New Zealand Certificate in Horticulture Production (Level 4) (Nursery Production)

We are evolving

From 2023, NMIT and the programme you have enrolled in will become part of
Te Pūkenga, and you will graduate with a Te Pūkenga qualification. See more here.
Locations and dates

Nelson:

15 August 2022

19 September 2022

13 February 2023

13 March 2023

22 May 2023

31 July 2023
Study options

Full-time or part-time
Length

Full-time 46 weeks including 9 weeks of study breaks; or 52 weeks part-time
Total credits

130
Fees

2022: $1,039 plus $260 Student Services Levy

A Compulsory Student Services Levy applies ($2 per credit).

Fees listed are for each year of the programme, indicative only and may vary with course selection.

View course details for individual fees.
National qualification code

NZ2676

Learn the skills needed to work in today's commercial nurseries.

This programme is eligible for fees-free under the Targeted Training and Apprenticeships Fund (TTAF). Please note fees will only be covered under TTAF until 30 June 2023. Find full details about the fund here.(external link) Students are advised to enquire about their eligibility for any other fees-free funding when enrolling.

This programme is for you if you are already working in the nursery industry, or you are looking to gain skills for employment in this field.

A stepping stone into a career growing plants and trees, and a job that could range from fruit growing or vegetable production, landscaping for homes or parks, a plant nursery enterprise, to tree production and revegetation to enhance our environment in line with the one billion trees programme. Learn the skills needed to work in the Nursery Industry growing plants for food production and forestry, plants for our landscapes and for native revegetation, to enhance our natural environment.

You can also progress from the New Zealand Certificate in Horticulture Level 3 (General) to this programme.

You will learn advanced propagation and managing rootstocks for grafting and budding, as well as understanding plant hormones and how to manage plant growth and health.

You will gain a working knowledge of the water, nutrient and climatic needs of your plants, operating irrigation systems, and developing a plant crop protection programme for your plants to manage any pest disease and weed issues.

Part of the programme is the development of a planting plan, for a growing project of your choice. You will also set up your own soil-less media experiment to trial soil mixes, learn to produce a scale drawing for a landscape, and plan, plant and monitor a revegetation project.

You will also learn about the machinery and equipment of a nursery and will look at the business side of running a nursery and supervising others.

The programme includes courses on:

Nursery Environment including soils and soilless media, nutrient management, mist units and an understanding of other systems, irrigation, managing temperature and the weather
Nursery Operations covers the practical side of advanced propagation, seed sowing and producing plants from cuttings, grafting and budding. An understanding of cultivars and PVR’s is covered as well as stock management, stool beds, and understanding how to grow plants through all stages of production. Relevant plant science and the influence of plant hormones is also covered.
Nursery Crop Protection covers dealing with pests, diseases and weeds, identification and management in the nursery.
Plant Selection and Planning includes plant identification, and landscape design and planting plans, for amenity areas and revegetation projects.
Nursery Equipment that covers growing houses, forklift training, shade houses, potting machines, packing and dispatch.
Business Management and Marketing compares a range of marketing strategies and writing a business plan for a nursery enterprise.
Human Resources covers supervising and managing others, time management, communication skills and conflict resolution.

Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund (TTAF) | 2023 update

Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund (TTAF)(external link) funding ends on 31 December 2022.

This affects ākonga (students) currently on 2022 TTAF funded programmes(external link) that extend into 2023, plus those considering starting in the second half of 2022 on programmes that will extend into 2023.

The portion of fees not covered by TTAF funding will be met by Te Pukenga, with no cost to ākonga for the 6-month period to 30 June 2023.

This does not cover first-time enrolments in 2023 on programmes that were previously TTAF eligible.

However, some ākonga will have the 2023 portion covered by their Tertiary Education Commission Fees Free entitlement.

If you require any further clarification, please contact enrolments@nmit.ac.nz

Entry requirements

Academic requirements

NCEA level 2

A qualification at Level 2 or above or;
Evidence of relevant knowledge and experience in a primary industries environment, including literacy and numeracy abilities equivalent to NCEA (Level 1). (In this case, the applicant may be required to participate in an enrolment interview with the purpose of verifying the evidence.)

English language requirements

Applicants for whom English is not their first language must have an acceptable level of English language fluency prior to enrolment in the programme.

Ways, in which English language fluency may be demonstrated include: successful study of a programme in which English was the language of instruction (conditions apply); completion of a New Zealand Certificate in English Language (Level 3 with any endorsement); approved scores on IELTS tests (Academic score of 5.5 with no band score lower than 5); or completion of accepted international equivalents.

Other requirements

16 years of age at the time the programme commences.
Be physically able to complete the programme specific outcomes.

Structure and timetable

This course is flexible, with the full time programme running two days a week (Thursday and Friday) at the Richmond Campus, and two days a week on work placement for 13 months.

If you are already in nursery work, you can study with one afternoon class a week (Thursday, 2-6pm) and two, 2-day seminars during the programme.

You can also study this programme part time and take up to three years to complete it.

Career Pathways

Work can be at a wide range of levels and in the nursery sector.

Positions can be seasonal to permanent. They can include nursery propagator, horticultural consultant, crop manager, cool store manager or science technician.

An example of the type of career path you can have in horticulture is beginning as a nursery assistant, moving up to seed source propagator, becoming production coordinator and then a manager.

Additional information

Physical requirements

Horticulture requires a certain level of physical strength and fitness especially in the initial stages of working in the horticulture and nursery industry. There are 500 hours of workplace hours embedded in the programme, which amounts to 2 days a week.

Workplace requirements

You are required to find a place or places to complete your hours of work placement during the programme, which ideally would be a paid job, though often placements will not start off as this, unless you have been able to find a job yourself. We can assist you with this, but it is your responsibility to set up and complete this work placement.

Horticultural workplaces have strict health and safety protocols including zero drugs and alcohol tolerance. Pre-employment drugs testing and random within employment testing may be required by an employer.