Home Horticulture Certificate: Self-Paced, Online Course

The Art and Science of Caring for Plants

Grow your gardening knowledge, whether you’re a beginner or an experienced gardener. If you’re looking for a comprehensive, science-based, horticulture and gardening essentials course, our Home Horticulture Certificate could be for you!

Drawn from the training Oregon Master Gardeners receive, this on-demand summer course provides the same training as our popular instructor-led Certificate of Home Horticulture course. Both offer an exceptional experience that will help your garden thrive. (The instructor-led course will next be offered in winter 2026.)

NOTE: Though this course duplicates some of the training Oregon Master Gardener volunteers receive, this Certificate of Home Horticulture class will not lead to Master Gardener Certification.

Home Horticulture Overview

The Home Horticulture Basic Training course is designed for anyone who is interested in learning more about the effective and sustainable management of their home horticultural landscape. There are no course prerequisites, although a basic understanding of plants is helpful.

During the course, you will learn about:

Basics of botany and entomology
Integrated Pest Management and pesticide safety
Diagnosis and prevention of plant problems using least-toxic methods
Soils, fertilizers and composting
Ornamental, herbaceous plants and woody plants
Vegetable and container gardening
Sustainable landscape design and maintenance

Certificate of Home Horticulture

Upon completion of this self-paced summer course, you will receive a Certificate of Home Horticulture. The curriculum for the online Home Horticulture course includes an innovative online format that includes:

16 recorded lectures on a variety of Horticulture subjects you can use in your garden
Assignments you can do where you live. Many are hands-on and will deepen your understanding of the material.
Subject quizzes to help you retain information
Extensive additional resources to help ensure your long-term success

Upon successful completion of the online course, you will receive a digital Certificate of Home Horticulture.

NOTE: Though this course duplicates some of the training Oregon Master Gardener volunteers receive, this Certificate of Home Horticulture class will not lead to Master Gardener Certification.

Open Registration

This program is open to all. You don't have to be an OSU student or even live in Oregon.

Many of the modules, such as Botany Basics, Soils and Fertilizers, Intro to Entomology, Pesticide Safety and more are applicable anywhere. Others that are more plant-oriented use mostly western Oregon examples, although there is still plenty of basic, essential information. Western Oregon is a temperate, zone 8, dry-summer, wet-winter region. We include some information for dryer regions such as central Oregon as well.

If you live in a climate that is extremely different from western Oregon, most of the topics will still be useful, but you are encouraged to supplement the course with local information as well.

Register now through Sep. 1
Course access begins June 16

On demand

Online

$395

395

Request More Information

Additional Information:
National Association of Landscape Professionals (NAPL): 24 CEUs from category Educ3

Oregon Landscape Contractors Board (OLCB): 16 CEHs

Enjoy peace of mind with our risk-free guarantee on online instructor-led courses.

Online Urban Agriculture Program

New dates coming soon!

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Question: What technology is needed? ~ Kim W.

Answer: For the Home Horticulture online program, a computer and access to the internet are needed to take the course. You could rely on a tablet or iPad, however, the program is designed for the best experience using a computer, so a tablet is not optimal.

Question: Are there required reading for the online home hort gardening class?

Answer: There is no required text book, but there is a suggested book from the OSU Extension Service Publications Catalog called Sustainable Gardening. This book is the source for many of the readings for each subject, and contains additional topics that are not covered in this class.

Question: I'm a Canadian Citizen, just want to make sure I am eligible to take this course. ~ Julia R.

Answer: Yep, you are eligible! The online Home Horticulture is open to anyone. There are no prerequisites or restrictions.

Question: What if I can't finish the MG course in time? ~ Rita G.

Answer: You will have access to the Self-Paced Home Horticulture course through the end of the calendar year (December 31).

Question: How is this program different from the Master Gardener program? ~ Caroline R.

Answer: The Certificate of Home Horticulture has all the same online course content, but unlike the Master Gardener Certification, the Home Horticulture program does not require volunteer hours and therefore does not result in a Master Gardener Certification.

Question: Will there be tests given throughout this gardening class? ~ Kim W.

Answer: Yes, in this online gardening and home horticulture course, there are weekly quizzes and assignments. You'll have a chance to show how much you've learned with a final exam at the end. Everything is graded as pass/fail and if you pass, you will receive a certificate of completion.

Question: When is the cut off for enrolling in this gardening training course? ~ W.K

Answer: Due to its popularity, enrollment for Home Horticulture is held open through the first week of class.

Question: Regarding the Certificate of Home Horticulture.... About how much of a time commitment is the program (per week)? And also, is there anything that's scheduled? Or are all of the lectures recorded, with intent that we watch them asynchronously? ~ Kate D.

Answer: To get the most out of this online Home Horticulture course, it is suggested that you spend about 6 – 9 hours a week on it. The class is asynchronous so there is no set time you have to be online. So you can attend classes when it's most convenient for you. However, quizzes and assignments will have a specific date, but you can choose where and when you work on them.

Question: Do you have to be located in Oregon? ~ Nicole W.

Answer: Nope, there is no geographic restriction. You can take this online course anywhere there's an internet connection. 😀

Question: Is this course info specific to plants in the Oregon climate/planting zone? Or is it more general plant info that anyone can use regardless of what climate they live in? I live on the east coast and would love to sign up for this. ~ Megan T.

