Protected Plant Production
Greenhouse Cropping, Protected Plant Production, Distance Learning Course
Protected cultivation involves growing plants in a sheltered or enclosed environment, for the purpose of improving plant growth. Structures used to protect crops range from cloches and conservatories in home gardens through to highly sophisticated commercial greenhouses. The structure may provide partial enclosure, as in a shade-house, or full enclosure, as in a fully automated and heated glasshouse.
Many types of crops are grown under cover utilizing a particular climate, whereas, they can be produced in the open in another climate type. Whether a particular plant is treated as a “protected crop” or not will depend on when and where you grow it, and what you hope to achieve from the production of the crop.
The crops produced in a protected environment can be ornamental – for the home garden and nursery; for the cut flower industry; or food crops for commercial production. Types of plants include:
- Vegetables
- Fruits
- Herbs
- Cut Flowers
- Container Plants
- Bedding Plants
- Over- wintering cold-tender species
- Display plants
There are 10 lessons in this course:
- Structures For Protected Cropping
- Environmental Control
- Cladding Materials And Their Properties
- Irrigation
- Nursery Nutrition
- Relationship Between Production Techniques And Horticultural Practices
- Horticultural Management In A Greenhouse: Pests And Diseases
- Harvest & Post Harvest Technology
- Greenhouse Plants
- Risk Assessment
Each lesson culminates in an assignment which is submitted to the school, marked by the school's tutors and returned to you with any relevant suggestions, comments, and if necessary, extra reading.
For more information on this course, please request your free course information pack.