High Elevation Gardening Web Log "Blog"

I met so many gardeners from all over the US and Canada. There was enough time at meals and on tours to share ideas, problems, and MG project ideas. There was so much to offer that I had time deciding what to attend. There were 12 different tours to choose from. My tours were wonderful. The first tour was of MG projects throughout the city. Their Extension is run a little different than ours, as are most of the Extensions throughout the country. After taking classes (only 8 sessions) they are required to do 20 hours of volunteer work each year to remain MGs. The projects are decided on by a committee of MGs. They must be non-profits – many are city, country, or state funded, such as the Curran Hall which is a historical building and Visitor’s Bureau in Little Rock.

Some are jointly cared for with Park & Recreation assistance like the Old Mill restoration project.

They have other criteria besides non-profit – availability of funding, feasibility of doing the project, etc. Some of the others we toured were a contemplation garden in MacArthur Park, a gathering area in Mount Holly Cemetary, and a courtyard at the Arkansas Art Museum. There is even a demonstration vegetable garden at the Governor's Mansion.

My second tour was at P. Allen Smith’s Retreat/Farm/Garden outside of Little Rock. He did one of the keynotes and along with the Governor (Beebe) charmed everyone. He was very informative, Arkansas charming, and of course (if you have seen him on TV) not difficult to look at. The Retreat/Farm was incredible. I got so many hardscape ideas – and surprisingly many ideas for plant combinations. Yes, there were many I couldn’t use like azaleas and hydrangeas, but more that I could like penstemons and agastache. The home that he is building is being built with green ideas – such as soy insulation. The view of the Arkansa River and wild flower garden from the balcony was breathtaking. The home is located on a high ridge with a view of the river, and the garden will serve as a working model to test and teach lessons in garden design, sustainable living and good stewardship. Green technologies and practices make this a Garden Home of the future, while honoring the agrarian traditions of the past. Be sure and watch his weekly program – it comes locally on PBS – and follow progress with the garden and green home. He also occasionally appears on the Today show and shared some funny stories about doing gardening shows on TV. His retreat currently has a horse, several sheep, chickens, and a burro to keep the coyotes at bay. A bit of trivia we learned from his brother (he wouldn’t tell us) is that the P stands for Paul. I purchased his new book “Color for the Garden” and already have one of his books on “Container Gardens”.

The 3 individual sessions I attended included one on keeping deer at bay (excellent – I will put this info on the blog later), ornamental grasses (also good), and a so-so container gardening class. Oh well everything couldn’t be wonderful.

I dragged my husband along and he spent time at the Clinton Library, taking a trolley car, walking the downtown and residential streets of Little Rock, and visiting the extensive Civil War Collection at the city library. There was much to do and see especially outside of the city (Ozarks and Hot Springs) and some additional tours were available.

On our return home we decided to take a side trip through Texas. We stopped near Austin to see the Lady Bird Johnson Garden, which was spectacular. The wildflowers were wonderful and the hardscape very unique. We have much to thank her for. While driving Interstate 40 through the Texas panhandle the median divide all the way was filled with wildflowers – Texas Bluebonnet, Indian paint brush, yarrow, primrose and a variety of daisy like flowers. I should also mention that we did not see any litter – what a pleasure – in the “Don’t Mess With Texas State.”

Loni Shapiro