What’s new in the Rutgers Professional Landscape Program for 2009-2010?
Landscape Design I: The Basics
This new 11-week course will provide an understanding of "The Basics" of landscape design, from establishing an appreciation for good design to forming necessary drafting techniques. Instructor Dominick Mondi, landscape designer and graduate of the Rutgers Landscape Architecture program, will lead you through a logical progression of design topics including:
· Effective use of outdoor space · Appropriate plant materials
· Hardscaping creativity · Graphic styles
Attendees will have the opportunity to work on three hands-on design projects, each one building on previous coursework and gaining in complexity. The final project will allow the student to design, render, and present a design of their choosing to the class.
Several guest lecturers, including Rutgers Gardens Director, Bruce Crawford, will also provide design instruction at this year's class. The course will take place on eleven consecutive Friday afternoons from 1:00pm until 4:30pm beginning January 8, 2010 and ending on March 19, 2010.
We are seeking your opinion regarding class structure and the topics of most interest to you. This will allow us to customize the course to your liking. Please access the following survey link to provide us with your thoughts: http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB229GABF7YU4
Plant Appraisal and Valuation
(December 16, 2009 - 9:00am - 3:30pm)
Landscape plants are assets, and there is a science - and an art - to assigning a dollar value to those assets. Nature does not provide price tags, however. That's why this new one-day class, taught by gifted arboriculture instructor Ted Szczawinski, explains and demonstrates the four key variables that determine the dollar value of a landscape plant - size, species, condition and location.
Turf Establishment
(December 18, 2009 - 9:00am - 3:30pm)
This one-day course offers specific instruction on how to successfully establish turfgrass. Instructor Joseph Clark, Principal Lab Technician at the Rutgers Turfgrass Research Farm will combine classroom lectures with hands-on field demonstrations to provide you with essential turfgrass establishment skills including:
· Preparing Your Plan · Seeding Rates
· Weed Control · Irrigation Rates
· Soil Testing and Interpretation · Fungicides
Regional Landscape Trainings in Spanish
(Multiple Dates and Locations – 9:00am – 4:00pm)
To serve Spanish-speaking landscape professionals, Rutgers University is introducing two new half day classes – one focused on Basics of Turf Care and one on Basics of Ornamental Plant Care – scheduled to be delivered in several locations around New Jersey.
Plantings in Tough Environments
(January 13 and 14, 2010 – 9:00am-3:00pm on Day 1; 9:00am-12:00pm on Day 2)
Join Rutgers Gardens Director Bruce Crawford for a look into successfully planting in challenging urban environments.
The Public Grounds Management Certificate Program
Stand out from your colleagues and build your resume with the Rutgers University Public Grounds Certificate. This program teaches management, construction, and maintenance skills that are vital to a successful career in public grounds. Earning this certificate will put your knowledge on display and further your dedication to excellence in public grounds management.
6 Key Elements of Success for the Landscape Contractor
(February 9 and 10, 2010 - 9:00am - 4:00pm)
Taught by industry consultant Marcus vandeVliet, who leads the ANLA's Masters in Landscape Business Management Program, this course course has been extended to two full days for 2010! Marcus focuses on the following six key topics of landscape business instruction:
Day 1 Day 2
· Effective Leadership · Business & Strategies Planning
· Implementing Change · Employment Accountability
· Production & Overhead Systems · Production Feedback through Job Costing
Sustainable Landscape Design
(February 10, 2010 - 9:00am - 3:30pm)
Increase your understanding of where, how, and why plants fit naturally into their surroundings. Stay ahead of the curve and offer a new service that is functional, maintainable, environmentally sound, cost effective and aesthetically pleasing. This year's course will include breakout sessions with content specific to landscape contractors as well as public grounds managers.
Basics of Plant Material for Landscape Use
(11 consecutive Fridays, January 8-Marcb 19, 2010 - 8:30am - 12:00pm)
This flagship course returns to an extended 11-week format for 2010, taking place each morning prior to the Landscape Design I: The Basics course. This class includes new distance learning tools to make this a 24/7 learning experience. You will be an active learner with plant identification walks each day, and with follow-up assignments delivered through distance learning. Even with the new technology, it is instructor Steve Kristoph's passion for plants that has made this Rutgers' longest running and most popular course. "No one knows their plants like Steve, or loves them like him. You can't help but love this, too," wrote one student.
And Steve is teaching two of the most important skills any landscape contractor, grounds manager or plant lover should master:
· The ability to identify landscape plants on the properties you manage
· Expanding your palette of plants to select the right plant for the right site & right purpose
Outdoor Entertainment Spaces
(February 11, 2010 - 9:00am - 3:30pm)
From opulent outdoor kitchens to expansive firepits, outdoor living spaces offer a rare growth opportunity in the landscape market. Designing and installing them, however, requires a diverse set of skills - from weather-proof appliance and material selection to lighting and electrical work - that can challenge even experienced landscapers. This year’s course has been revised to include added content on the construction of outdoor entertainment spaces. You will learn the step-by-step methods necessary to successfully complete such projects.
Concrete Pavers
(February 23, 2010 - 9:00am - 3:30pm with additional demonstration day TBD weather permitting)
In this one-day class, you will learn the right way to design, plan, and install concrete paver projects. Working hands-on with pavers in the classroom, you will learn about excavation, base and paver installation, cutting,
edging installation, and estimating, and walk away with formulas and secrets for doing the job properly and safely. You will also learn valuable business tips to ensure your hard work is appropriately rewarded and appreciated. In order to provide you with even more useful knowledge, you’ll have the opportunity to join us for an additional day of hands-on training where you will participate in the actual installation of a residential patio on the Rutgers campus.
In this one-day class, you will learn the right way to plan and install concrete paver projects. Working hands-on with pavers in the classroom, you will understand how to prepare the base and walk away with formulas and secrets for doing the job properly and safely. You will also learn valuable business tips to ensure your hard work is appropriately rewarded and appreciated. In order to provide you with even more useful knowledge, you’ll have the opportunity to join us for an additional day of hands-on training where you will participate in the actual installation of a residential patio on the Rutgers campus.
New Educational Tools
In addition you’ll find new fun and powerful educational technology and distance learning tools in many classes. Basics of Plant Materials, the flagship course in the Rutgers landscape series, has been returned to the eleven consecutive Friday mornings schedule. The class also includes a new distance learning platform that allows you to access course materials and instruction anytime and anywhere. Those distance learning tools will also be added to the new Landscape Design I: The Basics short course running concurrently with Basics of Plant Materials on Friday afternoons. Several classes, including Pesticide Safety and Pesticide Calibration, also feature a fun, instructive new technology (the same used for audience voting in the “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” game show). The tools allow both students and instructors to instantly and anonymously gauge how well the class is mastering the instructor’s key points. |