This is your home for the tools you need to bring education, certification and a pathway to success for your students in Florida's nursery and landscape industry. Whether you need direction on preparing for FNGLA's horticulture or landscape certification exams, participating in FFA Career Development Events or finding connections to career opportunities for your students, FNGLA is your resource.
FNGLA's Certified Horticulture Professional (FCHP) program is the industry's only standard for measuring horticulture knowledge on everything from plant and pest identification to landscape management. The certification is designed for those working in the horticulture industry or studying to enter the field.
VALUE-ADDED for your students who plan to pursue a landscape career: FCHP is recognized as equivalent to the Florida-FriendlyTM Best Management Practices for the Green Industries (GI-BMP) certificate program. FCHPs can submit their request online for certificate. The GI-BMP certificate is the document necessary to obtain the Limited Urban Commercial Fertilizer Applicator Certification required by law to apply fertilizer for hire.
Setting up FCHP testing for your students is an easy process. Below are links to the forms necessary to establish your school as an FCHP test site, register your exam proctor and get information on the process for student FCHP testing. Contact Erin Elsberry or Merry Mott with any questions. FNGLA's main number is 407-295-7994.
FNGLA's FCHP exam is an online, multiple choice exam made up of four sections which can be taken together or separately throughout the school year. Each section must be passed with a minumum 70% in order to earn the FCHP Certification.
Click here to view full information about bringing FNGLA's Certifications to your students
Click here to download the breakdown of subjects within each exam section
FCHP exams are hosted at individual schools by FNGLA approved proctors. Complete this form to register your school as an approved test site.
FNGLA provides the necessary testing accommodations to any student identified by the instructor as needing accommodations. It is the responsibility of the instructor to provide FNGLA with the list of students and their accommodations. Proctors should complete this form and return it to FNGLA prior to testing.
FNGLA's Certified Landscape Technician (FCLT) and Certified Landscape Maintenance Technician (FCLMT) programs are designed to measure the skills of practicing landscape technicians or those studying to enter the field.
Since FNGLA's landscape exams are hands-on, instructors interested in having their students take either of these exams will contact FNGLA to determine the best test site. Exams can be given at the school if there is an appropriate area available or students can be hosted at a nearby established test site. Below is more information about each exam. Contact Gary Weitermann with any questions and to set a date and location for your student testing. FNGLA's main number is 407-295-7994.
FNGLA provides the ncessary testing accommodations to any student identified by the instructor as needing accommodations. It is the responsibility of the instructor to provide FNGLA with a list of the students and their accommodations. Click here to view this document which outlines the testing procedures for landscape
FNGLA's Certified Landscape Maintenance Technician (FCLMT) exam is a hands-on field exam where students demonstrate their landscape maintenance skills in front of industry professionals who serve as judges. The certification exams take place in person and last between 5 and 6 hours. Each exam section is 25 minutes in length and requires a minimum of 70% on each exam section in order to earn the FCLMT certification.
FNGLA's Certified Landscape Technician (FCLT-Installation) exam is a hands-on field exam where students demonstrate their landscape installation skills in front of industry professionals who serve as judges. The certification exams take place in person and last between 5 and 6 hours. Each exam section is 25 minutes in length and requires a minimum of 70% on each exam section in order to earn the FCLT certification.
Congratulations to the winning teams from the 2026 CDEs at the Florida State Fairgrounds in Tampa!
Floriculture:
Durant High School
Tomlin Middle School
Nursery & Landscape
Auburndale High School
Randall Middle School
Please check the Florida FFA website for the latest information on the Floriculture and Nursery & Landscape CDEs for 2027. Click on RULES for the latest handbook and on RESOURCES for past activities and study materials. Contact Merry Mott for more information.
2027 FFA Floriculture and Nursery & Landscape CDE Preliminaries: February 1, 2027
2027 FFA Floriculture and Nursery & Landscape CDE: March 30, 2027 (Floriculture) & March 31, 2027 (Nursery & Landscape)
Information for 2027 CDEs on Floriculture and Nursery & Landscape
Below are some general resources to help prepare your students for the 2027 FFA Career Development Events in Floriculture and Nursery & Landscape. Keep checking back for updates.
Floriculture Identification
Floriculture Salesmanship (high school only)
Floriculture Greenhouse Operations (high school only)
(excerpts from two chapters in The Horticulture Professional textbook)
Floriculture Production/Interiorscape
(excerpts from two chapters in The Horticulture Professional textbook)
Floriculture Floral videos
Nursery & Landscape Identification
Nursery & Landscape Salesmanship (high school only)
Nursery & Landscape Plant Soil Water / Irrigation (from The Horticulture Professional textbook)
Nursery & Landscape Landscape Management (from The Horticulture Professional textbook)
Nursery & Landscape Equipment
Congratulations to the winners of the 2024 FFA Career Development Events:
The 2025 CDE Preliminaries will take place Thursday, January 23, 2025 online.
The date and location for the 2025 in-person CDE is being finalized and will take place in the Orlando area.
Please check the Florida FFA website for the latest information on the Floriculture and Nursery & Landscape CDEs. Click on RULES for the latest handbook and on RESOURCES for past activities and study materials.
Here is the information on the 2025 CDEs on Floriculture and Nursery & Landscape.
2025 FFA Career Development Events Nursery & Landscape and Floriculture
Floriculture Identification
Floriculture Salesmanship
FNGLA's Certified Landscape Technician (FCLT) and Maintenance Technician (FCLMT) exams have been CAPE approved at a .2 level, like the FCHP exam. These exams take a different approach to testing by being hands-on exams rather than written exams. They assess real-world skills in landscape installation and maintenance through a judging process with FNGLA’s industry professionals. Just like FCHP, the curriculum frameworks for Horticulture Science & Services and Landscape Operations provide the course of study for the exams, especially Landscape and Turf Science 4 and 5. FNGLA can bring this certification to your school or host it at the FNGLA office in Orlando. Contact Gary Weitermann with any questions at gweitermann@fngla.org or 407-295-7994.
