Online Class: Landscaping 101
Learn the basics of landscaping including harmony, balance, color, natural transitions, proportion and line.

Self-Paced, Online Class
Barrie Public Library
-
15Lessons
-
23Exams &
Assignments -
9Hours
average time -
0.9CEUs
-
Video Audit
Available
Course Description
Landscaping is a multibillion dollar industry for both sales and service and for good reason. The popularity is driven by the enjoyment people get from designing and implementing landscaping that is visually appealing by using both natural plants and synthetic materials.
This course will provide you with a number of tips and techniques to develop your ideal landscape. This course will help you identify and assess your landscaping needs, understand design principles, and implement your creative idea in your own unique setting. This course will teach you design principles, material application, cost estimation, visual analysis, planting design, hardscape applications, irrigation, water features, design for outdoor living, and business concepts for landscaping professionals. Whether you are working at your own home or a commercial location, this course will show you all the steps to develop a great landscape project--from cost estimating to the final installation and along the way we will show you a number of environmentally sound practices.
The enjoyment of a beautiful landscape is one of the great pleasures of home ownership. However, actually realizing your landscaping visions can be stressful. You may have just bare dirt or a poor grass yard and like so many other people, you just don't know where to start. This online course can help. Landscaping 101 will not only teach you the basics of the science of landscaping, it will show you how to apply your own creativity to transform your yard into a work of art.
In this course you will:
- Learn the basics of landscaping including harmony, balance, color, natural transitions, proportion and line.
- Learn how to assess your present landscape needs.
- Learn how to assess the purpose of your landscape.
- Learn how to gather ideas and whether to use professional help or not.
- Learn how to plan your landscape, and schedule the work.
- Learn how to avoid common landscaping mistakes.
- Learn how to make the most of what you have.
This starter course is ideal for anyone. Whether you just want to improve one corner of the yard, or you want to add some flowerbeds, a tree, or shrub here and there -- or you're starting from scratch with a bare lot and need to learn how to start, plan, and finish an entire landscape, this course will help you achieve your landscaping goals.
Course Lessons
Lesson 1: Assessing Your Landscaping Needs and Design Principles
When you think about it, landscaping can be quite complex depending on your desires to build the “wow” factor or very simple depending on your personality style.Lesson 2: Landscape Design and Implementation
In this lesson, we discuss landscaping design and transform your design into the actual implementation.Lesson 3: Material and Enclosure Selection, Application, and Configuration
Material and enclosure selection is an area where you can really allow your own personal style and personality to show through your landscape design.Lesson 4: Cost Estimating and Budgeting
Take a look at some of the common costs for your local area and determine what your time frame is to accomplish is your goal.Lesson 5: Visual Analysis and Curb Appeal
The visual analysis can be performed at any time to determine needs and develop a checklist of things to improve on. Curb appeal takes more time and is the collective result of your continual refinement.Lesson 6: Landscaping Tools, Materials, and Equipment Use and Application
The great thing about landscaping is that the cost is scalable. You can begin with few tools and little money for the budget or can purchase all of the tools you need and use a large budget.Lesson 7: Outdoor Rooms, Porches, and Hideaways
In the current marketplace, landscapers and consumers have the best opportunity they have ever had to build stellar outdoor rooms, entertainment areas, and hideaways.Lesson 8: Planting Design, plus Seasonal and Climate Application (Softscapes)
The live plantings you choose will provide you with the greatest opportunity to infuse color and the soft feel of flowers, bushes, and other vegetation to your landscaping.Lesson 9: Patios, Decking, Fencing, Block, and Walls (Hardscapes)
In this lesson, we will discuss patios, decking, fencing, and different types of block and retention walls. With today’s design techniques you can easily build patios, decking, or walls in a wide array of straight and also curved applications.Lesson 10: Irrigation (System, Components, and Design Process)
As a landscaper and home or business owner there are a number of maintenance factors that you will want to automate, such as watering.Lesson 11: Design for Outdoor Living and Exterior Lighting
In this lesson, we discuss more about designing your exterior to make outdoor living easier from an electrical, technology, and exterior lighting perspective, as well as some of the creature comfort aspects to modernize your landscape masterpiece.Lesson 12: Streetscape and Walkway Planning Process
How your landscaping looks from the street 100% controls your curb appeal and how you structure your walkways impacts how you use your land and areas.Lesson 13: Water Features, Fountains, Ponds, Statues, and Container Gardens
This lesson covers water features, fountains, garden ponds, and other interesting concepts that provide the tranquility and relaxation of water within your landscape.Lesson 14: Landscape Maintenance
Landscape maintenance allows you to keep your landscaping project looking as great as it did from the initial date of completion until the day you decide to make modifications.Lesson 15: Essential Business Concepts for Landscaping Professionals: Contracts, Specifications, Customer Service, and Safety and OSHA Compliance
Landscaping customer service involves slightly different needs and areas of attention than typical customer service because a great deal of your work is based on the customer’s visual expectations.
Learning Outcomes
By successfully completing this course, students will be able to:
- Describe the importance of dirt.
- Summarize your landscaping needs and design principles.
- Assess your landscaping needs.
- Summarize material and enclosure selection, application, and configuration.
- Define cost estimating and budgeting for your landscaping project.
- Create a 3 year plan.
- Summarize visual analysis and curb appeal.
- Define planning specifics.
- Recognize landscaping tools, materials, and equipment use and application.
- Define outdoor rooms, porches and hideaways.
- Estimate the costs.
- Create design styles for outdoor living.
- Describe patios, decking, fencing, block and walls (hardscapes).
- Describe outdoor rooms.
- Summarize irrigation (system and components and design process).
- Describe ways to select the right plants, trees, and shrubs.
- Determine design for outdoor living and exterior lighting.
- Summarize water features, fountains, ponds, statues and container gardens.
- Recognize landscape maintenance.
- Demonstrate mastery of lesson content at levels of 70% or higher.
Additional Course Information

