The Garden Home Retreat

I love the program and view it as often as possible. Will you be doing more on the show about the house? Materials used to make it "green"? I love the sleeping porch and am planning to have something of the same idea when I build my new house. I live on lots of acres in Louisiana and want to look out and feel the gulf breezes from the second story screened porch. Guess I am a cat at heart! Would love to see a book about the buildings and house. Thanks for sharing your home and ideas.

Allen, We have been watching your program and have enjoyed seeing the development of the Garden Home Retreat. We are hoping to take a trip to Little Rock this year from Lansing, MI to tour the GHR and to visit the city. The program has interested us in the variety of attractions the city has to offer as well. Thank you for inspiring us! Regards. Robert

Excellent idea, the picture is beautiful. You would have to be real devoted to make it a success, much like yourself.

This is interesting and I look forward to what's to come. ENJOY!

My daughter and her husband are planning on building a "green" farm house on 5 acres. Would you mind sharing your house and garden plans . They are in the planning stages now and want there home to be green and off the grid. A list of sources would also be fantastic. Thank you for sharing, we never miss your show on KCPT. Do you give tours of the house and garden?

I love your show and look forward to it each week! I love drawing floor plans as a hobby and would love the floor plans of the garden home retreat, is there any way I can have a floor plan of the house and out-buildings?

Allen: My husband and I would love to tour the Garden Home Retreat...house and gardens. Would that be possible?

Have you or are you going to publish a book showing the building of the Garden Home Retreat? I have followed the building as much as I can on TV but I would be very interested in a book that shows the final buildings. I have all of your other books. Thanks, Marty Hicks

As a Dutch viewer living here in Arlington, Va., I look with great pleasure at your gardening programs. Everything is done in such great taste! Look forward to many more shows.

I love your shows and have all of your books.I live in southeast Oklahoma, about 50 miles south east of Ft. Smith,AR.I am an avid gardener.My dream would be for you to design my gardens! I am blessed to live in the country.I have raised sheep, cattle and horses.Now I have only geese ,chickens and four dogs.I do get annoyed when I let my hens out and they scratch in my flower beds!Is the Garden Home Retreat completed? I have not seen all of the shows on PBS.I would love to have more info. You are an absolute inspiration to gardeners and lovers of nature everywhere. Keep up the good work.

Shall I call you "P. Allen?" Perhaps only Allen? No matter, I know where you live on my TV remote, and I see all of your programs, with much pleasure. The roots of my father's family were nurtured by Tennessee soil, then our tendrils found Arkansas red clay and mountain sides, about the same time my mother's family settled into the rich river bottoms to grow cotton, raise cattle and have fine horses. Today, a cousin, George Overbey (from Lamar, Johnson County, Arkansas) proudly serves as an Arkansas state representative. My people were farmers of various socio-economic status, and I carried a gene that gave me a love of growing things, on my own, from age eight - and with good results, I might say. As I entered middle-age (I'm 69, now) I became aware of organic gardening, raised beds, and becoming a real friend of our environment. My favorite vacation of my lifetime was the one that included a tour of Monticello and Williamsburg. Thomas Jefferson was truly a man after my own heart. I sense your own respect for Mr. Jefferson, as evidenced by the design of your gardens. You are so blessed with the resources required for your gracious accommodations, and your viewing audience is so pleased that you are sharing your largesse with us and granting us electronic visualizations to satisfy our elusive yearnings! I garden vicariously with you, now, while I battle arthritis, fend off Alzheimers' Disease, and am beginning a scary battle with recently-diagnosed breast cancer. Thank you for your wonderful shows! Your long-time fan, Janice Steed Tulsa, Oklahoma

I love that show. I tape it so I can review it. I was wondering when you are finished with your house and garden will the public be able to visit.

My wife and I have been avid followers of your show for years. Your new garden home especially has been an inspiration for us. We are planning our retreat in Texas and plan on incorporating much of what we have learned watching your program. Concepts of keeping it green where possible particularly the way the home was insulated, using local materials, and the rain water capture system. Keep up the great work. Christer J.

