The Pennsylvania Garden Expo March 8-11 in the State Farm Show Complex will allow prospective horticulturists to talk to the top central PA landscape contractors and nurseries who will be designing and building gardens for the show ranging in size from 1,000 to 4,000 square feet.
"The need for trained horticulturists has exploded in the last several decades," said Liz Letcavage, HACC Ornamental Horticulture program coordinator. "The housing market is strong here, and all those new homes require landscaping."
Homeowners are turning to professionals to design and install appealing landscapes, patios and water features. Nurseries and garden centers have become hubs for consumers who want reliable advice on the plants, shrubs and trees they need to enhance their outdoor spaces. Communities are installing passive garden areas for their residents, and corporations are hiring landscapers to improve their office grounds.
HACC's new Ornamental Horticulture Program will train students to be self-employed or succeed in positions in greenhouse management and production, floriculture, landscape design and management, and arboriculture, to name a few.
Fourteen classes will teach basic principles of horticulture, pest management, landscape design, nursery management, landscape construction, landscape maintenance, woody plants, herbaceous plants and greenhouse production.
In addition to classroom lectures, students will receive hands-on instruction in HACC's spacious greenhouse and through its 200-acre "living lab" that features 60 acres of display gardens and arboretum. The program concludes with a 240-hour hands-on summer-session practicum during which students put their knowledge to work in the campus greenhouse and gardens.
Students who want to earn a full associate's degree will need to take twenty-two hours of non-horticulture classes which will prepare them in communications, administration and business management.
However, HACC also has a program for those who want a shorter program but still want some proof of their expertise and training. The college's certificate program provides advanced training in the 14 core horticulture subjects, but only requires six credits of non-horticulture classes.
Both the degree and certificate program also will prepare students to earn the Pennsylvania Certified Horticulturist (PCH) certification from the Pennsylvania Landscape and Nursery Association.
Registration begins April 2 for the new program that will kick off Aug. 20. For more information, call Judy Rohacek at 717-780-2327 or send an email to horticulture@hacc.edu.