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PAGE 6B THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS WEDNESDAY, JULY 2, 2008 Banks optimizes space for gardens BANKS RAISES HIS VEGETABLES Henry David Banks, Homer, is shown standing beside his tomato plants and cantaloupe vines that he has planted in two old bath tubs. Banks said this takes up little space and the lattice keeps the vines off the ground and away from the groundhogs. Photo by Sharon Hogan BY SHARON HOGAN Banks County’s Senior Magistrate Judge, Henry David Banks, has definitely learned to make the most use of a small space when it comes to his gar dening. Banks said he went to the gro cery store in early spring and saw that the price of squash was $1.29 per pound. Banks said, “I am not pay ing this I will plant some of my own.” And that is just what he did. He planted his squash in his wife’s flowerbed along the side of his driveway. Banks said, “My wife didn’t like this very much.” Now he has squash vines that are waist high. Banks said he has already picked about eight gal lons of squash thus far. Banks said he started thinking about a way that someone with a small area could still do some gardening and he came up with the idea that he could take two old bathtubs he had, fill them with potting soil and plant veg etables in them. Banks said he also had a prob lem at his house on McDonald Circle, Homer, with the ground hogs eating plants that are on the ground. So he put the bath tubs up on a cement picnic table beside his house and placed lat tice sheets around the tubs for the vines to run on to keep them up off the ground. In one bathtub, he put tomato plants and in the other he planted cantaloupes. He will soon reap the benefits of both of these. Gardening is just one hobby that Banks enjoys. Banks said he was in the landscaping business for a time before he was a mag istrate judge. He has many flowerbeds in his yard that he enjoys working in. Banks said he likes to watch the birds in his yard enjoying the bird feeders and this year he planted some hummingbird vines near the front of his house. Banks said when the blooms appear on the vines the hummingbirds will come to them. Banks also enjoys woodwork ing and one of the things he builds is bird feeders. Banks said, “I put glass around the ones I build so that the birds can see the food inside.” Banks said he likes to sit and watch the birds when they are eating. Banks has built a variety of items in his woodworking shop. He has tables, shelves, lamps and bowls, just to name a few. One lamp he has in his house was made out of wood from a tree that was in the yard of the home where his wife of 60 years, Eudora, grew up. Banks said when the land for the Applebee’s at Banks Crossing was being cleared he was able to get some wood from a large tree that she and her sister played on as chil dren. Banks made both his wife and her sister a lamp from the wood. Mrs. Banks said, “My sister cried when they cut the tree down and she cried when she received the lamp.” Banks, who served as magis trate judge for Banks County for 16 years, said he is enjoying his retirement. Banks said he likes to deer hunt. At the age of 81 he still climbs into his deer stand when he goes hunting. He also likes fishing and Banks said he and his family enjoy spending time at their lake home on Clark Hill Lake outside of Elberton. The Bankses have two grown sons, four grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Banks grew up in the Banks Crossing area and he has a lot of information about the early years in that area. Banks said he remembered when Hwy. 441 was first paved and when 1-85 was built through the area. Banks enjoys talking about the early years and the way things have changed around Banks County. Family Fun Center User Tag * Arcade Games Inflatables S \ f Spider ZorieHMm 2 HOUR UNLIMITED PASS!!! $ |Q QQ ^ly 4, 2008 Only, I 1 per person. Includes: Go-Karts, Bumper Boats, Mini Golf, Tornado Ride, Rock Wall, Bumper Cars, Spider Zone, 1 session of laser tag and one bucket of balloons for water wars. All riders must meet height and safety requirements. No cash value and no substitutions. ^ Closed-in shoes required for go-karts. Socks required in inflatables. -Available!, 706-335-3866 Book Your Summer ^^Urties No^^ 40155 Hwy. 441, Commerce, GA 30529 Located at Interstate 85 at exit 149 just past the Wal-Mart www.funopolisfamilyfuncenter.com Hours: Mon.-Thurs. 11 a.m. - 10 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 11 a.m. - 11 p.m., Sun. 12 p.m. - 9 p.m. Donna Sikes An Honest District Attorney For a Change Donna Sikes has more experience -17 years - than ANY other candidate for District Attorney. • An ‘Open Door, Open Books’ policy Taxpayers will know how their money is being spent • A Drug Court program for Barrow, Banks and Jackson Counties Let’s get smart about fighting the drug war • Extra Training for Law Enforcement Officers To help make sure that no criminal goes free on a technicality Paid for by: Donna Sikes for District Attorney Vote Donna Sikes July 15 Republican Primary