- Document Your Lifelong Learning Achievements
- Earn an Official Certificate Documenting Course Hours and CEUs
- Verify Your Certificate with a Unique Serial Number Online
- View and Share Your Certificate Online or Download/Print as PDF
- Display Your Certificate on Your Resume and Promote Your Achievements Using Social Media

Course Title:
Landscaping 101
Course Number:
9770436
Lessons Rating:
4.4 / 5 Stars
(2,106 votes)
Languages:
English - United States, Canada and other English speaking countries
Category:
Availability:
This course is online and available in all 50 states including: California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Texas, and Washington.
Last Updated:
July 2022
Course Type:
Self-Paced, Online Class
CEU Value:
0.9 IACET CEUs (Continuing Education Units)
CE Accreditation:
Universal Class, Inc. has been accredited as an Authorized Provider by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET).
Grading Policy:
Earn a final grade of 70% or higher to receive an online/downloadable CEU Certification documenting CEUs earned.
Assessment Method:
Lesson assignments and review exams
Instructor:
Cathleen Chouinard
Syllabus:
View Syllabus
Student Testimonials
- "It was a great course on landscaping the only things I can think of that it didn't provide like gardening basics are in other courses and I understand why it's appropriate to have them separated into separate courses." -- Leah R.
- "This course was more than I expected. I was think that it was going to be a basic overview and I would have to do more research. I believe that it was all here and I printed some of the lessons for future reference." -- James T.
- "I learned a lot more from this course than I thought I would. I did not realize the background work that was required to take on landscaping, either as a hobby or as a business. Thank you for opening my eyes and gaining appreciation for those who do the work." -- Laura V.
- "This class was very helpful and taught me the very important small details of jobs I have already done so in the future I can execute them better." -- Oscar G.
- "This course is extremely helpful, and now I know what I need to do to become a very good landscaper." -- Wanda K.
- "The course was great, thank you for teaching me more about landscaping." -- Jacob J.
- "It was very helpful and very detailed. Thank you!" -- Robert A.
- "This course is great and very helpful." -- Christopher H.
Related Courses
-
6 hours 0.6 CEUs Pie Baking 101 + More Info
-
5 hours 0.5 CEUs Bread Baking 101 + More Info
-
10 hours 1.0 CEUs Sewing 101 + More Info
-
5 hours 0.5 CEUs Healing Affirmations + More Info
-
14 hours 1.4 CEUs Acrylic Painting 101 + More Info
-
8 hours 0.8 CEUs Aromatherapy (Intermediate to Advanced) + More Info
-
4 hours 0.4 CEUs Etiquette for Children and Teens + More Info
-
12 hours 1.2 CEUs Wedding Planning 101 + More Info
-
5 hours 0.5 CEUs Starting Your Own Cleaning Business + More Info
-
7 hours 0.7 CEUs Buying and Selling Antiques and Collectibles + More Info
-
7 hours 0.7 CEUs Soap Making 101 + More Info
-
8 hours 0.8 CEUs Interior Decorating Made Easy + More Info
-
6 hours 0.6 CEUs Etiquette Consultant + More Info
-
9 hours 0.9 CEUs How to Decorate a Room + More Info
-
6 hours 0.6 CEUs Housekeeping 101 + More Info
-
7 hours 0.7 CEUs How to Start a Craft Business + More Info
-
17 hours 1.7 CEUs Mixed Media Art + More Info
-
3 hours 0.3 CEUs Therapeutic Bathing + More Info
-
7 hours 0.7 CEUs Etiquette 101 + More Info
-
7 hours 0.7 CEUs Wedding Traditions Around the World + More Info
-
7 hours 0.7 CEUs Clutter Control 101 + More Info
-
4 hours 0.4 CEUs Knitting 101 + More Info
-
14 hours 1.4 CEUs Candle Making 101 + More Info
-
15 hours 1.5 CEUs Traditional Scrapbooking 101 + More Info
-
15 hours 1.5 CEUs Western Calligraphy + More Info
-
13 hours 1.3 CEUs How To Draw 101 + More Info
-
9 hours 0.9 CEUs Landscaping 101 + More Info
-
9 hours 0.9 CEUs Watercolor Painting 101 + More Info
-
10 hours 1.0 CEUs Interior Design 101 + More Info
-
4 hours 0.4 CEUs How to Bake Cookies + More Info
-
14 hours 1.4 CEUs Feng Shui 101 + More Info
-
5 hours 0.5 CEUs All About Herbs + More Info
-
9 hours 0.9 CEUs Genealogy 101 + More Info
-
14 hours 1.4 CEUs Cake Decorating 101 + More Info
-
7 hours 0.7 CEUs Homeopathy 101 + More Info
-
9 hours 0.9 CEUs Aromatherapy 101 + More Info
-
5 hours 0.5 CEUs Home Safety + More Info