I have followed your show only recently I'm afraid. I never had it until Create was added in my area of NJ. I live in Chester and I believe you know some friend in town of mine. I am very happy to say your taste and experience is very helpful to me. Your garden retreat work is similar to what I have been doing also. I moved from NYC after30 years there. I purchased my family house (early 18th c ) on two acres and because of my x mother in law (UK) I became enthrawled in English Perennial gardens. It helped me decide to take on the house by turning the two acre lawn into many garden rooms. I had so much work in the house but put money first in the garden and plodded along and am now in the 7th year and am thinking of changing my line of work from antique dealer to something with gardening because I love it so much. It is very clear that the inside and outside are very important which is why I decided to add a conservatory wing kitchen as well as for my parents an additon having two more condervatory sections. It has taken alot of time as yours is and is so much interwoven as you say on the show, inside and out. All of what you are doing is so similar to my addition issues as well as the newly limed wash gate houses! Trying to replicate stone foundations, chinoiserie railings and other Georgian details difficult without the correct contractors. It's not always easy to find the right people when one is not as connected with labor. I find following your show helpful that I am seeing that it takes some one like yourself time to expand it and finalize things. Your place is so beautiful I wish I had the funds to have you come and assist me. The property is only half developed but I have a finished idea of what I would like. I find the hard scape daunting as it is the most expensive and have not so much yet. I designed the addtion to the house and wanted the architect who was "green" design the catch water systems for me. He did not and we had incredible grading issues that we are still dealing with besides the water issues around the house. II have a 19 Zone drip system which when I was ready to install the septic tank and dig the water tank at the same time, it was figured by my irregation person that I needed a 10,000 gallon capasity to utilize the water for my system to work. do you catch less than that and only a portion of what is used for your garden? Can you explain to me what you are doing and what size your tank is? I will call brea and get them to advise as my local people quoted something that was not economical for the tank alone. ( about 15 grand for a poly tank? ) I was thwarted in my first attemps to resolve this and am not going to give up ! In any event I find your show wonderful and hope I can visit your retreat in it's completion. If you are ever in Chester NJ for any reason, I would love to meet with you and show you what I'm doing. I think it would be interesting to you with you love of antique homes. thanks for your show! Linda

The drawing I am seeing is great can you post a more finished product. I already live as a farmer but do not have the dream acreage I would like. I am now 52 with plans of creating something somewhere else in the near future. Town living is not for me and privacy is of the utmost importance. You have drawn what looks to be my dream home with the exception of maybe having only one story, this will be my retirement retreat and aging is a reality I suppose. Waiting for the finished product! Thanks

I too am looking for the proper location in Oregon to build a small farm homestead. Your plan looks delightfull. I may be able to draw from some of your ideas? Any suggestions?

I watch so many shows during the building of the Garden Home Retreat (GHR) and loved every minute of it. I couldn't wait until the project was completed. However, I never saw a completion show. Is it finished? Was there a show of the finished GHR? A house-warming party? Please let me know, I would dearly love to see the final home. Carolyn Powell Boerne, Texas

In reading your bio it reminds me of myself. I love gardening of all kinds and that is my passion in life. Unfortunately, I live in Atlanta where my husband and I own a marketing business. I feel stuck. I want so much to be able to leave and find all the pervect piece of land so I can grow anything I want. My yard in the suburbs is maxed out because I have planted everything I possible can. I truly envy you. I lived in Tennesse for 18 before moving to Atlanta so I know how you feel about farm land. It inspires m e.

I recently viewed P.Allen Smith talking about a wire chandalier he uses outside over a table with candles, etc. I would love to get one like it. Any suggestions where I can do that? Thank you very much. Lauretta Pearl (a big fan)

My wife and I arelooking to build a home soon. We have approx. 6 acres. We are wanting the farm house look . Very much like what you have created. I was wondering if you would be interested in sharing the floor plans. I think it is a beautiful home and look forward to any help you could provide. Thanks again from our home to yours.

How big is a modest house? How many square feet, and how many bedrooms and baths. I love your program.

Trying to find out tje location of the garden retreat. Where would you have to go to see this beautiful retreat?

I create and draw floor plans - a hobby of mine. I would love to see the floors plans and if possible elevations of your new garden home retreat in Arkansas

Allan, is the Garden Retreat available for tour? I'm also hoping to add a "living wall" as the divider / fence. Have you tried that ??? Here's some I've looked at: http://www.eltlivingwalls.com/photo_gallery.php Any advice how to do it in Arkansas, is appreciated???

I'm looking for a good exteral pump for the rain barrels I have set up in my front yard. Do you have any suggestions ??? On a separate subject, the Chef cooking the recipe on your show that aired 3/29/09 - used an interesting small grinders for the salt and other seasoning. Can you link me to the web site that sells these??? Thanks Allen, Barb

I loved the look of the limestone wash that you did on one of your bldgs. Could you tell me how to do that & if it could be used on an indoor fireplace? Thanks so much!

I love the design of the garden home retreat. It is built on the design of the old Victorian style with the wrap around porch and everything I love including the flower gardens . I have a degree in Drafting and Design. I know how to read blue prints and draw land plats.

I have never been on a company website that doesn't have an address for the location or at least a site map. Just "kinda in the Little Rock area" isn't enough for me to decide whether to present this to our church group as a spring outing. Please provide more specifics.

We recently purchased an 1888 farmhouse on a very modest piece of property (0.79 acres) overlooking Lake Erie. I am hoping your Garden Home Retreat gives me ideas on landscaping the property, as it needs a complete overhaul along with the house. The property is modest so must make the most of what I have and would like to mix vegetables with flowers in the colonial style even though the home is a victorian farmhouse. I look forward to studying your project in detail. Thanks, Dawna

Where in Arkansas is this beautiful home located? I have family in Hot Springs Village AR and would love to take a tour when I visit them.

I toured the Garden Home in the fall. I thought the material used for the kitchen countertops was marble. Recently someone told me it was a different material, possibly man made. Would you mind telling me what was used on kitchen island countertop? Thank you.