Tough job
OPINION: The Hound reckons school teachers like nothing better than to complain constantly about how tough things are for them and that their generous holidays are all spent ‘marking school work and preparing for next term ahead’.
The Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology has launched its new Level 2 Sustainable Horticulture programme.
The course can be used as either a stepping-stone to a career in the horticulture industry or as a way of enhancing horticulture knowledge.
The programme is designed to teach practical skills and allows learners to ask questions and be guided by one another’s experiences.
Jenny North, horticulture academic coordinator, says classes look at how to plan and execute a successful garden by learning several practical skills such as building your own compost and pruning and shaping trees.
“It’s a hands-on course,” North says.
“We focus a lot on organic practices, teaching how to make your own fertilizer and compost, and learn useful techniques for pruning and shaping trees, feeding the soil and encouraging biodiversity,” she says.
The New Zealand Certificate in Primary Industry Skills – Sustainable Horticulture is accepting direct applications.
Classes include one evening per week and every second Saturday and are based in Richmond, Nelson and Blenheim. The practical Saturday classes in Nelson and Richmond will be joined.
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The low unemployment environment is one of the key factors driving on-farm salaries higher over the past 24 months, says Rabobank general manager for country banking Bruce Weir.
Fonterra has appointed a new chief financial officer, seven months after its last CFO’s shock resignation.
A seminar on rural dispute resolution has been organised at Lincoln University, Christchurch this month.
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