside acclaimed horticulturist Dr Noel Kingsbury.

Within 12 hours of making the course available, it has quickly become the fastest selling online course we’ve ever released. There is clearly pent up demand for online courses from experts in horticulture who many people can't usually access like Piet Oudolf and Noel Kingsbury.

Piet Oudolf is the most influential garden designer of the past 25 years. An internationally-renowned landscape designer from the Netherlands he is a leading figure of the ‘New Perennial’ or ‘New Wave Planting’ movement, using bold blends of perennials and grasses to dramatic effect. His work is very accessible and based very much on knowing plants over time – for design there are no rules, simple tricks, patterns or easy 'lessons'.

During the course, you will join Dr Noel Kingsbury, who has known and helped interpret Piet’s work for over twenty years on a tour of the Oudolf family garden at Hummelo, with Piet. They discuss plants and plant combinations, before going inside to Piet's studio to look at planting plans and some pictures of the garden at Hummelo at different times of year. Shot in September, the high point of the garden year at Hummelo, viewing concentrates on identifying those elements of structure, texture, form and colour which are so characteristic of Oudolf planting style.

As with all of our courses, the videos are paired with assignments that are aimed at encouraging you to go out and look at the plants that grow around you, to help you look at plants and planting “the Oudolf way”. The idea is that wherever you are in the world, nature has beautiful and long-lasting plants which are potential garden and landscape plants - it is up to you to identify, seek them out and use them. The assignments you submit will be marked by Noel, who can share his experiences gained all around the world.

We spoke to Piet Oudolf about his new course and he said: “I know that many people across the world who I can’t reach would like to understand more about my planting philosophy and have personal recommendations. I maintain that structure is the most important component in a successful planting; colour is important too but it is a secondary consideration. To work with Noel and MyGardenSchool I hope means that we can share our planting philosophy with you, and give you a deeper understanding, wherever you are.”

Noel Kingsbury added: “MyGardenSchool is an exciting concept as it means that Piet and I can actually reach out to students, wherever they are in the world, and give them feedback. I’m already an established tutor and have enjoyed being part of the new movement to unite horticulture and design enthusiasts on a global scale”.

Planting the Piet Oudolf Way is a perfect companion to ‘Planting Design with Perennials’ taught by Noel Kingsbury where you can learn the more technical detail of Piet’s signature style, using plants that are predictable and long-lived; Perennial Meadow Planting, a detailed, practical course covering all aspects of this planting style taught by Michael King and Gardening with Grasses which takes a detailed look at this critical element of the Oudolf-look planting palette.

To perfect Piet’s overall planting style all of these courses are recommended. To get a place you can book your new online course with Piet and Noel from today, and can start it from October.