Day avocado: a profile
Enjoy this video profile of an avocado variety that comes from Florida and is rarely grown in California. Here the fruit matures early, even earlier than Fuerte. In Israel, the Day variety has been found to be a good rootstock in some situations. I present the Day...
What to do in a Southern California garden in January
Here it is: our deep winter. In January only -- and a couple weeks before and after -- can we enjoy a fire in the fireplace and do we have the chance to see a little frost on the ground. Appreciate it before it's warm again for 10 months. (Rough life?) Have any of...
Fuerte avocados for sale
Let's start 2023 off right with a harvest of one of the finest avocados of all time: Fuerte. I had thought of waiting another week to pick, but after I tasted the beauty pictured above and it contained every bit of flavor you could hope for, I could not delay. This...
Avocados for sale, 2023
Thank you to everyone who ordered avocados in 2022. It was a joy to share with you different varieties and to connect you to the farmers throughout Southern California who grew them. For 2023, I'm predicting the following harvest schedule: January: Fuerte,...
Tools for pruning fruit trees
My son and I were pruning our macadamia nut tree when his loppers couldn't cut through a branch. I saw that they were undersized for the branch. "Don't force it," I said. "If it feels like you have to use a lot of strength, it means you need a different tool." I gave...
Growing vegetables in raised boxes
Is it best to grow vegetables in raised boxes? Best for the vegetables? Best for you? Even though I grow my vegetables in the ground in my current garden, growing in raised boxes might be right for you. I'll go through the pros and cons of growing vegetables in...
The Yard Posts food gardening calendar 2023
The new calendar is ready! What is this calendar? It helps Southern California food gardeners by listing for each month which vegetables to plant, how to care for different kinds of fruit trees, and guidance on watering. It’s based on my personal experience and shows...
Growing avocados in California’s Central Valley
At times I feel more in common with folks growing avocados 300 miles north of me in California's Central Valley than I do with those just twenty miles west in Encinitas. A coastal location like Encinitas is never hot and never cold whereas the Central Valley is...
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