Alison Worster
Introduction to Garden Design
- Regular price
- £365.00
- Sale price
- £365.00
- Regular price
Tax included.
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The Introduction to Garden Design online course is taught by expert garden designers Hilary Thomas and Alison Worster. The course will take you through all the basics of garden design, theory and practice.
Garden design is all about organising and shaping spaces and it covers many different elements.
You'll learn about each stage of garden design starting with assessing the site, the soil and the surroundings; how to measure the site and draw up a site survey plan to understand the advantages and restraints of the site.
You'll go through the briefing process from requirements to resources, and then onto the garden design process, experimenting with different patterns, creating positive and negative spaces (or mass and void or planting and features) which will give the garden its character. And you'll learn how to transfer your designs onto a grid and make scale drawings.
Finally you'll look at using hard landscaping and features (including pergolas, paths, sheds and water features. As well as planting including hedges and trees.
At the end of the course you should have the skills that will enable you to design your own or someone else’s garden.
You'll learn:
- equipment you'll need to create garden designs
- how to draw and annotate garden designs
- how to use patterns and shapes, void and mass
- creating a garden design checklist
- working with a garden design brief
- surveying and assessing your garden site
- informal and formal design
- balance and asymmetrical design
- incorporating garden features including paths, steps, water and structural features
- how to plan hard landscaping
- working with boundaries
- garden furniture and features
The course includes:
- 8 on-demand video lessons - presented by Hilary Thomas and tutored by Alison Worster
- lifetime access to the videos, notes and interactive class
- flexible classes - join and learn when and where you like
- downloadable lesson notes
- practical garden design assignments (with tutor feedback available)
- access on your mobile, PC, Mac or laptop
- small interactive online classroom - chat online to students from around the world and share your creative ideas
Time to complete the Introduction to Garden Design course:
Every student is different but in general we think the whole course will take around 28 hours to complete including:
- Video lessons: 4 hours in total
- Course notes: 30 minutes per lesson
- Your garden design assignments: at least 2 hours per lesson
- Interactive classroom time: 15 minutes per lesson
- Tutor feedback review (Expert level): 15 minutes per lesson
Ready to get started?
Just add the course to your basket above - choose the 'Expert' option for personal feedback from Alison on your garden design assignments.
If you know someone who'd love this course then give it as a gift - just tick "This is a gift" at the checkout.
Any questions? Contact us by clicking on the orange speech symbol - we'd love to hear from you.
Lessons
What You’ll Learn
Explore the lessons and topics covered across the course.
In this lesson we are going to look at the equipment and basic drawing skills that you will need if you are going to draw your garden design on paper.
Your final layout plan needs to be neat, clear and well organised so that it can be used as a working document, either by you or a contractor.
In this lesson I am going to take you through the process of choosing and using a grid that relates to a particular house and site.
The patterns that you have worked on so far have been developed for an isolated abstract space.
Gardens are rarely isolated – they are usually connected to a house or other building which they should relate to and be developed from.
To ensure that your finished garden design is really successful, there are a few principles or rules that you need to think about when designing any garden or outdoor space.
We'll go through the stages that are involved in developing a preliminary garden layout plan when you have to make decisions about where the patio, paths, lawn, water and other structures are to be sited and how much space they will take up.
All good design is built around these basic principles and you need to try and consider them as you develop your design.
To develop your plan further you now have to be more specific so for each of the elements you need to decide on the type of material that is going to be used and refine all the dimensions.
Before you can produce an accurate layout plan showing your design for a real garden, you will need to carry out a full assessment of the site and produce an accurate scale drawing of the existing site, called a site survey.
In this lesson we are going to consider how water, steps and structures such as a pergola or overhead beams can add interest and atmosphere to your garden design.
In this lesson we consider the importance of boundaries and how the design and materials that you select should fit in with both the location and the design and theme of the garden.
In this last lesson we look at the extra items such as furniture pots and sculptures that you can use to furnish and enhance the layout of the garden. You will also learn how to to finalise your garden plan so that it clearly expresses and communicates your ideas to you, your family and the contractor.
Learning options
Choose How You Want to Learn
Recommended
Expert
£365.00
A guided learning experience with expert support, feedback and recognised outcomes.
Peer
£95.00
Learn alongside others with a collaborative, flexible learning experience.
COURSE TUTOR
Alison Worster
SUCCESS
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Common Questions
Answers to the most common questions about learning with us.
Our online classroom is designed to help you learn from experts in a collaborative, social environment alongside a small group of learners.
Each lesson combines expert-led videos with optional assignments, giving you the opportunity to apply what you’ve learned and share your work with others. You can take part in ongoing discussions, ask questions, exchange feedback, and learn from a community of like-minded people from around the world.
By learning together in a small, supportive group, you benefit not only from expert guidance but also from shared ideas, perspectives, and experiences—helping you stay engaged and retain what you learn.
You can start your course at any time within 12 months of purchase. Once you begin, you’ll have lifetime access, so you can revisit lesson videos and notes whenever you like.
Courses are designed to fit around your schedule, allowing you to learn at your own pace. Each lesson video is typically 30–40 minutes, and we recommend around an hour for each assignment.
Both Peer and Expert options give you full access to the course content, including lesson videos, downloadable notes, assignments, and a collaborative online classroom with up to 20 learners. You’ll also have lifetime access to revisit the material at any time.
The Expert option includes everything in Peer, plus personalised assignment feedback, direct messaging with your expert tutor, and a certificate of completion.
With the Expert option, you can interact directly with your tutor throughout the course. You’ll typically have one week per lesson to ask questions and receive feedback on your assignments, with as much interaction as you need during that time.
Your tutor access begins when you enter the classroom and follows the course schedule (for example, a four-lesson course usually runs over four weeks). If you need more time or support, our team is here to help.
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