Beth Cody, born and raised in Ames, Iowa, has lived in the Iowa City area for more than twenty-five years, and has been an avid amateur gardener on her five-acre rural property for the past decade.

She writes a garden blog at gardenfancy.blogspot.com and is interested in formal gardens, scented flowers, tropical and exotic plants, Islamic paradise gardens and garden history. She is a volunteer with Project GREEN, which raises money to beautify public spaces in the Iowa City area.

Beth lives in a 95-year-old farmhouse in Amish country with her husband, two children and 700 garden books. A graduate of the University of Iowa and Brandeis University in economics, she makes a living as a small business owner when she is not out in her garden, thinking about her garden or reading garden books.

Contact Beth for more information about this book or other questions. She is available to give short talks about the history of Iowa gardening, illustrated by slideshow images, at libraries, garden clubs and historical societies.