David Gerald Hessayon OBE (born 1928) is a British author and botanist of Cypriot descent who is known for a best-selling series of paperback gardening 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 it celebrated its 50th anniversary and the 50 millionth copy in print.[1] They have become the best selling gardening books in history.[2]
D. G. Hessayon | |
|---|---|
| Born | David Gerald Hessayon February 13, 1928 Manchester |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation(s) | Author, botanist |
| Known for | "Expert Guides" |
| Children | 2 |
Early life
editHessayon is the son of a Cypriot landowner and grew up in Salford, Lancashire, England. He gained a Bachelor of Science degree in botany from Leeds University. In 1950, he travelled to the United States where he worked as the editor of a small town newspaper. In 1953, he went to the Gold Coast as a Research Fellow at the University College before returning to Manchester to obtain his doctorate in soil ecology. In 1955, he accepted a position as chief scientist with Pan Britannica Industries Ltd (PBI), becoming chairman in 1972. It was whilst working for PBI that Dr. Hessayon formulated the idea for his "Expert" guides to gardening.
The "Expert" guides
editA steady stream of publications followed the initial Be Your Own Gardening Expert, each maintaining the basic formula of down-to-earth writing broken up into short sections with headers, and illustrated with what were at the time lavish numbers of colour photographs, graphic images and charts. In later editions the Be Your Own ...Expert titles were changed to The ... Expert. On the British bestsellers list for the 1980s, two Experts were in the Top 10. There are (as of 2009[update]) over 20 "Expert" titles in 22 languages and in Britain their sales continue to dominate the gardening paperback lists.[3] The Vegetable & Herb Expert [4] continues to be the best seller.
Nobody has improved on the formula for getting facts on the page in the most immediately intelligible manner
— Dr. Brent Elliott, Librarian, Royal Horticultural Society, 1997, [5]
Recognition
editIn 1993, Hessayon received the first-ever Lifetime Achievement award at the British Book Awards. He was also awarded the Veitch Memorial Medal of the Royal Horticultural Society in 1992 for his contribution to the advancement and improvement of the science and practice of horticulture. In 1999, he was awarded a Guinness World Records certificate for being Britain's "bestselling non-fiction author of the 1990s".[citation needed]
Despite a resolve to stay out of the limelight,[6] Hessayon has received further awards - a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Garden Media Guild,[7] three honorary doctorates [8] and, in 2007, an OBE.
Bibliography
editSince 1959, Hessayon has written many books.
| Title | Year published | ISBN |
|---|---|---|
| Potato Growers Handbook (with P G Fenemore) | 1961 | |
| Silage Makers' Handbook (with Christopher Hugh Wood) | 1962 | |
| The Garden Book of Europe | 1973 | ISBN 0241023866 |
| The Armchair Book of the Garden | 1983 | ISBN 0712602348 |
| The Bio Friendly Gardening Guide | 1990 | ISBN 0903505339 |
| The Bedside Book of the Garden | 2008 | ISBN 9780903505697 |
| Title | Year published | ISBN |
|---|---|---|
| Be your own Gardening Expert | 1959 | |
| Be your own Gardening Expert (republished) | 1961 | |
| Be your own Gardening Expert | 1959 | |
| Be your own Gardening Expert (republished) | 1961 | |
| Be your own House Plant Expert | 1961 | |
| Be your own House Plant Expert (revised) | 1967 | |
| Be your own Lawn Expert | 1961 | |
| Be your own Lawn Expert (revised) | 1968 | |
| Be your own Rose Expert (with Harry Wheatcroft) | 1965 | |
| Vegetable Plotter | 1976 | ISBN 0903505061 |
| Be your own House Plant Spotter (with J. P. Hessayon) | 1977 | ISBN 090350507X |
| Be your own Vegetable Doctor | 1978 | ISBN 0903505088 |
| Be your own Garden Doctor | 1978 | ISBN 0903505096 |
| The House Plant Expert | 1980 | ISBN 0903505134 |
| The Rose Expert | 1981 | ISBN 0903505142 |
| The Cereal Disease Expert | 1982 | ISBN 0903505169 |
