Dr Rachel Petheram

The Scented Garden

£45 £27 Save 40%
Level: Peer






What’s the difference between Peer and 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
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Want to buy for a business or group?

You can buy this course through your business or organisation for individuals and groups up to 20. To find out more contact us

Level: Peer

Course overview

Expert florist, flower grower at Doddington Hall and RHS flower teacher Dr Rachel Petheram teaches you how to choose flowers and plants for fragrance and how to design a scented garden.

You'll learn how to grow flowers and plants for scent - whether scenting your garden, using plant fragrance for psychological benefit or for cut flowers and flower arrangements.

She'll show you how to select and combine scented flowers, flowering shrubs and plants, and which plants to choose for fragrance in your garden space during day and night.

Scent has a powerful effect on emotion and mood and a fragrant garden can be a means to health, wellbeing and pleasure. This course covers how we perceive scent and how it can directly affect not only our mood but our physiology.

This knowledge can then can be used to good effect in our gardens. If we want somewhere to relax and de-stress or if we want an outside work space where we can be refreshed and invigorated, then there is a plant to fill the fragrance brief. However, we often miss the effect of fragrance in our gardens because it is such a fleeting, ethereal thing so we need to make sure that our gardens are designed to maximise the beneficial effects of this lovely sense.

You are encouraged through the suggested assignments to design your own fragrant space tailored to your own requirements and to share your experience along the way.

You'll learn:

  • the science and benefits of scent
  • how scent works
  • designing a scent garden
  • developing garden structures to maximise scent
  • choosing scented plants and flowers
  • propagating plants
  • keeping your plants and flowers healthy

Suitable for gardeners and florists of all abilities.

Time to complete this scented garden course:

Every student is different but in general we think the whole course will take around 14 hours 40 minutes to complete including:

  • Video lessons: 2 hours 40 minutes in total
  • Course notes: 30 minutes per lesson
  • Assignment: at least 2 hours per lesson
  • Interactive classroom time: 15 minutes per lesson
  • tutor feedback review (Expert level): 15 minutes per lesson

The course includes:

  • On-demand video lessons - presented by Dr Rachel Petheram
  • lifetime access to the video, notes and interactive class
  • flexible classes - join and learn when and where you like
  • downloadable lesson notes
  • practical (optional) garden design and fragrance based projects
  • access on your mobile, PC, Mac or laptop
  • small interactive online classroom chat online to students from around the world

Ready to get started?

Just add the course to your basket above - choose the 'Expert' option for personal feedback from Rachel on your plant choices and garden plans.

Any questions? Contact us by clicking on the orange speech symbol - we'd love to hear from you.

Lesson summary

The science of scent
In this lecture you will understand the science behind scent, and the effect it has on the brain. Scent has a hugely beneficial effect on our mood and behavior, but it is difficult to classify and describe scent. In this session we will learn about how our sense of smell works, how we interpret scent and factors that affect our response and the beneficial effects that scent has on our physiology.
Maximising fragrance in the garden
Scent is often overlooked when gardens are designed. In this session we will discuss how gardens or part of a garden can be designed to maximise the effect of fragrant plants in a garden. We will consider very basic design principles, and think about how we can best ensure that scent is considered at every layer. We will also cover special considerations for scented gardens.
Garden structure
The choice of scented plants is not just confined to the herbaceous border. In this lesson we will consider how vital structures like hedges, climbers and trees can add structure to a garden as well as introducing different layers of scent.
Fragrant perennials, annuals & biennials
The really pretty stuff! In this session we will consider fragrant perennials, annuals and biennials, bulbs, herbs and roses. We will discuss which ones are best for scent and how to get the best out of your plants as well as tips on propagating.

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

Dr Rachel Petheram

Artisan florist, gardener, and teacher at Doddington Hall, championing British-grown flowers.

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.

You can also use the orange speech bubble on your page to start a conversation with us.

For privacy or data questions, please contact us here.

Awards and accreditations