Kinking drip irrigation tubes to save time and water
I love the efficiency of drip irrigation, but its inflexibility can be frustrating. Learning to kink my drip irrigation tubes in various ways has, however, relieved some of this frustration and added versatility into my system. Let me explain and illustrate with two...
Protecting avocado trees from heat
If the air temperature is comfortable for you, then it is comfortable for your avocado tree. Optimum temperature for avocado trees It’s tempting to think of avocados as loving heat because they originated in the tropics, but we must remember that they come from high...
Girdling avocado trees for consistent fruiting
The ideal avocado tree fruits every year, and it makes approximately the same quantity of fruit every year. Alas, this ideal avocado tree is only a dream. Nevertheless, there is a technique that can be used to manipulate an avocado tree into fruiting...
My yard: 10 years of growing
A decade ago, at the end of June 2013, my pregnant wife and I began moving into our house. We bought this place in Ramona using every penny we had. It seemed to offer almost everything we wanted: plenty of indoor space for us to fill with a family; and an acre of...
Earwigs, pill bugs, slugs, and snails: stopping their damage to your vegetables
One downside to the wet winter and cool spring we've had is that earwigs, pill bugs, slugs, and snails have found this weather heavenly, and they continue to munch on my vegetables even during these first days of summer. But I've got a few tricks up my sleeve. I...
Shovel don’t lie
Nick and Anna-Marie told me they had planted a white sage in their backyard, and the plant’s tag said it was a “compact” version but it had grown over five feet tall and wide. I looked out their back door to see the plant. There it was: A robust white sage with flower...
Beware of rootstock suckers on avocado trees
If I owned a nursery, each time I sold a fruit tree I would attach a flyer that explained rootstock suckers. Too many innocent fruit trees get overtaken by their rootstock while the gardener doesn't notice . . . until: "Why are my oranges sour?" "Why is my plum tree...
Advantage of multiple avocado pollenizers
An avocado pollenizer is a tree of a different flower type that is used to help another tree make more fruit. For example, a Zutano avocado tree is often planted as a pollenizer among Hass avocado trees on farms because the Zutano is a B flower whereas Hass is an A....
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