I've really got to thank my wife Ginger for helping me out with this project.  She is able to help water when I can't, she weeds (when I can't), and she gives me support in everything I do.  Thanks wife ?. It's beginning to look like a garden again.  Here's a few pics: Concord Grapes Blooms on the Green Beans Tomatoes Eggplant Cilantro Radishes Basil Oregano Yeppers, I think there's starting to be a garden here. Stop by anytime, Duane   ..read more

 6-6-21  Slowly getting there I am still amazed at how some of the plants have survived through the eons of time that I was in that other dimension.  It's not just the ones that survived either that I still find amazing.  Some of the plants that died are still left hanging on the trellises and supports from before and give a ghostly perspective to something that was alive and active in ages past.  It's like an old stone foundation that is crumbled down and broken, but still gives the impression of the magnificence it had when it was in use. I want to show you something ..read more

5-30-21  Finding material for composting. I thought that this post should be about raking in the compost again.  A lot of the discussions I have with different people that are interested in gardening are about how to compost, and where to find the material needed for the sweet dirt.  It seems mostly to be common sense to me, but common sense is based on knowledge too.  If you haven't been in the game very long, then the knowledge has to come from somewhere.   Part of our composting regimen is to take a wide variety of organic material that we can find and run it t ..read more

5-23-21  Digging out the garden Here's where we are now: We were able to get a mower in there, but those weeds fought us the whole way.  We gathered numerous wheelbarrows of cuttings that we gave to the cows.  They were so happy.  :)  We could have also added it to a compost bin, but it looks like the pallet bin down here in the garden is pretty much falling apart.  Just one more thing to add to the growing list. This step was really necessary just to see what we are going to have to deal with.  Gotta find it before you can work it.  When the weeds gro ..read more

 Raised Bed Gardening in Arkansas      I was really surprised with how well the Garlic Chives have survived.  They were being strangled by the Bermuda Grass and shaded over by the rest of the tall weeds, but they were still in there ... somewhere.         It took a little bit of work to dig it out, but once I got the bed (an old truck tire) defined, I was able to start removing the weeds in the Garlic Chives themselves.  They are easy to tell from all the weeds because of their dark green color, their wide and thick blades, and the base ..read more

 5/9/21  Subject:  The Next Step      So where do we start?  What's the next step?  Crap ... what's the first step?  That was a big question, considering the monumental nature of the task in front of us.  My wife and I decided that it be best to start with what needed the attention the most.  Now that sounds pretty simple, at first glance, but there were a lot of things that really needed attention.      We’ve always had a garden that mixed both perennial garden plants as well as annual plants.  The annuals di ..read more

Raised Bed Gardening in Arkansas 5/2/2021  Subject:  Where Do We Start?      First, I need to apologize for starting up this blog, and then just disappearing from the world back in 2013.  I know that even though these meanderings never did hit the mainstream, there were still several people that were already looking forward to the new information that I could provide, and I dropped the ball, and left people hanging.      I could tell you stories about the dimensional portal that sucked me in and it took me this long to find my way back.  Or I c ..read more

Establishing New Garden Beds        Ask a million gardeners and you will probably get about a million different processes or techniques to make a garden bed.  I’ll show you what I do … it may not be the easiest … it may not be the best … but it sure does pay off in my garden.      When you get started in gardening, you will come across many new ways of doing things that you haven’t thought of before.  You will come across many “gee-whiz” gadgets, cool looking yard ornaments, hanging paraphernalia, and all kinds of stuff made from junk ..read more

A look at the garden at the end of December 2012 Little garden                                                                        Little garden                 &nbs ..read more

Rainwater versus City water (Mother knows best) Pictures are of my wife ... cause I'm holding the camera  :-) Bed of okra ... notice the thickness of the stalk Greenbeans ... just starting to put on beans Jalapeno peppers ... still loaded in Sept Tomatoes ... still active and about 9' tall after the hottest and dryest season on record. Corn ... producing at the end of the season      Have you ever noticed the explosion of new growth and size difference in the fruits from your garden after a nice long soaking rain?  Here you are … watering everyday … tryi ..read more