I'll be sure to return here in June when the morning glories are climbing all over Carol and Daniel's fence.

It's a verifiable fact that urban farms are on the rise in Garland Texas.  Last year on June 12, I replaced about half of my front yard with my first garden of fruits and vegetables. Of course the factor of increase in Garland urban gardens is certainly more than a factor of my one.  Almost daily I talk to someone in my Garland community who tells me they have a garden.

However, few people do urban gardening as eloquently as Daniel Bell and Carol Garrison.  Charlie and I stopped by their home in Garland's Oak Ridge neighborhood this morning after the rain.  Margie and Gene Rodgers had told me about this home and I had to see it for myself.  Like the keyhole gardeners in Clifton, Daniel and Carol's garden also abounds with evidence of their creativity and imagination.  The only thing more magical than urban gardens are the people who build them.  For certain, gardens are a wonderful expression of the better side of humanity.

Ever the bold one, I got out of the car and was busy taking photos of someone's private property while Charlie waited respectfully in the car.  Following are a few photos I snapped before Daniel came out the front door.  I was especially thrilled to see their treatment of the curbside area as it mirrors exactly the plans I have for my own curbside.

Like many members of Loving Garland Green and the Garland Community Garden, Daniel and Carol's urban garden features a square foot garden modeled after the design made famous by Mel Bartholomew in 1982.

And then Daniel came out the door and the real tour began.  He told us the story of his garden and of course we learned some valuable gardening tips from him.  He even took us around to his back yard--what a feast for the eyes.   

The back yard is as interesting as the front yard.  One of my favorite items in the back yard was the "garden bed."  He and Carol purchased the bed frame at a yard sale for $25.

LIke Deb Tolman and other creative gardeners, Daniel and Carol create unusual planters from discarded objects.  Below is an old wagon that Carol has owned for about 30 years.  Daniel mentioned that if you tried to move it the wheels would likely fall off.

Sculptures made from colored bottles might be a requirement for urban gardens.  Almost all the gardens I visited in Clifton on Friday had bottle sculptures. HMMMMM  I better get busy and build one for my garden. 

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So are you still hesitant to start that urban garden?  What are you waiting for?  If it's courage you lack, I suggest that you come to a meeting of Loving Garland Green.   We meet every Monday at 216 East Kingsbridge Drive Garland 75040  from 6:30 to 7:30.  Our meetings are open to the public.