Garden and Planting Design
- Level(s) of Study: Short course
- Course Fee:
£675
- Start Date(s): 14 July 2025
- Duration: Monday to Friday 10 am - 4 pm, one week
- Study Mode(s): Part-time
- Campus: City Campus
- Entry Requirements: More information
Introduction:
Course dates:
14 - 18 July 2025, Monday to Friday 10 am - 4 pm
Master the essentials of garden and planting design with this creative, hands-on course, perfect for transforming outdoor spaces or kickstarting a career in garden design.
You’ll dive into the creative process, sparking and developing your design ideas, with a group visit to a RHS Flower Show where you’ll appraise the show gardens and exhibits for their use of form, materials, planting, and design principles. This will help you to generate ideas and concepts that you can apply in your own designs, before bringing them to life with innovative techniques and practical approaches to using plants and materials.
Learn to think like a professional as you explore essential techniques such as site surveying, selecting the perfect materials and plants, and mastering the art of hand-drawn technical designs.
Working through a real-world client brief, you’ll experience the full design process; from your initial inspiration to a polished, presentation-ready plan. Along the way, you’ll gain practical knowledge and confidence to apply to your own garden space, or to take the first steps toward a new career.
This course isn’t just informative; it’s fun, immersive, and designed to ignite your passion for garden design. Join us, meet like-minded enthusiasts, and discover just how rewarding and creative garden design can be!
Ready to dig in?
-
You’ll be part of a design community in our creative studio culture; one that promotes discussion and collaboration, and encourages experimentation and the constant swapping of ideas. -
With a limited class size you'll have the one-to-one attention you need to ensure you leave with the skills to continue developing your designs at home or work. -
Benefit from learning with an experienced tutor who has established links to the profession and significant experience working in varied practices. -
On successful completion of the course you will receive a certificate of attendance.
What you’ll study
The course will cover topics including garden design principles, site surveying, 2D plan drafting and graphics, development of garden concepts, an introduction to hard landscaping materials, and an introduction to planting design.
Whether you’re an aspiring garden designer ready to kickstart your career or a passionate home gardener dreaming of transforming your outdoor space, this course is your perfect introduction to the art and craft of garden design.
You will learn techniques to appraise growing conditions in a garden and identify plants that will thrive there, as well as develop technical skills that allow scaled garden design plans to be drawn accurately by hand. You will also be introduced to the processes of choosing hard landscaping materials that will be fit for purpose and developing a planting scheme that will give colour and interest for many years to come.
During this course, you will:
- explore the fundamental principles of design and learn how to appraise/apply these in the context of a garden
- practice surveying techniques that will allow you to accurately measure a garden and its contents
- learn how to interpret a client brief to ensure your designs deliver all the required elements
- develop initial design ideas using bubble plans to understand spatial aspects
- learn how to translate initial design ideas into hand-drawn, scaled garden design plans using industry-standard graphics
- explore a wide range of hard landscaping materials currently available for outdoor spaces
- choose hard landscaping materials that will be suitable for specific projects using an understanding of their key properties
- consider the importance of sustainability in garden design and explore ways to control environmental impacts
- learn site and soil appraisal methods to identify growing conditions in a garden
- learn the principles of plant selection to ensure plant chosen will thrive in the location
- develop a planting scheme and communicate this by producing a planting plan
- visit inspirational gardens so that you can interpret their use of design principles, materials, and planting based on your learning.
By the end of this course you will have a foundation knowledge of garden design principles and practical design development skills that will enable you to redevelop your own garden space at home.
You will leave with a range of scaled garden design drawings including a 2D design plan and a planting plan that could either be used as a reference for your own projects in the future, or could form the start of your portfolio if you are looking to start a career in garden design.
Here’s a breakdown of what you’ll study during the course:
Explore how to apply principles such as unity, simplicity, balance, and proportion to create gardens that are not only practical to use, but that are also enjoyable to spend time in. This will guide the development of your designs during the course and give you the knowledge to transfer these principles to your own garden.
Guided group exercises will allow you to practice a range of different surveying methods and techniques using professional equipment such as tape measures to accurately record the size and shape of a garden, as well as its contents (e.g. patios, planting beds, sheds, etc.).
You will also be introduced to several other site characteristics, including soil assessments, that you will need to appraise to help you make more informed decisions about feature placement, materials, and plant selection.
From existing site plans to finished garden design plans and planting plans, learn how to produce scaled 2D plans by hand using professional equipment. This makes it easier to build the garden in reality because you know that everything is going to fit in the space and what size everything should be. It also means you can make sure you’ve chosen the correct number of plants to fit into any planting beds.
You will be taught simple, industry-standard graphics that you can use for common garden items so that a landscaper would be able to interpret your plans more easily, and how to label and set out a plan for a professional look.
You will experience the process of developing a garden design from initial concepts and bubble plans to establish overall allocation of space, through feature, material, and plant selection, all the way to final plan creation. You will have opportunity to apply the design principles learnt in response to a given client brief, to simulate a real-world garden design scenario.
How you’re taught
You will learn through university-style lectures, participate in practical group exercises, go on a RHS Flower Show group trip, and receive one-to-one support from the tutor. Peer discussions will be encouraged throughout the week to help you share knowledge and ideas.
This course will be delivered in person on Nottingham Trent University city campus.
Contact hours
You will receive 25 contact hours of quality tuition with an experienced tutor.
Careers and employability
The course is designed to prepare you to succeed in the garden design industry, whether that’s rejuvenating your own garden or embarking on a career change.
On successful completion of the course you will receive a certificate of attendance, which will further enhance your CV.
Campus and facilities
You will be based in the School of Architecture, Design and Built Environment on the City Campus.
You will receive an email one week before the course starts with joining instructions on where to go for the first day.
You’ll also have access to our library to use outside of your short course; whilst you can’t reserve or take away books, you are welcome to use them as a resource for research and referencing.
Entry requirements
Level: Beginner
Entry requirement: No previous garden design or drawing experience is required.
You must be over the age of 18 in order to attend this course.
Fees and funding
The fee for this course is £675.
Payment is due at the time of booking - ask us if you'd prefer an invoice sent to your company.
Secure your place with a deposit - If you're booking more than two months before the course starts, we can accept a £200 deposit to secure your place, and the balance is due one month before the course starts.
Your course fees cover the cost of studies, including most materials to create your designs and other great benefits such as the use of our modern library and free use of the IT equipment and software on the campus during your course.
Please bring with you to the first session:
- Mechanical pencil and refill leads
- Eraser
- 0.1, 0.3, 05 and 0.8 mm Fineliner pens
- Masking tape
- Colouring pens and pencils
- a sketchbook or notebook for ideas and notes
- any personal images or inspiration for your garden design
- comfortable clothing and shoes for site visits.
You can read the terms and conditions of booking here.
Need accommodation for a week long summer course?
Accommodation can be booked separately to the course; the rooms are only a few minutes’ walk from our studios and classrooms, and cost £259 per week.
These are single rooms with a private bathroom in shared apartments in Nottingham Trent University’s city campus accommodation, which is ideal if you're looking to be based in Nottingham's lively city centre and want an economical place to stay.
Find out more and book your accommodation here.
How to apply
This course is available for booking via the NTU online store:
14 - 18 July 2025, Monday to Friday 10 am - 4 pm
Browse all our architecture and interior design short courses.
Any questions?
Contact the short course team:
Email: creativeshortcourses@ntu.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0)115 848 2813