Desmond Ho (born 29 December 1961) is a landscape designer and horticulture specialist based in

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

. He is responsible for initiating the Malaysian theme garden. It is called Neo Nusantara and reflects Malaysia's cultural heritage. His Malaysian garden concept has been recognized in Japan, Ireland, Switzerland, and New Zealand. He shared his knowledge and experiences through public press by becoming the columnist for ''

New Straits Times The ''New Straits Times'' is an English-language newspaper published in Malaysia. It is Malaysia's oldest newspaper still in print (though not the first), having been founded as a local offshoot of Singapore-based ''The Straits Ti ...

'', ''The Star'', and ''

Berita Harian ''BH'', previously known as ''Berita Harian'', is a Malay daily newspaper in Malaysia, published by the New Straits Times Press. It was first issued on 1 July 1957. Its Sunday edition, ''BH Ahad'' (formerly ''Berita Minggu''), debuted on 10 ...

'', appearing in local shows such as Casa Impian and wrote a guidebook titled ''Desmond Ho's Guide to Beautiful Home Gardens'' published by

MPH Group MPH Group Malaysia Sdn Bhd is a Malaysian group of companies best known for its book retailing and online retailing services as well as being involved in the printing, publishing and distribution of books and library services in Malaysia and Singa ...

Early life

Desmond Ho was born into a

Peranakan The Peranakan Chinese () are an ethnic group defined by their genealogical descent from the first waves of Southern Chinese settlers to maritime Southeast Asia, known as Nanyang (region), Nanyang (), namely the British Empire, British, Portugu ...

family in Malacca, Malaysia on 29 December 1961. He then worked in advertising, sales and printing jobs before starting exploring

terrarium A terrarium ( terraria or terrariums) is a glass container containing soil and plants in an environment different from the surroundings. It is usually a sealable container that can be opened for maintenance or to access the plants inside; howeve ...

s for sales.

Career

He started off by designing and building terrariums, then starting a garden centre called Terra Garden. Back in 1998, Terra Garden began by selling

Potted Plant Container gardening or pot gardening/farming is the practice of growing plants, including edible plants, exclusively in containers instead of planting them in the ground. A container in gardening is a small, enclosed and usually portable object ...

s before he created the Malaysian garden concept that is based primarily on Malaysia's culture and craft as its distinct feature. It added a new element to Malaysian identity through public landscaping as it reflects the history, art, and traditions of all cultures belonging in Malaysian society. His own house was built to be a modern-day village house that uses mostly ancient Malaya heritage with modern practicality. All of its natural elements have cultural meaning.Landscape Architecture Malaysia (2004). Lighting Design Gallery. Vol. 3. ISSN 1675-7637 The

patio A patio (, ; ) is an outdoor space generally used for dining or recreation that adjoins a structure and is typically paved. In Australia, the term is expanded to include roofed structures such as a veranda, which provides protection from sun ...

has a ''

Minangkabau Minangkabau may refer to: * Minangkabau culture, culture of the Minangkabau people * Minangkabau Culture Documentation and Information Center * Minangkabau Express, an airport rail link service serving Minangkabau International Airport (''see bel ...

'' outline with the tier decking which portray a traditional Malay

veranda A veranda (also spelled verandah in Australian and New Zealand English) is a roofed, open-air hallway or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front an ...

h(''pangkin)''; traditional Malaysian water pot called a

tempayan ''Tapáyan'' or ''tempayan'' (also known as ''balanga'', ''belanga'', or ''bangâ'') are large wide-mouthed earthenware or stoneware jars found in various Austronesian people, Austronesian cultures in island Southeast Asia. Their various function ...

;''Patio With a Traditional Feel. Sunday Star: 11 June 2000'' lighting inspired by the shape of banana flower ( jantung pisang); and

ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant, and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcela ...

water feature of dayang bunting''.'' Its lattice mimic the pattern of kain pelikat and batik patterned screens. It is a design concept in Malaysia that engages with the

five senses A sense is a biological system used by an organism for sensation, the process of gathering information about the surroundings through the detection of stimuli. Although, in some cultures, five human senses were traditionally identified as su ...

approach, sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste in the designs.

List of awards

* Good Design Award, Japan Industrial Design Promotion Council, Japan, 2003 * Garden Heaven Award (Bronze), Garden Heaven Show, Ireland, UK, 2006 * Award of Excellence, Waikato Home and Garden Show, Hamilton, New Zealand * Gold medal at Shrewsbury Flower Show, Birmingham, 2008

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ho, Desmond 1961 births Living people People from Malacca Peranakan people in Malaysia Landscape architects Horticulturists