After eight years as an award-winning reporter for the Boothbay Register, Barbara Freeman joined the staff of the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, and she continues to write for newspapers, magazines, and newsletters. A Master Gardener, Freeman has tended gardens in Pennsylvania, Florida, and Maine, and knows the requirements of various climates; and has visited and written about many gardens, including those of celebrities as well as of avid home gardeners. Freeman was awarded the First Prize in Environmental Reporting from the New England Press Association in 2000, and she has received numerous awards for writing and photography from the Maine Press Association. Freeman lives in Boothbay Harbor, Maine.