SAQA All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source.
SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY 
REGISTERED QUALIFICATION: 

Diploma: Ornamental Horticulture 
SAQA QUAL ID QUALIFICATION TITLE
83107  Diploma: Ornamental Horticulture 
ORIGINATOR
University of South Africa 
PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK
CHE - Council on Higher Education  HEQSF - Higher Education Qualifications Sub-framework 
QUALIFICATION TYPE FIELD SUBFIELD
Diploma (Min 360)  Field 01 - Agriculture and Nature Conservation  Horticulture 
ABET BAND MINIMUM CREDITS PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL NQF LEVEL QUAL CLASS
Undefined  360  Not Applicable  NQF Level 06  Regular-Provider-ELOAC 
REGISTRATION STATUS SAQA DECISION NUMBER REGISTRATION START DATE REGISTRATION END DATE
Registered-data under construction  EXCO 0324/24  2024-07-01  2027-06-30 
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2028-06-30   2033-06-30  

Registered-data under construction

The qualification content is currently being updated for the qualifications with the status “Registered-data under construction” or showing “DETAILS UNDER CONSTRUCTION” to ensure compliance with SAQA’S Policy and Criteria for the registration of qualifications and part-qualifications on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) (As amended, 2022). These qualifications are re-registered until 30 June 2027 and can legitimately be offered by the institutions to which they are registered.

 

In all of the tables in this document, both the pre-2009 NQF Level and the NQF Level is shown. In the text (purpose statements, qualification rules, etc), any references to NQF Levels are to the pre-2009 levels unless specifically stated otherwise.  

PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION 
Purpose:

Qualifying students will be able to apply ornamental horticultural technologies and strategies in the green industry in a way that will be environmentally sustainable. They will be able to propagate and utilise plants, and to plan and implement a landscape design. To ensure that these goals are achieved efficiently, qualifying students will also be able to apply basic managerial skills in a horticultural enterprise.

The qualification aims to contribute to the green industry by developing horticultural professionals and managers and so enhance the effectiveness and the competitiveness of the industry. It also aims to support the discipline of Horticulture by providing the academic foundation for possible future research in the field.

The qualification strives to promote environmental awareness and a commitment to environmental sustainability, as well as the recognition that plants, with their various functional and aesthetic uses, have the ability to improve quality of life. It further aims to advance social and economic transformation by providing accessible opportunities for individual, career and entrepreneurial development to people from all social and cultural groups.

Rationale:

Environmental degradation in both rural and urban areas is a worldwide phenomenon and is particularly prevalent in South Africa, where many natural environments are challenged by threats such as global warming, desertification, and large-scale industrial and urban development. This situation is exacerbated by a lack of awareness and knowledge of the potential capacity of plants to create and restore environmental health, and of the principles of environmental sustainability. There is also insufficient awareness of the various functional and aesthetic uses of plants which, when fully exploited, can serve to promote human and social well-being.

The "green industry" in South Africa has recognised these needs, and many of its activities are aimed at improving this situation. The industry is large and diverse, involving activities such as plant production and propagation, the import, export, marketing and sale of plants, landscaping, plant and landscape maintenance, the design, establishment and maintenance of public amenities, urban agriculture, and the rehabilitation of damaged areas. It further involves emerging fields such as conservation horticulture, ethnobotanical applications and horticultural therapy.

This burgeoning industry is currently well supplied with lower-level skills, but is experiencing a shortage of staff with the necessary technical knowledge to apply horticultural principles in a way that will maximise the functional and aesthetic uses of plants. It is further in particular need of middle management, and of new entrepreneurs with sufficient skills to manage their own horticultural businesses. General business skills, "soft" skills such as communication skills, and technological skills especially are in short supply.

The Diploma: Ornamental Horticulture has the potential to ameliorate this situation by providing the industry with the type of qualified employees it needs: employees who will have wide-ranging technical horticultural knowledge and skills, as well as basic managerial and project management skills, and a commitment to promoting environmental sustainability. Qualifying students will be able to perform the basic tasks involved in plant production and propagation, plant utilisation, plant maintenance and landscaping, as well as the management tasks involved in carrying out these activities commercially. The Diploma will thus provide students with a solid general foundation in horticultural practices and will so lay the groundwork for later specialisation on their part. 

LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING 
Learners enrolling are already competent in terms of the following outcomes or learning areas:
  • Learning at NQF Level 4, equivalent to grade 12 (National Senior Certificate or other certificate evaluated as being equivalent to the minimum admission requirements of universities). Literacy and numeracy skills in particular will be assumed to be equivalent to NQF Level 4.
  • The ability to learn from written material in the language of tuition.
  • The ability to communicate what they have learned comprehensibly in the language of tuition.
  • The ability to take responsibility for their own progress with limited support, and independently adjust to a variety of contexts or learning environments.

    Recognition of Prior Learning:

    Recognition may be granted for non-formal prior experiential learning. The Recognition of Prior Learning process will be conducted according to Unisa's Recognition of Prior Learning policy and may involve, among other things, the submission of portfolios with evidence of prior learning, challenge examinations, and interviews with assessment panels.

    Access to the Qualification:
  • Students who have completed a National Senior Certificate or equivalent learning, as determined by Unisa's Recognition of Prior Learning process, will be able to access this qualification.
  • Students with disabilities will be granted admission wherever the nature of their disability does not preclude them from achieving the outcomes of the qualification. Severely visually impaired students will unfortunately not be able to function optimally in this field. 
    		•

    RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING? 
    Y 

    QUALIFICATION RULES 
    Total credits for the qualification: 360 Credits.
    Credits at NQF Level 5: 120 Credits.
    Credits at NQF Level 6: 180 Credits.
    Credits at NQF Level 7: 60 Credits.

    Number of credits allocated to:
  • Fundamental learning - 12 Credits.
  • Core learning - 108 Credits.
  • Fundamental learning plays a fairly strong role at the entry level of the qualification, since students need to be given grounding in basic managerial and computing skills, and knowledge of some fundamental areas underlying horticultural practice, such as the principles of ecology.
  • The rest of the credits are allocated for core learning, centering around horticultural practices, as these constitute the essence of the qualification.
  • No elective credits are allocated in this qualification as it aims at providing a broad generalist base of knowledge and skills which students will be able to use in various applications in the industry, rather than particular specialisations. The opportunity for specialisation will however play a role in the qualifications on the next higher level that qualifying students can progress to, the Advanced Diplomas in Ornamental Horticulture and Landscape Design respectively. 
    		•

    EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES 
    1. Produce and propagate plants.

    2. Select and utilize plants.

    3. Maintain plants.

    4. Produce a landscape design.

    5. Construct and maintain a landscaped area.

    6. Apply managerial and administrative skills in a horticultural enterprise.

    7. Demonstrate a commitment to the principles of environmental sustainability.

    Critical Cross-Field Outcomes:

    The following critical Cross-Field Outcomes will be promoted by this qualification:
  • The students will have to identify and select plants appropriate to a particular setting, propose appropriate landscape designs for a particular setting, and explore solutions to the problems of a small horticultural enterprise.
  • The practical work and work-integrated learning involved in the qualification will require work as members of a team and an organisation.
  • The completion of set activities and assignments will require self-management, and successfully organising their activities during the work-integrated learning period will encourage self-management.
  • The proposal of planting and landscaping plans, designs and applications for certain settings, as well as the application of management principles, will involve extensive collection, analysis, organisation and evaluation of information.
  • Activities requiring effective written, graphic and electronic communication will be involved.
  • A scientific approach to horticulture and landscaping will be promoted in a way that will emphasise ecological principles and environmental sustainability. Technology will be used in accordance with accepted horticultural and environmentally responsible principles and practices.
  • Principles from a variety of sciences and technologies (e.g. plant biology, horticulture, chemistry, ecology, soil science, horticultural technology, computer technology) will be applied in an integrated way in the solution of horticultural and landscaping problems.
  • The qualification will encourage the development of learning strategies such as linking theory to practice and reflecting on learning that has taken place, and the use of visual representations and textual organisation strategies.
  • The qualification will emphasise the development of environmental responsibility and the use of plants to the benefit of communities, for example by requiring students to participate in work-integrated learning where they will apply functional and aesthetic uses of plants. The qualification will also promote indigenous plant knowledge.
  • Awareness of the use of local resources such as indigenous plants will be developed, and both horticultural and landscaping applications will develop aesthetic sensitivity. Participation in work-integrated learning will offer opportunities for intercultural interaction and the development of cultural sensitivity.
  • An awareness is promoted of opportunities for further learning as well as career opportunities, for example in horticultural enterprises and local and national government organisations. Participation in voluntary associations, which the qualification will encourage, and in work-integrated learning will also offer opportunities for career development.
  • The qualification will encourage the development of the basic skills necessary to start a small horticultural enterprise. 
    		•

    ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA 
    Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit-Level Outcome 1:
  • Appropriate propagation techniques are selected and applied to a particular type of plant.
  • Production plans are drawn up to ensure that propagation will be conducted effectively and efficiently.
  • An appropriate environment is established and managed to achieve optimal production.
  • Plants are produced and propagated in accordance with health and safety, environmental and other relevant legislation.

    Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit-Level Outcome 2:
  • Plants are correctly identified using their diagnostic features.
  • Appropriate plants are selected, installed and established for a particular setting.
  • Plants are installed and established in accordance with health and safety, environmental and other relevant legislation.

    Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit-Level Outcome 3:
  • Maintenance procedures are carried out and equipment is used in accordance with industry best practice, and in accordance with health and safety, environmental and other relevant legislation.
  • Plant pests and pathogens are correctly identified, and prevented and controlled according to environmentally acceptable principles and practices.

    Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit-Level Outcome 4:
  • The design is appropriate to the requirements of the site and the environment.
  • The designed landscape will be environmentally sustainable.
  • The design is financially efficient and meets client needs.
  • Correct isometric and perspective drawings are prepared to explain the design.

    Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit-Level Outcome 5:
  • Hard landscaping features are constructed and maintained correctly using a variety of materials.
  • Soft landscaping features are implemented and maintained according to industry best practice.
  • Construction and maintenance activities are carried out according to industry best practice and in accordance with health and safety, environmental and other relevant legislation.

    Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit-Level Outcome 6:
  • Managerial and administrative activities are carried out in a way that is effective and efficient in the particular workplace.
  • Effective leadership skills are demonstrated in the workplace.
  • Effective communication is established in the workplace.
  • Managerial and administrative activities are performed in accordance with health and safety, labour and other relevant legislation, and ethical principles.

    Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit-Level Outcome 7:
  • Plants are propagated, maintained, selected and used in ways that will minimise harmful effects on the natural environment.
  • Plant maintenance and landscape design and construction are performed in accordance with the principles of environmental sustainability.
  • Plants reflecting South African biodiversity are identified and incorporated into horticultural and landscape applications.

    Integrated Assessment:

    Applied competence - that is, the integration of foundational, practical and reflective competence - will be assessed in a variety of ways and instances during the course of the programme. For example, students will be asked to propose practical solutions to horticultural and landscaping problems and to evaluate their own proposed solutions and their learning in the process, thus involving knowledge, the application of knowledge, as well as reflection.

    In the various modules of the qualification, students will be required to provide evidence of integrated knowledge, skills and values. An Integrated Assessment of the main outcomes of the qualification will be conducted during work-integrated learning, where students will be assessed on their actual performance of horticultural and landscaping activities in a real horticultural organisation or enterprise.

    A variety of formative and summative assessments will be used during the course of the programme, including written assignments, practical activities, examinations and a portfolio. 
    		•

    INTERNATIONAL COMPARABILITY 
    This qualification and the component modules have been compared with similar qualifications and training courses from the following countries:
  • United Kingdom.
  • Australia.
  • New Zealand.
  • United States of America.

    Qualifications that were examined and that were quite similar in content to the Unisa diploma include:

    United Kingdom:
  • Horticultural Correspondence College (HCC) - RHS Diploma.
  • ACS Distance Education (Royal Horticultural Society) Diploma in Horticulture.
  • Scottish Agricultural College - SAC Diploma in Horticulture.
  • Nottingham Trent University - Foundation Degree in Horticulture.

    Australia:
  • TAFE diplomas at Challenger TAFE in Perth, the University of Melbourne and Swinburne University in Melbourne.

