The Guild · skilled trades & applied crafts
Agriculture & Horticulture
Growing things on purpose — soil, seed, season, and stock under real weather.
Texture, structure, chemistry, and life — reading soil before asking it to grow anything.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~20 hours
Unit I — What Soil Is
Sand, silt, clay, and the texture triangle · Soil structure and compaction · Organic matter and the soil food web
Unit II — Chemistry
pH and nutrient availability · Nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and the rest · Cation exchange in plain terms · Reading a soil test report
Unit III — Stewardship
Cover crops and rotation · Compost and amendments · Erosion, and how to stop it
Making more plants on purpose — germination, cuttings, division, and the graft that takes.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~16 hours
Unit I — Seeds
Seed anatomy and dormancy · Germination requirements · Starting seeds indoors · Hardening off
Unit II — Cuttings and Division
Softwood and hardwood cuttings · Rooting hormones and media · Division and layering
Unit III — Grafting
Rootstock and scion · Whip-and-tongue and cleft grafts · Aftercare and judging the take
A season of vegetables planned like a business — succession, pests, harvest, and the market table.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~24 hours
Unit I — Planning
Crop selection and season mapping · Succession planting · Beds, spacing, and irrigation basics
Unit II — The Growing Season
Transplanting and direct seeding · A weed strategy that holds · Pests and integrated management · Feeding through the season
Unit III — Harvest and Sale
Harvest timing and handling · Washing, storage, and food safety · Pricing and the market stall
Daily care of poultry, small ruminants, and cattle — feed, housing, health, and honest economics.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~24 hours
Unit I — Fundamentals
Species overview: poultry, goats, sheep, cattle · Nutrition and feed types · Water, shelter, and fencing
Unit II — Health
Signs of a healthy animal · Common ailments and parasites · Vaccination schedules · When to call the veterinarian
Unit III — Management
Breeding basics · Record keeping · The economics of a small herd
Growing under glass and plastic — light, heat, water, and airflow held in deliberate balance.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~20 hours
Unit I — The Structure
Greenhouse types and siting · Glazing and light transmission · Ventilation and circulation
Unit II — The Environment
Heating and cooling systems · Humidity and disease pressure · Supplemental lighting
Unit III — Production
Irrigation and fertigation · Pest management under cover · Scheduling crops to sale dates