Daryl Toby
“An environmentalist and landscape designer, with the soul of an adventurer, Toby, is as comfortable in a Brazilian rain forest as he is in a formal Japanese garden”. -Style Magazine-
Toby could be a case study for making an entrepreneur’s dreams become business reality, and furthermore a global success. His business ventures started at the age of 12, towing a lawn mower behind a bicycle, doing odd jobs and gardening. While still a student at Cranbrook he built his business and clientele and continued during his studies at Michigan State University, graduating with honors in Resource Development / Environmental Management. While at MSU, he participated in an overseas study program in Brazil, a transformative experience that eventually would be only the first of many extensive journeys in Asia, Europe and the Americas with a few other places in between. The experience of travel, meeting and working with designers, artists and craftsman from around the world, visiting estates, gardens, museums, studios, botanic gardens and simply exploring nature have all inspired his work. As can be imagined, Toby is quite the colorful character full of stories and anecdotes from his adventures, both in travel and business, which only he can really tell, even in Portuguese and Spanish. Integrating his passion for cultures and travel with the drive as a designer and land artist, he has created a flourishing unique business and all from a lawn mower towed behind a bicycle*
“There is a feeling and sense when working with stone that I find difficult to describe,but it is an experience when a stone is set properly or a garden has achieved a certain balance…it just feels right….that it is “meant” to be that way…that it “wants” to be that way.”