ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I’ve been gardening and writing for as long as I can remember, but it was only about 15 years ago that I realized I could combine the two. I am proof that it’s never too late to write (and photograph) your first book.

I’d like to thank Voyageur editor Thom O’Hearn for his patience and guidance helping me through the learning process, and art director Cindy Laun for her help as well.

I am grateful to P. Allen Smith for writing the foreword to this book. His knowledge, inspiration, and sense of stewardship made him my only choice. I want to thank him for inviting me to Moss Mountain for those great Garden2Blog events, which helped to bolster both my confidence and career as a garden writer.

I want to thank Cole Burrell, George Coombs, Heidi Heiland, Dr. Rebecca Masterman, Dr. Donald Mitchell, Dr. Karen Oberhauser, Dr. Marla Spivak, Dr. Chip Taylor, and Benjamin Vogt for giving generously of their time and expertise.

Thanks to Elaine Evans, Yuuki Metreaud, and Jonathan Neal for their info and advice on many bee questions.

Thanks to Peter Morrow for allowing me to photograph his beehives and the buzzing inhabitants. Thank also for the delicious honey!

Thanks to Meleah Maynard (monarch rearing), Bob Wolk (eco-wall), Barb Gasterland (urban prairie), Janet and Janice Robidoux (native gardens), and Donna Hamilton (urban flower gardens).

Thanks to Kathy Johnson, Nancy Leasman, and many other Minnesota Master Gardeners for their insights into rearing monarchs.

Thanks to Gallery Espresso in Savannah, Georgia, for the kindly baristas, endless cups of tea, cozy couches, and reliable wi-fi that saw me through the writing process while escaping the long winter in Minnesota.

Thanks to my husband Tom for being proud of me and for not complaining about the “book” scattered over the dining table for most of the year. Thanks to my children, Hannah and Will, for their love and support.

Finally, thanks to my mother for always making sure I noticed the wildflowers on the side of the road. And to my father for making sure I saw the birds in the sky.