Holistic Landscape Design Certificate

Become a steward of the earth and create sustainable landscapes.

Landscape Design Certification Overview

Our world needs more landscape designs that work with nature, not against it. As a student in Bastyr’s Holistic Landscape Design Certificate program, you’ll experience a green education that connects you emotionally, physically and intellectually to the earth. You will take courses such as soil ecology, mycology and medicinal and edible plants in the landscape. This program will give you the guidance and resources needed to launch a career creating self-sustaining, efficient landscape systems for community settings as well as private residences. Further, the permaculture series in the curriculum earns students a certificate from PINA - Permaculture Institute of North America.

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Location
Seattle
Program Length

1 year

Cost

Tuition & Fees

Landscape Design Certificate Program Highlights

12

Month Evening and Weekend Course Schedule

Focus on the Therapeutic Value of Medicinal and Edible Landscapes

18:1

Student to Teacher Ratio

Landscape Design Program Details

See the tentative schedule for courses each quarter. 

  • Complete one Botany course*
  • Have completed 90 quarter credits (60 semester credits) of college-level coursework. 

Reference our curriculum table for full prerequisites. 

*Must cover basic plant morphology and physiology, classification, plant evolution, terminology, and ecology, no labs required.

Strongly Recommended Courses

Though not required for admission, the faculty recommends that students complete biology, chemistry, public speaking, and general education coursework in addition to the botany prerequisite requirement. These courses will substantially enhance students’ ability to be prepared for the concepts covered in the holistic landscape design program. Please see additional details regarding these recommendations:

  • Biology – covering cell and plant biology, no labs required
  • Introduction to Botany – basic plant morphology and physiology, classification, plant evolution, and ecology, no labs required
  • Chemistry – survey-level to cover general inorganic and organic concepts, no labs required
  • Public Speaking - coursework or experience
  • General Education - including some humanities, English, natural sciences and social sciences courses  

Bastyr accepts graduate and undergraduate transfer credits earned at accredited colleges and universities. Learn what you need to make this process go smoothly.

For more information, visit Tuition and Fees.

For nearly a decade, Bastyr has been certifying professional permaculture practitioners. 

The future looks bright for careers in environmental sustainability. The US Department of Labor's occupational handbook lists a number of rising professions in the Holistic Landscape Design arena:

  • Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health 
  • Industrial Ecologist 
  • Nursery and Greenhouse Manager 
  • Soil and Water Conservationist 
  • Landscape Designer 
Gardens at Bastyr

A Classroom Based in Nature

Access to Bastyr’s wooded 51-acre campus, which includes The Bastyr Gardens (home to over 350 medicinal plants), teaching greenhouse, herb lab, and a LEED-certified Student Village — both excellent spaces for hands-on training in landscape design, implementation and maintenance.
students studying in a library

Learning Resources

Access Bastyr’s library, which offers a rich source of medicinal and edible plant information, including cultivation and landscaping resources.

Bastyr gardens and student village

About the Seattle, Washington Campus

The 51-acre Bastyr University campus is uniquely suited for the study of natural health sciences. Nestled among woodlands on the northeast shore of Lake Washington, the 186,000-square-foot campus complex is located 10 miles northeast of Seattle in Kenmore, Washington.
advisor

Chat with an Advisor

Advisors at Bastyr are here to help! From selecting the right prerequisite classes, to providing specific details about the programs, the advising team is here to make your life easier.