When my yard grows up
Chance had a problem and a rough idea of the solution. Grasses were taking over his family's vegetable garden, especially the pathways. Meanwhile, he was raising rabbits for meat. Rabbits eat grass but they also eat vegetable plants so he needed to build a...
Protecting tomatoes from heat
This is a short video of what I do to protect my tomatoes when the heat hits: Find shade cloth at a good nursery near you or online at Peaceful Valley (Grow Organic) or Johnny's. All of my Yard Posts are listed HERE Learn HERE about how my Yard Posts are purely...
Cucumber varieties for Southern California, 2022
My kids were eating lunch but they weren't eating the cucumbers on their plate. "It's bitter," one said. We were on the road and had bought two cucumbers at a farm stand. The first tasted great, but sure enough, the second was bitter -- even in the middle, even after...
Tomato varieties with disease resistance for Southern California
How's your tomato year? Mine is 50/50. In part of my garden, I have grown varieties that don't claim any disease resistance; they are open-pollinated varieties that are different shapes and colors. They are delicious, and the plants produced well for a while but are...
Citrus, ants, and HLB: the latest research
Yesterday, I attended a citrus pest management field day at Rancho Guejito put on by the University of California. The focus was on the disease Huanglongbing (HLB) and ants. I've attended many similar lectures and research updates on these topics over the...
Carpinteria Community Garden
Since I was a kid, my extended family has gathered for a week every summer to camp at the beach in Carpinteria. Just below Santa Barbara, Carpinteria is on the north end of Southern California, at least the way I draw the lines. I think of Southern California as being...
Grafting onto citrus rootstock suckers
Citrus trees often shoot up branches from down low on the trunk. If low enough -- below the graft union -- then these "suckers" are from the rootstock. In a sense, these are dangerous, and it's important to remove them immediately. See details on why and how in my...
Interplanting vegetables
We had spent the afternoon swimming in the Tsoaing river, which would swell with water after each summer rain, and we were hungry. Masopha led us to his family's field nearby where they were growing corn with watermelon underneath. He picked a couple of watermelons....
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