A true plantsman, Dan trained at RHS Gardens' Wisley and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and continued his education with student scholarships to study wildflower communities in the Picos de Europa, Spain and the Himalayas. This time gave him a deep understanding of plants' natural growing conditions and how they relate to their surroundings.

A natural
Dan's work is characterised by a bold painterly use of form, texture and colour in planting and in the creation of designs that exist in harmony with their context; whether that's a run-down ruin or a national monument. All Dan's designs are underpinned by his philosophy that it's better "to work with nature, not against it".

Global gardens
Dan turned professional in 1987, setting up his own company, Dan Pearson Studio which has completed some stunning public and private sector commissions including Torrecchia, a romantic garden in the grounds of a ruined mediaeval village in Italy; fourteen roof gardens at Roppongi Hills, a new development in Tokyo and a courtyard garden for The British Council's offices in Cairo. Dan was also responsible for re-landscaping the grounds of Althorp House after the death of Princess Diana and for the landscaping and planting surrounding the Millennium Dome.

Some of Dan's current British projects include a walled sculpture garden for the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art; a new courtyard garden for Guy's & St. Thomas' Hospital in London and plantings for Battersea Park and The British Library.

Dan's plan
Dan is also a weekly gardening columnist for The Daily Telegraph and was joint author with Sir Terence Conran of The Essential Garden Book. He has presented TV series for UKTV Style, BBC2, Channel 4 and Channel 5 and has designed five award-winning Chelsea Show gardens.