Diane Pyper worked for 17 years in a landscape architects practice and qualified in Architectural Technology and Horticulture before embarking in a career in Garden Design. The influence came from a feature in an American Landscape Architecture magazine on gardens designed by Thomas Church.

She set up a successful design business in 1995 and the company design projects throughout Britain, predominantly in the private sector, although continue to work on a variety of commercial projects. Their traditional and modern designs have been featured in the Scottish media.

As well as running a busy design company, Diane pursued another passion and began running recreational courses in Garden Design in 1996 at Oatridge College. She also studied specifically in Garden Design and completed an intensive and rewarding Diploma in 1998. The following year, she began lecturing on this course, became Course Director in 2001 and Vice Principal of The Pickard School of Garden Design in 2003.

Diane is Course Director for a Diploma in Garden Design with The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, and also runs other recreational classes as well as specialised design workshops for private companies.
She is a regular contributor to the garden design feature in Scotland on Sunday's ‘At Home’ supplement.

“It’s a great advantage combining teaching with running a design company as one profession complements the other. I feel it is important to be fully involved in garden design in order to pass on current knowledge and experience to students. Likewise, teaching allows me to constantly reinforce and question design principles and be challenged by the fresh ideas of my students”.