title: Compare dates in CodeIgniter
body: <p>I want to compare dates in my CodeIgniter model. In my db, dates are stored as MM/DD/YYYY. Comparison date take from a date picker that uses the MM/DD/YYYY format.</p>
  
  <p>But my model query not working. The date comparison is not done here.</p>
  
  <p>What's the format for comparison?</p>
  
  <p><strong>Model</strong></p>
  
  <pre><code>   $this-&gt;db-&gt;where('order_date &gt;=', $first_date);
     $this-&gt;db-&gt;where('order_date &lt;=', $second_date);
  </code></pre>