Nursery training

Lesson 1 • Basic Plant Biology for Nursery Work

Introduces plant cells, tissues, and organ functions relevant to daily nursery tasks. Provides the biological vocabulary needed for all subsequent propagation and care topics.

Lesson 2 • Regulatory and Environmental Compliance

Outlines plant health certification, pesticide licensing, and environmental permit requirements. Students understand compliance obligations before handling regulated materials.

Lesson 3 • Tools, Equipment, and Safety

Identifies hand tools, power equipment, and personal protective gear used daily. Connects proper tool use to worker safety and plant health outcomes.

Lesson 4 • Nursery Facility Layout and Zones

Explains propagation, growing, and retail zones and their spatial logic. Students can read a facility map and understand workflow between zones.

Lesson 1 • Mixing and Blending Substrates

Teaches volumetric ratios, batch mixing procedures, and quality control checks. Students produce consistent, repeatable mixes suited to specific crop requirements.

Lesson 2 • Soil Amendments and Conditioners

Introduces lime, sulfur, wetting agents, and slow-release fertilisers as corrective additives. Students match amendments to diagnosed substrate deficiencies.

Lesson 3 • Components of Growing Media

Examines peat, bark, perlite, vermiculite, coir, and compost as substrate ingredients. Students identify each component's role in aeration, water retention, and nutrition.

Lesson 4 • Sustainable and Alternative Media

Evaluates peat-free, recycled, and locally sourced substrates for environmental and economic benefits. Prepares students to adopt sustainable media as industry standards evolve.

Lesson 1 • Water Capture and Recycling

Introduces runoff collection, storage pond design, and recirculating system management. Students design a basic water recycling loop that meets regulatory discharge standards.

Lesson 2 • Water Quality and Treatment

Addresses pH, electrical conductivity, alkalinity, and pathogen load as water quality parameters. Students apply filtration, acidification, and chlorination treatments as needed.

Lesson 3 • Irrigation System Types

Compares overhead, drip, ebb-and-flood, and mist systems by efficiency and crop suitability. Students select the appropriate system for each nursery zone.

Lesson 4 • Plant Water Requirements

Explains transpiration, evapotranspiration, and wilting point as drivers of irrigation timing. Students calculate crop water demand under varying environmental conditions.

Lesson 1 • Seed Germination and Seedling Production

Covers seed dormancy, stratification, scarification, and germination environment requirements. Students sow, monitor, and thin seedlings to produce uniform transplant-ready stock.

Lesson 2 • Division, Layering, and Separation

Demonstrates clump division, air layering, ground layering, and offset separation methods. Students apply each technique to appropriate plant genera and growth habits.

Lesson 3 • Propagation Environment Management

Covers mist bench setup, bottom heat, photoperiod lighting, and sanitation protocols. Students maintain propagation environments that minimise disease and maximise rooting speed.

Lesson 4 • Grafting and Budding

Teaches whip-and-tongue, cleft, and T-budding techniques for woody plant production. Students select compatible rootstock-scion combinations and achieve high graft union success.

Lesson 1 • Essential Plant Nutrients

Identifies macronutrients and micronutrients, their roles, and deficiency symptoms. Students link visual symptoms to specific nutrient imbalances before applying corrections.

Lesson 2 • Tissue and Media Testing

Covers foliar sampling, pour-through substrate extraction, and laboratory submission procedures. Students interpret test reports and adjust fertiliser programmes based on results.

Lesson 3 • Fertiliser Calculations and Mixing

Teaches parts-per-million calculations, dilution ratios, and injector calibration for liquid feed programmes. Students prepare accurate stock solutions and verify injector output.

Lesson 4 • Fertiliser Types and Formulations

Compares granular, liquid, controlled-release, and organic fertiliser forms by release pattern and application method. Students match fertiliser type to crop stage and production system.

Lesson 1 • Fungal, Bacterial, and Viral Diseases

Covers Botrytis, Pythium, powdery mildew, bacterial leaf spot, and common viruses by symptom and spread. Students distinguish disease from abiotic disorders to avoid misdiagnosis.

Lesson 2 • Common Nursery Pests

Identifies aphids, thrips, spider mites, fungus gnats, and scale insects by damage signs. Students conduct structured scouting and record pest pressure data accurately.

Lesson 3 • Weed Identification and Control

Identifies common nursery weeds and evaluates hand weeding, mulching, and herbicide options. Students design a weed management plan that protects crops and prevents resistance.

Lesson 4 • Pesticide Selection and Safe Application

Covers pesticide label reading, mode-of-action rotation, mixing, and personal protective equipment. Students calculate application rates and complete required safety documentation.

Lesson 1 • Labour Planning and Task Scheduling

Covers labour hour estimation, task sequencing, and crew assignment for peak production periods. Students build a weekly labour schedule aligned with crop production milestones.

Lesson 2 • Inventory and Stock Management

Introduces plant tagging, barcode systems, and inventory software for tracking stock levels. Students reconcile physical counts with digital records and identify shrinkage causes.

Lesson 3 • Crop Timing and Backward Scheduling

Explains how to set a target sale date and work backward through crop stages to set propagation dates. Students create Gantt-style crop timelines for multiple species simultaneously.

Lesson 4 • Space and Bench Allocation

Covers pot spacing, bench density calculations, and zone rotation to maximise production area use. Students calculate square footage requirements for a given sales volume target.

Lesson 1 • Potting, Repotting, and Container Selection

Explains container size progression, potting depth, and root-bound indicators for timely repotting. Students pot and repot crops efficiently while maintaining root integrity.

Lesson 2 • Growth Regulator Use

Introduces plant growth regulators for height control, branching promotion, and rooting enhancement. Students calculate spray concentrations and apply regulators at correct crop stages.

Lesson 3 • Grading, Packaging, and Dispatch

Establishes quality grading criteria, packaging standards, and pre-shipment conditioning protocols. Students grade a batch of plants, reject substandard stock, and prepare orders for dispatch.

Lesson 4 • Pruning, Pinching, and Training

Covers apical dominance, pinching timing, and pruning cuts for branching and form. Students apply techniques to woody and herbaceous crops to achieve specified plant architecture.