Cheralyn Darcey is gardener with a passion for ethnobotany and botanical history. She produces and presents a live weekly two-hour gardening radio show, 'At Home with the Gardening Gang', on CoastFM 963, Australia and is also the gardening columnist for weekly print and digital editions for The Coast News and The Coast Chronicle. A passionate Community Gardener, she is also the Garden Curator of SWAMP (Sustainable Wetlands Agricultural Makers Project). Based in the middle of the NSW Central Coast, it is a working Community Garden and Urban Farm which provides community outreach programs and community garden training. Cheralyn has written and illustrated twenty botanical titles, that share with readers her passion for plants and lifelong research that explores the relationships of the botanical kingdom and us. She is popular guest on national tv, international podcasts, radio and print media for her extensive and engaging knowledge of botanical history, garden folklore and practical gardening knowledge. Living on the Central Coast of NSW, Australia, Cheralyn has created and nurtures her own extensive flower, vegetable, native plant and indoor gardens that has been featured in national and international publications and is her creative sanctuary. She is also a Garden Designer, Gardener and Florist who works with the principles of sustainably and creating spaces with deeper spiritual connections and personal meaning. Her artwork has been featured in galleries and art prizes across Australia and the USA including The Australian Museum and Manly Art Gallery. Cheralyn was an Environmental Artist in Residence during the International Conference of Eco Ideas 2011 and has a long association with many environmental organisations creating eco artworks, educational workshops and presentations as well as working as an administration volunteer. “No matter where I have found myself, gardening has been the pulse of my daily life. My life is enriched with a deep fasciation for the scientific and historical facets of botany and my heart filled with a divine joy due to my passion for creating and tending gardens. What comes from them, be it art, healing, support or beauty, weaves like a ribbon of sunlight through everything I do and share.” www.cheralyndarcey.com
