"Sacha" wrote in message
...
On 1/6/04 20:23, in article , "Stan The
Man"
wrote:

snip

I think there's an important distinction to be drawn between trained
and qualified horticulturists who become garden writers and TV
presenters and those who are self-taught. IIRC, AT, Joe Swift, RdeT,
Chris Beardshaw, James Alexander Sinclair and Sarah Raven have all
gained their diploma from the Royal Botanical Gardens School of
Horticulture or some other recognised teaching institution. I therefore
trust them. On the other hand, I do not think that Monty Don or
Diarmuid Gavin or Charlie Dimmock has any formal horticultural
training. In my book, they are 'winging it' based on their still
limited experience and hence, in terms of general garden programme
presentation, they are liable to make mistakes.

snip


I will tell you now that we have garden designers and so-called qualified
horticulturists into this nursery often (and all nurserymen we know have
experienced this) who will pick the brains of the long-serving but
diploma-less owners of such Nurseries. We have also had students visiting
us to do precisely this. One used to work for us until a year ago and now
earns a large wage, based to a considerable degree on coming here to ask
for
my husband's (free) advice!
Such people are launching themselves upon a gardening career but have no
soundly based plant knowledge.
I'm sure many work hard for their diplomas and then to gain practical
knowledge - but some, perhaps many, have problems identifying which plant
to put in which particular condition but dupe others into thinking they're
'experts' because they have a bit of paper.


I think there is a big mistake being made here.

My husband was a plumber. He trained for four years and got his indentures
back in 1969. He was never able to take certificates at the time, his
employer didn't allow it. He did take certificates later with another
employer ( for gas fitting certification)

Back in the 1980's he was working with "plumbers" whose only training for
the job was six months on a city and guilds course. They were "qualified
plumbers" whilst he was not - but he was the only one who could dress lead
or wipe a joint. It had not been part of the course for the others.

AT is probably the "last" of the generations of apprentice gardeners -
indentured tradesmen - who spent four years learning the craft of
gardening. He may ( or may not - I dont know) have certificates, although I
would guess that like my husband he might have taken them at some stage in
his career.
In the past those were not necessary. The new breed are like those six month
"qualified plumbers" - have all the certificates but none of the training or
experience - and it shows. Certificates do not make a gardener, although a
good gardener will probably have some somewhere but probably not as many as
those who are "qualified"