by Greg Alder | Oct 7, 2016 | Avocados, Watering |
Let’s say you just planted an avocado tree from a five-gallon container, the typical size available at nurseries. How should you water this tree? First, immediately after planting you should water lavishly, making sure that all of the container soil is wet and also...
by Greg Alder | Mar 7, 2016 | Avocados, Resources |
Here is the best overall resource on grafting avocados that I’m aware of. Written by some of the most experienced people in the world, and specific to California conditions, it is a publication called “Propagating Avocados” from the University of...
by Greg Alder | Feb 25, 2016 | Avocados |
The California avocado industry was originally built on the quality of one variety: Fuerte. And yet, despite its fame and importance, the commonly repeated story about how Fuerte got its name is dubious. Here’s a summary of the story that is told: A freeze hit...
by Greg Alder | Feb 10, 2016 | Avocados, Fruit |
This is the last avocado from Mexico that I will ever buy. This is one too many rotten Mexican avocados that I have bought over the years, and I’m vowing to myself that I will never pay another dollar for one of these carelessly harvested and handled pieces of...
by Greg Alder | Jan 29, 2016 | Avocados |
You don’t need more than one avocado tree to get fruit production, but having two trees and allowing for cross pollination can never hurt. And there are some studies showing increased yield when two different avocado varieties are growing in proximity. The idea...
by Greg Alder | Jan 4, 2016 | Avocados, Fruit |
My aim has always been to have the entire year covered. And since avocados, like many fruit trees, produce more in alternate years I’ve sought to have two varieties that are best-eating for each season (in case one is having an “off” year). For...
by Greg Alder | Oct 21, 2015 | Avocados |
Last fall, when I harvested sweet potatoes, I stuck a slip in the ground under the drip line of the Hass avocado tree. I wanted to see if the vine would take and survive the winter. It did, and it grew vigorously all summer until yesterday I tore out the foliage and...
by Greg Alder | May 8, 2015 | Avocados, Fruit |
No, you don’t need two avocado trees to get fruit. Before I explain how I know this, let me say where I think this myth originates: avocado flowers are strange. They are dichogamous, it’s called by botanists. The standard description of avocado flower...
by Greg Alder | Mar 24, 2015 | Avocados, Watering |
I heard a Master Gardener say she was hesitant to recommend that people plant avocado trees in their Southern California yards because avocados need a lot of water. Sounds sensible at first. We should be careful about our water use. But let’s think further....
by Greg Alder | Feb 26, 2015 | Avocados, Fruit |
It was exactly one year ago that our first child was born. When we brought Cass home from the hospital we also carried with us his placenta, and in the light rain that had started falling I dug a hole, placed the placenta along with the amniotic sac and umbilical cord...
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