    New Zealand:
  • National Advanced Certificate in Horticulture as offered at a variety of New Zealand educational institutions.

    United States of America:
  • Undergratuate academic programme in Horticulture at the University of Georgia.
  • Ferris State University, Michigan - Associate Degree in Horticultural Technology.
  • Degree in Horticulture, Landscape and Turf Sciences at the University of Arkansas.
  • Two year Diploma in Horticulture at the School of Professional Horticulture of the New York Botanical Garden.

    Ontario, Canada:
  • University of Guelph - Diploma in Horticulture.

    Qualifications that were examined but were more science-based than the Unisa Diploma:

    United States of America:
  • Penn State University - Certificate in Turfgrass Management.
  • Ohio State University - Associate Degree Landscape Contracting and Construction.
  • Ohio State University - Associate Horticultural Science.

    In general this qualification and its component modules compare well with their international counterparts. While the modular structure of curricula is somewhat different most of the essential knowledge and skills taught in these qualifications are also contained in the Unisa Diploma. The contextualisation of the skills in the Unisa Diploma also differs as the diploma is aimed at equipping students to work in the Southern African environment. Further, the only major difference between this qualification and similar ones in the countries that were studied is that the qualifications in these countries involve early specialisation in subfields of horticulture and landscape design, whereas this qualification provides a more generalist base from which specialisation can take place later. Given the current skills shortage in South Africa, the needs of the horticultural industry, and the lack of preparation of many students for higher education, it is regarded as important to provide a first qualification that offers a solid general grounding in a range of horticultural skills, from where individuals can acquire further specialised skills within their particular work situations. 
    		•

    ARTICULATION OPTIONS 
  • Vertical articulation is possible to the Advanced Diplomas: Ornamental Horticulture or Landscaping, the Postgraduate Diplomas: Ornamental Horticulture or Landscaping, and from there to a Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in the environmental sciences.
  • Horizontal articulation is possible in the sense that accumulated credits in the Diploma might be presented for admission into a cognate qualification in the environmental sciences. 
    		•

    MODERATION OPTIONS 
    Assignments are assessed by qualified lecturers, tutors or mentors (in the case of work-integrated learning). Where tutors or mentors serve as assessors, a representative sample of assessments are moderated by internal lecturers.

    For Unisa, second examiners act as moderators for examination purposes. These are senior academics or qualified industry representatives. For the exit level of the Diploma, at least 70% of modules have external examiners/moderators, who are senior academics from other universities and/or qualified industry representatives. 

    CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS 
    The HEQC does not require the registration of assessors but Unisa has training in place for assessors. Unisa has an Assessment Policy that spells out the principles underlying assessment and good practice in assessment. An appeals process is in place. Unisa lecturers and/or industry specialists act as assessors for the modules that make up this qualification.

    The following criteria are specified for assessors:
  • Assessors must have at least one qualification higher than the one for which they are assessing, and industry specialists must have at least three to five years' industry.
  • Assessors need to be competent in planning and conducting assessment.

    Assessors who have not yet undergone assessor training will be given the opportunity to do so wherever possible. 
    		•

    REREGISTRATION HISTORY 
    As per the SAQA Board decision/s at that time, this qualification was Reregistered in 2012; 2015. 

    NOTES 
    This qualification replaces qualification 62394, "National Diploma: Horticulture", Level 6, 360 credits. 

    LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS QUALIFICATION: 
    When qualifications are replaced, some (but not all) of their learning programmes are moved to the replacement qualifications. If a learning programme appears to be missing from here, please check the replaced qualification.
     
    NONE 


    PROVIDERS CURRENTLY ACCREDITED TO OFFER THIS QUALIFICATION: 
    This information shows the current accreditations (i.e. those not past their accreditation end dates), and is the most complete record available to SAQA as of today. Some Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionaries have a lag in their recording systems for provider accreditation, in turn leading to a lag in notifying SAQA of all the providers that they have accredited to offer qualifications and unit standards, as well as any extensions to accreditation end dates. The relevant Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionary should be notified if a record appears to be missing from here.
     
    1. University of South Africa 


    All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source.