Definition of landscaping: – Natural versus man-made landscape. Scope and historical sketches of landscaping: to enhance property beauty and value; to provide screening – effect from security and privacy, etc. Types of landscaping, institutional, private property, parks, and recreational area landscaping – e.g. sporting arena.  Elements of landscaping colour, texture, etc, Principles of landscaping design, selection criteria for plants and pavings.  Review of soft and hard landscaping.

Practical: Identification of tropical and subtropical ornamental plants. Visits to places of interest. Plan reading and translation.

Principles and practice of vegetable crops production. Major classes of vegetables – indigenous, exotic and wild vegetables. Factors influencing site selection – climatic and soil requirements. Field establishment, management, cultural practices. Processing, storage and marketing. Problems of vegetable production.

Practical: Raising vegetable transplants in the nursery. Seed identification. Fresh produce identification. Visit to appropriate establishments for some few vegetables grown in Nigeria.

Climatic and soil requirements. Fruit tree propagation, selection and preparation of nursery site of cacao, kola, oil palm, citrus, cashew, coffee and rubber, etc. Plantation/orchard establishment: site selection, layout, and land preparation, planning. Crop management/improvement practices. Chemical weed and pest control. Harvesting: Seed control, preservation, storage, packaging, processing and marketing.

Seed storage and factors affecting storage of seeds, grains fruits, roots, tubers and vegetables. Effect of environment on maturity and senescence. Factors affecting plant nutrition as related to production of vegetable parts, seeds grain, fruits, tubers. Physical and chemical factors influencing produce quality. Storage of fruits and vegetables; low temperature storage. Locally fabricated low temperature storage structures, e.g. portable evaporative coolant structure. Controlled atmosphere storage, field storage environment. Post harvest loses and prevention, economic, quantitative, qualitative, nutritional and germination losses.

Practical: Training in handling, harvesting and storage of produce to minimize losses. Traditional methods of produce storage. Visit to Nigerian Stored Products Research Institute and Processing Companies. Seed Storage Environment Structure and Maintenance. Disease and  Pest control in storage. Environmental  Control Storage.

Propagation defined; major types of propagation – sexual and vegetative. Definition and importance of nursery. Nursery management techniques and implication for horticultural crops. Factors of nursery establishment, Fruit-tree propagation, selection and preparation of nursery site, propagation structures and techniques, seed, tissue culture, stem cutting, laying, grafting, budding etc. Micro and macro propagation definition and importance. Introduction to biotechnology. Physiological basis of plant culture at cellular level. Potting media. Nutrient basis in tissue culture. Environmental control in tissue culture. Influence of pathogens on cultures propagates.

Practical: Identification of suitable plants and plant parts for tissue culture. Identification, preparation utilization and maintenance of culture media. Identification of propagation equipment.

Definition of dessert fruit crops. Major classes of dessert fruit crops, indigenous, wild and exotic fruits. Economic importance. Factors affecting their cultivation. Climatic and soil requirements. Distribution of dessert fruit crops – mango, plantain, banana, pawpaw, guava, pineapple, apple, passion fruit, viticulture, date palm etc. Site selection, layout, land preparation, planting. Crop improvement practices. Orchard maintenance. Harvesting, grading, storage, packaging, processing and marketing.

Practical: Land preparation techniques, nurseries and management, visit to orchards of the crops named above. Seed and fresh fruit identification. Grape vine pruning and training. Grape and resin processing.

History of gardens. Garden types. Architectural design for local modern parks and gardens. Functional designs for parks and gardens, e.g. parks for family relaxation, parks for holidaying. Concept of national parks and gardens, botanical gardens, horticulture gardens, estate gardens, etc. contracts and contractual agreements. Establishment and management of park and garden. Garden and park facilities and maintenance.

Practical: Design of parks and gardens. How to prepare contract documents: Visit to notable parks and gardens.

Identification of tropical ornament plants. Culture of trees, shrubs and flowers. Shade trees, ground covers, annual flowers, perennial shrubs and hedge plants, bedding and foundation flowers plants, lawn grasses, nursery management, palms as ornamental plants, rock gardens, aquatic plants, forms orchids.

Practical: Field work – to identify various species of trees, shrubs, hedge plant propagation, cutting and seeds, etc. Potting media, flower show. Flower arrangement. Pot flower production. Home beautification – Interior and external decoration.

Definition of organic and urban farming. Major types of horticultural crops grown under organic and urban farming. Organic and Urban farming production system. Importance of organic farming. Protected crops cultivation. Peculiarities of organic and urban farming. Concepts of home gardening, market gardening and commercial gardening. Certification of organic horticultural products. Materials used in organic crops production. Sources of organic fertilizer materials. Environmental and earthy implication of organic and urban farming. Influence of urbanization and environmental factors. Problems of organic, urban/dry season horticultural farming. Maintenance of soil fertility and crop protection. Irrigation. Prospects of organic and urban/dry season horticultural farming.

Practical: Compost preparation and preservation. Green manures/Farmyard manure identification. Land preparation, appropriate establishments, particularly on techniques, establishment. Visit to organic farming, protected farming and urban farming of interest.

Definition of landscaping. Natural versus manmade landscape. Scope and historical sketches of landscaping: to enhance property beauty and value; to provide screening – Institutional, private, property, parks, gardens, roundabout and recreational areas. Landscaping – e.g. gardens, sporting arena, stadia. Design principles, design practice, basic styles, preparing the plan design practice, basic style, preparing the design. Landscape construction. Hard landscaping, soft landscape, contracts and contractual agreements.

Practical: Identification of tropical ornamental plants. Visit to places of interest. Plan reading and translation. Drawing and design production, design concepts. Field work-contour development. Topographic map production. How to prepare contract documents.

How to use library – Review of literature on special topics and proposal presentation.

Presentation of project report post-data seminar

Special project submitted to the Department in partial fulfillment of the requirements for award of B. Agric. in Horticulture.