About

Hello! I’m glad to see you here.

Currently, I’m immersed in the world of my literary fiction novel, woven with magical threads throughout the story. The book is detailed in the harsh truth of an era where women lived in constant fear, in the shadow of witch hunts. With the first draft finally done, I am overwhelmed by the raw reality of what women faced. Tears fell on many of my handwritten pages as I stepped into the lives of my female characters, trying to survive their messed-up world. Their lives became my heartbreaking reality as I wrote.

At the center of the story is a widow, haunted by the constant fear of being branded a witch. Her gift of healing could easily lead to accusations, torture, mutilation, or death. With loved ones already lost to burning pyres and strangling gallows, she still doesn’t play it safe. She’s called upon to help women in need, so she lives each day convinced she could be the next one accused.

With revisions and the completion of the book in sight, my hairdresser is just a phone call away. She is ready to swoop in and rescue me when the revisions drive me to tear my hair out.

A recent research trip to Wales helped me better understand the region and dive into its history. My goal is to finish the book by the end of 2026.

I’m a garden writer, co-author of the award-winning Gardening for the Homebrewer, a garden speaker, and an award-winning photographer. My career spans many decades. My speaking engagements have included the Northwest Flower & Garden Festival, Tacoma Home & Garden Show, Peninsula Home & Garden Expo, and numerous garden clubs. It was an honor to be a guest on the Garden Time television show in Oregon and on radio programs such as Gardening with Ciscoe on 97.3 FM KIRO and Poppy Tucker’s Louisiana Eats on NPR.

My articles and photographs appear in local, national, and international magazines and newspapers, and as a contributing garden writer for Plant Something Oregon, Digger Magazine, and West Sound Magazine. My work has been published in Fine Gardening, Master Gardener, Tardigarde (Sweden), and HGTV Magazine. At the same time, newspapers, including the Oregonian and a monthly garden column, “Garden Life,” in the Kitsap Weekly (unfortunately, the latter is no longer in print).

My website, Rainy Side Gardeners, focuses on regional gardening west of the Cascades. Gardening most of my adult life, I have always searched for new varieties of plant material or created new container designs using beautiful pottery or repurposed items.

“The very best of the best. Geared specifically toward gardening in the maritime Northwest. Amazing photography, plant bios, forums for information exchange, calendar, articles on every aspect of gardening. Put it at the top of your bookmarks because you’ll be using it a lot.” -The Oregonian