Answer: Many of the modules, such as Botany Basics, Soils and Compost, Intro to Entomology, Pesticide Safety, and the like, are applicable anywhere. Others that are more plant-oriented use mostly western Oregon examples, although there is still plenty of basic, generalized information. We include some information for the dryer regions of the PNW west, too. People in climates that are extremely different from western Oregon - desert or tropics - should plan to supplement the course with local information as well, especially when it comes to specific plants that will do well in their region, and special gardening techniques and timings that are specific to their climate.

Question: I see there is a non-refundable $60 fee, is there a time constraint on withdrawal from the course and will there be financial penalties beyond the non-refundable fee? ~ Margaret B.

Answer: To be eligible for a refund, requests must be received no later than 48 hours after the class begins. If you request by then, you will be refunded the entire course payment, minus the $60 non-refundable registration fee.

Question: Can I get a group rate? I have at least 12 employees who would I'd like to participate. ~ Michelle L.

Answer: Yes, please call our office at 541-737-4197 or email pace@oregonstate.edu for more information.

Question: Will there be any certification, or documentation once you complete the Home Hort training program, to show that you have some level of expertise? ~ Ashlyn T.

Answer: Yes, after you pass/complete the Home Horticulture program you will receive a certificate of completion upon successful completion of this course. You may download the Certificate file to have printed for a hard copy.

Question: Can I use my AmeriCorps Education Award to pay for Home Horticulture certification? ~ Bethany M.

Answer: Yes. You can use your AmeriCorps Education Award to pay for OSU's Home Horticulture Certificate.

“I took the Home Horticulture Intensive course to expand my knowledge of my favorite hobby, but now it has evolved into a small business.”

Chelsae Marsh

“I learned so much in the Home Horticulture Summer Intensive class that I took. My house plants have never been happier, and it even motivated me to begin certification with the Backyard Habitat Program. I would recommend the class to everyone."

Jenna Lechner

I wanted to learn more about the science behind plants. I also wanted to validate my pre-existing knowledge of horticulture and desired a defined certificate that I could present to a future employer. I learned more information, gained quality written readings in the form of pdf downloads, and received a certificate for my resume. And the online flexibility, and the readings were all really easy to read and full of important information.

Jake Cardoza

This program taught me how to correctly manage my plants and any pest/disease they have. I was concerned about the pace of the class as it was accelerated, but did not find it to be too fast. I enjoyed the online flexibility and ability to look through quizzes at a later date. It was very instructive and just challenging enough to really teach students.

Keira Hedges

"Thank you to all of the instructors for providing such a wonderful course. I thoroughly enjoyed this course and would highly recommend it to anyone that has an interest in Horticulture."

F. S.

Oregon

Instructors

Signe Danler

Home Horticulture Online

Signe Danler is a veteran Master Gardener and landscape designer with a Masters of Ag degree in Horticulture. In the Master Gardener Online program, she uses her experience and training in gardening, urban forestry and ecological landscaping to communicate about and promote sustainable gardening and landscaping practices.

Gail Langellotto

Gail Langellotto, OSU Professor and Guest Home Horticulture Instructor. Gail has a M.S. and Ph.D. in entomology, and has published research on topics as diverse as the costs of starting and maintaining a vegetable garden, pollinator-friendly gardens, and the benefits of gardening to healthy eating. Her OSU Extension Service and outreach efforts are focused on communicating research-backed management practices to home gardeners. For the online Master Gardener and urban agriculture PACE courses, she supervises overall course development, and reviews and contributes to course content.

Jay W. Pscheidt

Jay Pscheidt, OSU Professor and Guest Home Horticulture Instructor. Jay received his Ph.D. in Plant Pathology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1985. Since 1988 he has been a professor at Oregon State University as an Extension Plant Pathology Specialist. His principal duties are to lead a statewide extension program related to the diagnosis and management of diseases of all fruit, nut, and ornamental/nursery crops. He is also co-editor of regional publication The Pacific Northwest Plant Disease Management Handbook.

Mykl Nelson

Mykl grew up in a military family and has traveled around the globe. He started down his agricultural path after picking the makings of a salad directly into a bowl while standing within a greenhouse in his backyard in Colorado.

Mykl came to the Pacific Northwest to enter the agricultural sector and really immerse himself in an environment of plant growth. . He spent a handful of years at Oregon State University to retrain in a new undergraduate degree so he could finish with a Master’s of Horticulture. He's worked on a handful of farms and tended ever-larger gardens, often on someone else's land. He is now creating and teaching courses at OSU as the Instructor of Urban Agriculture.

In addition to his work for OSU's certificate program in urban agriculture, he is experimenting with a system to convert food waste into insect protein. Outside the university, Mykl gardens when he can and runs a number of nutrient cycling experiments.

Weston Miller

Weston Miller, Former OSU Instructor and Guest Home Horticulture Instructor. He is a community and urban horticulturist based in Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington Counties. His specialties are organic vegetables and fruits.

NEILL BELL -

Neil Bell, OSU Instructor and Guest Home Horticulture Instructor. Neil oversees the Master Gardener program in Marion County and Polk County and works with volunteers to assist homeowners with their garden problems. Since 2001, he has done evaluations of Ceanothus, Cistus and Halimium at the Oregon Garden in Silverton and at the North Willamette Research and Extension Center in Aurora. Currently, he is evaluating Grevillea and Arctostaphylos for hardiness, growth and flowering at NWREC. He has used the results from these evaluations to design low-input landscapes for the region that emphasize year-round ornamental appeal.

Past Students' Work

Take a look at some recent projects our students have created.