Christine Dann has been growing and preparing food at home for over 40 years. She is the author of Cottage Gardening in New Zealand and A Cottage Garden Cook Book, and teaches informal gardening classes and workshops. She shares gardening and cooking information on her blog, The Eco Gardener. Christine began gardening and cooking as a child in her first home at the foot of the Port Hills in Christchurch, and later created organic food gardens in Auckland, Wellington, Dunedin and Diamond Harbour, before settling in a one-hectare garden and restored native forest in Port Levy, Banks Peninsula. Christine has a PhD in environmental policy and when not gardening and cooking she researches and writes about food and agricultural systems, with a particular interest in fair, sustainable and healthy food production and consumption.