Harvesting first honey
"Harvesting honey completes a circle in your yard," said Jacques, as he was guiding me through the process of taking honey from my hive of bees which he had helped me install three years prior. He explained: You grow these plants that flower (strawberries, tomatillos,...
Timely posts for May 8
Friends have been asking about these topics: 1. How will you support your tomatoes this season? I use cages for some, and I use stakes and string for others. Check out this post: "Comparing tomato supports: cage vs. stake-and-string" 2. Your avocado tree has just...
One-handed gopher trapping
Feel free to call me an old man who refuses to use new technology, but when my tried-and-true Cinch trap works this well, can you blame me? https://youtu.be/Gty6ojnVieg Here is my post about trapping gophers and using the Cinch Trap.
Look, Mom. I made a citrus tree from scratch!
It all started when I identified my neighbor's citrus tree as rootstock. The fruit was unpleasantly sour and very seedy, nothing you would ever eat. The leaves were in groups of three. I looked at the base of the trunk and could see where the intended top of the tree...
Avocado rootstocks: What do they matter?
Rootstocks are mysterious. They do their work hidden, underground. Yet, their influence on the trees above ground is real and measurable. For example, some rootstocks have demonstrated that they can induce the tops to make more than twice as much fruit compared to...
Madalyn onion variety: a profile
As I noticed the swollen white bulbs and the first green necks collapsing this week, I thought, Madalyn never lets me down. I think she's my favorite. I should tell others about her. Background: Madalyn is an onion variety that comes from Enza Zaden, a vegetable...
Supporting The Yard Posts
My goal with The Yard Posts is to help others grow food at home, with a focus on vegetables and fruits -- especially avocados -- in Southern California. How do I do this? I write short articles – “posts” – each Friday, and I augment each post with photos and sometimes...
The Anomalous March of 2026
One day it got up to 101 degrees in our yard, and on another day we played at the beach and got sunburned and the ocean water felt like summer -- in March. It was hot, but how unusual was that for March? And how did plants in the food garden respond? HOT I've been...









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