Welsh Board, Entry Level Land Studies Course

Topic A – Food Crops and Flowers

Propagation:

• Use of propagators
• Taking softwood, hardwood, greenwood and leaf cuttings
• Layering
• Division
• Sowing seeds, planting bulbs, spacing, depth etc

Food Crops

Planting, care and harvesting information on:

• Plums, leeks, potatoes, peppers, garlic, etc

Flowers

• Planning a garden
• Clearing and planting a garden
• NPK etc
• Sore Science (C & N cycles, photosynthesis, parts of flowering plants, reproduction, soil types and structure)

Key Practical Skills

• Soil tests, soil structure and composition
• Preparation of seed bed
• Propagation techniques Application of biocides and fertilisers etc
• Estimating and measuring area of land to be treated Following instructions to assemble equipment (staging etc)

Machinery and Equipment

• Equipment and techniques needed for large-scale production

Syllabus for the rest of the course:

Topic C – Glasshouse Crops

• Production of one or more glasshouse crops to demonstrate the use of a controlled environment
• Methods of controlling light, temperature and humidity
• Selection, siting and care of a glasshouse

Topic E – The Farm

• Livestock on a local farm eg. dairy, beef, sheep, pigs, poultry
• In depth study of one type of livestock
• Reasons for selecting the particular type of livestock for study
• Digestive and reproductive systems
• Breeding programme, identification systems, rearing, feeding, housing
• Routine hygiene, common diseases and control, stock handling
• Food crops grown on the farm or brought in. Nutritional value of each one.
• Sale of produce eg. milk, beef, eggs etc.

Topic F – The Garden

• Garden design
• Purpose of a garden for growing food, providing a hobby, enhancing the property
• Lawns, flowers, shrubs, climbers etc.
• Garden cultivation
• Producing a suitable tilth using garden hand tools and/or powered equipment
• Sowing and planting
• Crop rotations
• Caring for the growing plant, weeding, feeding, pest and disease control
• Harvesting the crop
• Lawns, maintenance and care
• Protected cultivation

This is a new course based here at Pewsey with an external provider.

For more information, speak to Mr N Pritchard.