| The Lawn Expert | 1982 | ISBN 0903505150 |
| The Lawn Expert (reprinted) | 1988 | ISBN 0903505150 |
| The Lawn Expert (reprinted) | 1990 | ISBN 0903505150 |
| The Tree & Shrub Expert | 1983 | ISBN 0903505177 |
| The Tree & Shrub Expert (reprinted) | 1992 | ISBN 0903505177 |
| The Tree & Shrub Expert (reprinted) | 1994 | ISBN 0903505177 |
| The Tree & Shrub Expert (reprinted) | 2012 | ISBN 9780903505178 |
| The Flower Expert | 1984 | ISBN 0903505193 |
| The Flower Expert (reprinted) | 1994 | ISBN 0903505193 |
| The Indoor Plant Spotter | 1985 | ISBN 0903505215 |
| The Garden Expert | 1986 | ISBN 0903505223 |
| The Garden Expert (reprinted) | 1997 | ISBN 0903505223 |
| The Gold-Plated House Plant Expert | 1987 | ISBN 0712616985 |
| The Home Expert | 1987 | ISBN 090350524X |
| Rose Jotter | 1989 | ISBN 0903505274 |
| Vegetable Jotter | 1989 | ISBN 0903505282 |
| Be your own Greenhouse Expert | 1990 | ISBN 0903505320 |
| The Bedding Plant Expert | 1991 | ISBN 0903505347 |
| The Bedding Plant Expert (reprinted) | 1995 | ISBN 0903505347 |
| The New House Plant Expert | 1991 | ISBN 0903505355 |
| The Vegetable Expert | 1985 | ISBN 0903505207 |
| The Vegetable Expert (reprinted) | 1993 | ISBN 0903505207 |
| The Garden DIY Expert | 1992 | ISBN 0903505371 |
| The Rock & Water Garden Expert | 1993 | ISBN 090350538X |
| The Flower Arranging Expert | 1994 | ISBN 090350541X |
| The Flowering Shrub Expert | 1994 | ISBN 0903505398 |
| The Greenhouse Expert | 1994 | ISBN 0903505401 |
| The Bulb Expert | 1995 | ISBN 0903505428 |
| The Container Expert | 1995 | ISBN 0903505436 |
| The Container Expert (reprinted) | 1998 | ISBN 0903505436 |
| The Easy-care Garden Expert | 1996 | ISBN 0903505444 |
| The New Rose Expert | 1996 | ISBN 0903505479 |
| The New Bedding Plant Expert | 1996 | ISBN 0903505452 |
| The New Lawn Expert | 1997 | ISBN 0903505487 |
| The New Vegetable & Herb Expert | 1997 | ISBN 0903505460 |
| The New Vegetable & Herb Expert (revised) | 2014 | ISBN 9780903505758 |
| The Evergreen Expert | 1998 | ISBN 0903505517 |
| The New Flower Expert | 1999 | ISBN 0903505525 |
| The Pocket Flower Expert | 2001 | ISBN 090350555X |
| The Pocket Garden Troubles Expert | 2001 | ISBN 0903505541 |
| The Pocket Tree & Shrub Expert | 2001 | ISBN 0903505568 |
| The Pocket House Plant Expert | 2002 | ISBN 0903505592 |
| The Pocket Vegetable Expert | 2002 | ISBN 0903505576 |
| The Home DIY Expert | 2003 | ISBN 0903505584 |
| The Fruit Expert | 1990 | ISBN 0903505312 |
| The Fruit Expert (reprinted) | 2003 | ISBN 0903505312 |
| The Garden Revival Expert | 2004 | ISBN 0903505606 |
| The House Plant Expert - Book Two | 2005 | ISBN 0903505614 |
| The Pest and Weed Expert | 2007 | ISBN 9780903505628 |
| The Orchid Expert | 2008 | ISBN 9780903505673 |
| The Orchid Expert (republished) | 2010 | ISBN 9780903505673 |
| The Green Garden Expert | 2009 | ISBN 9780903505635 |
| The Expert Vegetable Notebook | 2009 | ISBN 9780903505765 |
| The Best of Experts | 2010 | ISBN 9780903505932 |
| The Garden to Kitchen Expert (Judith Wills with D.G. Hessayon) | 2011 | ISBN 9780903505925 |
| The Complete Garden Expert | 2012 | ISBN 9780903505987 |
| The Indoor Plant & Flower Expert | 2013 | ISBN 9781909663008 |
| The New Fruit Expert | 2015 | ISBN 9780903505741 |
Notes
edit- ^ "booktrade.info - Book Trade Announcements - Expert Books Celebrates Its First 50 Years Of Publishing". Archived from the original on 16 September 2010. Retrieved 15 July 2008.
- ^ theBookseller.com Archived 2010-07-12 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Transworld Archived 2008-07-10 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Amazon.co.uk: Vegetable and Herb Expert: D.G. Hessayon: Books
- ^ The Literator (15 June 1997). "You're Booked! Inside Publishing". The Independent. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ Leader: Raking it in | Books | The Guardian
- ^ GWG Awards: Press Room Archived 2008-07-05 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ David Hessayon | Honorary graduations 2008 | Media | University of Leeds Archived 2009-02-13 at the Wayback Machine