David Gerald Hessayon is a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 author and botanist of Cypriot

Cyprus

Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...

 descent who is known for a best-selling series of gardening

Gardening

Gardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants. Ornamental plants are normally grown for their flowers, foliage, or overall appearance; useful plants are grown for consumption , for their dyes, or for medicinal or cosmetic use...

 manuals known as the "Expert Guides" under his title Dr. D. G. Hessayon. The series started in 1958 with Be Your Own Gardening Expert and in 2008 the celebrated their 50th anniversary and the 50 millionth copy in print. They have become the best selling gardening books in history.

Early life

David Hessayon is the son of a Cypriot landowner and grew up in Manchester

Manchester

Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...

, England. He gained a Bachelor of Science

Bachelor of Science

A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...

 degree in botany

Botany

Botany, plant science, or plant biology is a branch of biology that involves the scientific study of plant life. Traditionally, botany also included the study of fungi, algae and viruses...

 from Leeds University. In 1950, he travelled to the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 where he worked as the editor of a small town newspaper. In 1953, he went to Ghana as a Research Fellow at the University College before returning to Manchester to obtain his doctorate

Doctorate

A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...

 in soil ecology

Soil ecology

Soil ecology is the study of the interactions among soil organisms, and between biotic and abiotic aspects of the soil environment. It is particularly concerned with the cycling of nutrients, formation and stabilization of the pore structure, the spread and vitality of pathogens, and the...

. In 1955, he accepted a position as chief scientist with Pan Britannica Industries

Pan Britannica Industries

Pan Britannica Industries Ltd or PBI as it was known to its employees and to the industry, was a small household and agrochemical formulation company based in Waltham Abbey stewardstone Rd, Waltham Cross Britannica House and with a distribution presence in Wisbech in Cambridgeshire.It was best...

 Ltd(PBI), becoming chairman in 1972. It was here Dr. Hessayon formulated the idea for his "Expert" guides to gardening.

The "Expert" guides

A steady stream of publications followed the initial Be Your Own Gardening Expert, each maintaining the basic formula of down-to-earth writing with pictures, charts, and photographs. On the British bestsellers list for the 1980s, two Experts were in the Top 10. There are over 20 "Expert" titles in 22 languages and in Britain their sales continue to dominate the gardening paperback lists. The Vegetable & Herb Expert continues to be the best seller.

Recognition

In 1993, he received the first-ever Lifetime Achievement award at the British Book Awards

British Book Awards

The Galaxy National Book Awards are a series of British literary awards focused on the best UK writers and their works, as selected by an academy of members from the British book publishing industry...

. He was also awarded The Veitch Memorial Medal

The Veitch Memorial Medal

The Veitch Memorial Medal, is a prestigious international prize issued annually by the Royal Horticultural Society .-Goal:The prize is awarded to "persons of any nationality who have made an outstanding contribution to the advancement and improvement of the science and practice of horticulture"...

 of the Royal Horticultural Society

Royal Horticultural Society

The Royal Horticultural Society was founded in 1804 in London, England as the Horticultural Society of London, and gained its present name in a Royal Charter granted in 1861 by Prince Albert...

 for his contribution to the advancement and improvement of the science and practice of horticulture. In 1999 he was awarded a Guinness World Records

Guinness World Records

Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...

 certificate for being Britain’s "bestselling non-fiction author of the 1990s".

Despite a resolve to stay out of the limelight, he has received further awards- a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Garden Media Guild, three honorary doctorates and, in 2007, an OBE.